[af_vet_rr]

You expect the right and left to get together on this one? Please think again.

Why wouldn't they? Together they've done a good job of keeping third parties down, and the internet represents the easiest and cheapest way for a third party to reach voters.

The internet is in many ways a threat to the status quo and the two parties, because all of the sudden the entrance fee for you or me, or anybody else wanting to be heard by large numbers of people has dropped to basically nothing.

Pardon my language, but it scares the shit out of both parties that you or I could throw up a website for free, and be heard by thousands, even hundreds of thousands or millions. We don't have to spend millions to get a TV station or network to run ads, we don't have to spend tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands or more on ads in magazines and newspapers.

I manage a website for a friend that is politically oriented - a couple of his commentaries have been linked to from here, and from some of the high profile Conservative-leaning bloggers, and literally his traffic goes from 500 people a day to ten thousand or more people in a few days. The site pays for itself through two small ad, and he writes in his spare time, just a few hours a week.

Sure, the Democrats and Republicans love the internet for getting messages out and organizing people, but many of the party leaders fear it, because of the above example, and because of sites like Drudge Report (nobody had heard of Drudge until he broke a story that led to the impeachment of a sitting President). They can spend $10 million on some campaign over some issue to reach X number of potential voters, and it can be negated by a half dozen people with websites that combined, easily cost less than $500 a month to maintain (which can easily be paid for through advertising).

It's very foolish (and dangerous) thinking that the right and the left are not worried about the influence of various websites.

[Canedawg]

good post about the net and the rise of a third party.

[Candor7]

It's very foolish (and dangerous) thinking that the right and the left are not worried about the influence of various websites.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Agreed in part.

I think you are correct about the major parties, but I do not see us as a third party particularly, at least not yet.

Politicians have spent millions of bucks each election cycle to create images for themselves , designed through marketing research to manipulate parts of the electorate. This involves the obscuration of facts on each candidate.

What we do is inform people of the facts, and this tends to redefine political images which have been created over many months using millions of dollars. The web destroyed Kerry's rush for office, and appropriately so. He was a liar and unsuitable for office because he did not have the leadership skills.

Both parties do not want to respond to the people but have a priority of rsponse to lobbyists. They do this so they have enough campaign money for "image creation." Hollywood and the MSM reap billions of dollars this way , while the people are bypassed in the election cycle, they become merely manipulated. Politicians have become far to complacent and cynical about their own electorate. We are forcing a reversal of this trend, and have many MSM enemies, because they cannot win against us no matter how much money they are paid for political advertising.

We have changed that trend for two reasons: a) Balance:

The electorate is split about 50/50 between the Dims and the Pubbies.We can and do often make a difference by tipping the balance.

b) Unpredictability Our intervention "on the facts" as an organization has tipped the balance against candidates and for some others which makes the web a powerful uncontrollable, unpredictable factor in elections. The lobbyists and parties do not like such unpredictability. The MSM like it even less, they can't predict accurate outcomes without factoring in the web effect, and they won't because it would acknowledge our power as part of a non commercial cycle.

It is easy enough to continue this fight. I would donate substantial amounts of money for Jim to secure an offshore site which would not be regulated. At the same time the 1st ammendment issue will eventually end up in the SCOTUS, and we have also got to plan to raise money for a litigation fund.

Do we have sister organizations that would support us politically ? Maybe the NRA.

We are beginning to be acknowledged as a political power, and in that we should feel complimented, AND PLAN TO FIGHT for our right to continue.

I would be ineterested to know how many times politicians have contacted Jim, asking him to put in a good word for them on Free Republic. I have a feeling that has happened but Jim would not play ball with them.

We should continue to evolve as a conservative power, for it is in the modern equivalent of Benjamin Franklins and Thomas Paine's pamphleteering. We deserve protection under the 1st amendment, because newspapers and other media are bought and paid for by parties who whish to disinform the public, not inform it.

People on Free Republic are truly informed ( although others deny that, saying we are just emotional reactionaries) as voters, and form a national/international community which requires reform in the UN, Border COntrol, and promotes a consistent conservative agenda. That is why Free Republic has been so successful compared to the various Dim sites such as moveon.org etc.

We are a third party in terms of a redistribution of electoral power, but not in terms of politics yet, but that might change.Our enemies say we ruin their election by using untruths and propaganda , when in fact we merely dilute paid-for-propaganda with fact.

As a new power we will be subject to "pay back" and that comes in the form of McCain Feingold. I think also that if Freepers had supported Dubyah on the ports deal, perhaps there would have been a liklihood a veto of the this sick legislation.

So since by this legislative attack, we are now acknowledged as a power politically, that is good news but we have to change gears to be a "playah," which means establishing a litigation fund,an off shore mirror site, and perhaps registering as a political party or PAC (yech!).

I think the fight would be worth it!

How about it Jim Robinson?

Are you up for round 2 or is it round 5?

I know I am.

Keep the faith,our good man!

We need the big bucks now!