Posted on 08/15/2012 8:56:26 AM PDT by BuckeyeTexan
Technology is changing politics, government and civic life. This timeline shows the accelerating pace of change in the United States, in the international arena, and online. Here are the seminal moments, inventions, and first uses that mark the early emergence and then growing importance of the Internet and connection technologies on the political arena. To view it in it's original setting, go here.
This timeline is meant to be a living document. We intend to keep updating it as events unfold. If you would like to suggest an important development that we may have missed, or make a correction to the record, please use this form.
This timeline was compiled between June 2011 and May 2012 by Diane Chang, Kristina Redgrave, Becky Kazansky and Andrew Seo, working under the editing supervision of Micah L. Sifry. Partial research support provided by the Shorenstein Center at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. Copyright 2012 Personal Democracy Media.
Note: Some events that are dated on the first of a month occurred during that month but the exact date is not recorded. Events are color-coded blue for USA, purple for international and green for online.
(See interactive timeline at the link.)
Heh.
Powerline/Scott Johnson credited with questioning Dan Rather’s “fake-but accurate” documents.
FALSE! Or El Wrongo!
Buckhead right here on FR exposed the fake documents/Rather/Mary Mapes...a few minutes before Scott Johnson.
Send them a correction. Let’s get that fixed ASAP.
LOL! Very good.
“Send them a correction. Let’s get that fixed ASAP.”
I would think that Buck or JimRob would want the honor of correcting the site. That’s why I copied them.
That’s very considerate of you.
In the text of the article, there’s a link to a correction form that should be used.
Jim - Didn’t they also get the foundation date of FR wrong?
Free Republic was officially founded Sept 23, 1996. But I posted all the pages manually until I had the forum software ready to go in January/February of 1997. I had experimented with some very primitive forum software found on the net, but didn’t like any of the ones I found (and there were very few at the time) so I developed my own. The rest is history.
Here’s the earliest copy of FR I can find on the waybackmachine (Dec 21, 1996):
http://web.archive.org/web/19961221165158/http://freerepublic.com/
And here it is in June 1997 with an early version of our forum software (click “Forum” on the top banner, then on any of the topics listed on the sidebar to see the early discussion threads):
http://web.archive.org/web/19970617175433/http://www.freerepublic.com/
Way cool!
By the way, found a copy of our earliest “White Water Archives” here:
http://web.archive.org/web/19980419111844/http://freerepublic.com/forum/twwarchives.htm
What ever happened to “Registered”????
I don’t know. That was long before I got here. I found it when I did the research for RINO FREE AMERICA.
From my profile page:
PART I.
THIS IS WHO WE ARE!
We are contributing members of the Premiere Conservative Forum, Free Republic, (FreeRepublic.com.) Our members are known by the term, FREEPERS. We have been engaged in Conservative Activism since 1996.
Founded in September 1996 as a sole proprietorship by Founder, Chairman and President James C. “Jim” Robinson, of Fresno, California, Free Republic opened to the general public in February 1997. Robinson filed for LLC status on September 11, 1998. (an auspicious date when you recall what September 11 has now come to represent in our history.) It has always been a for-profit company and donations have never been tax exempt.
This bears mention for the fact that Free Republic operates SOLELY on contributions from our members, although it costs nothing to join or participate. We are self-supporting and self-sustaining. The tie that binds us all is Conservatism at its finest.
It is also worth paying attention to because what we can accomplish in ONE fundraising event on this site can amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars, IF we decide to pick and back a candidate.
Free Republic’s membership spans the entire Fifty States of the United States of America, scattered members from other countries around the world, and includes Americans from all walks of life and all different faiths.
We proudly boast members representing our Military, (some on Active Duty around the world, including Iraq and Afghanistan,), Law Enforcement, First Responders, accountants, authors, journalists, Veterans from many wars going all the way back to the Korean War, grandmothers and grandfathers, mothers, fathers, husbands and wives, sisters and brothers, and a new generation of the children of original members who have chosen to follow in their parents’ footsteps.
In other words, our constituency comprises Conservatives who joined Free Republic because of its basic core principles which have not changed since the day our doors were opened.
At the time of its founding, Jim Robinson and a handful of like minded Conservatives became so concerned with the direction our country was being taken by Bill Clinton, they felt compelled to raise their voices by organizing the FIRST March for Justice in Washington, DC, which attracted at least 3000 Patriotic Americans and was broadcast live on Halloween 1998 by C-SPAN. Featured speakers included Alan Keyes, Bob Barr, Reverend Jesse Lee Peterson of B.O.N.D. and Larry Klayman. Ann Coulter, Lucianne Goldberg and Matt Drudge also attended. Other Free Republic events over the years have also been televised by C-SPAN.
Over the years, Free Republic has been a major force in many political events which usually are not mentioned when referring to us, since we have become anathema to left wing blogs and organizations such as Democratic Underground, MoveOn.org, MediaMatters, Think Progress, etc., which are more interested in pointing out some of the negatives during our growing pains, BECAUSE of our influence in thwarting their left wing agenda.
PART II.
THIS IS WHY WE MATTER!
Free Republic and its members have been instrumental in making sure our rights were not trampled and justice prevailed.
Examples of this have been:
1. The exposure of Al Gore’s participation in the Clinton fund raising scandals.
2. The unprecedented, and often overlooked, “ex-communication” of Joe Lieberman by the Orthodox Jewish Rabbis who comprise a judgmental body known as the Bet Din, for using his claimed orthodoxy to promote the Gore pro-abortion policies as Gore’s VP running mate, which has not been lifted to this day.
3. The design and release of the “Sore Loserman” posters and bumperstickers which caught the attention of all of America and were so successful that they might well have changed the course of history.
4. The protests against the Florida recount, a blatant attempt by Democrats to steal the 2000 election and reverse George W. Bush’s victory. We organized successful counter-protests in opposition to the organized DNC protests and demonstrations by their union sympathizers.
WE were the ones who stormed the locked room where democrat operatives were trying to conduct their recount in secret and exposed their disregard for the rule of law. That action stopped the illegal count and changed their planned outcome.
5. The exposure of John Kerry’s true background as a Vietnam “war hero” as well as his extensive connections to our Communist enemies in North Vietnam. The book, “Unfit for Command,” was coauthored by one of our members.
6. The FIRST exposure of the Dan Rather/CBS Bush National Guard documents as forgeries, along with Powerline blog which eventually led to the firings of those involved.
These are mere highlights, but by no means all we have accomplished with our dedicated researchers and activist chapters throughout the country.
Um ... wow. You did an excellent job, MM. Nice summary of who we are and what we’re about.
I applaud your written account and would only add my heartfelt thanks. I remember freeping from the combat zones using USAF computers at the morale trailers in the desert. That was a great way to keep things in perspective. I have learned advanced mathematical proofs on atmospheric behavior analysis here. I have learned about so many amazing things here at FR. This website is unparalleled on the internet and should be considered a national resource or perhaps the definitive collection of wisdom and reasoned thinking ever compiled in recorded history.
You are certainly more than welcome! Try this one:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2827536/posts?q=1&;page=1#1
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