Words: After 4 years and a little over 23,000 posts on Free Republic, I'm taking my leave, probably permanently. The recent election, and a number of other things makes this a good time to quit posting on political topics and devote my time to pursuits that actually have identifiable results.
I've made a lot of friends, and more than a few enemies here. I've tried, with varying degrees of success, to post in a reasonable way about subjects that interest me. I've had many people post kind words. I've also been called a troll, a liberal, a DUer, and much, much worse. I'm none of those things. I've even had one death threat sent to me via FReepmail, which I dealt with in my own way.
I agree with many people here, and disagree with many more. It's been interesting, to say the least. As a parting post, I have some suggestions for several groups of Freepers. Members of those groups may, or may not , see this post...depending on whether it is left up. Those who see it should take it for whatever they think it's worth.
To Younger Libertarians: 1. Move out of your parents' house. 2. Give up your abortive career as a Linux consultant. 3. Recognize that not everyone has as limited a view of society as you do.
To "Water the Tree of Liberty" Buffs: Nobody's impressed with your bravado. Those who do things don't sit around posting that someone should start a new revolution for years on a web site. You're not going to start any revolution, so quit pretending.
To Creationists: You have won your battle here on Free Republic. All the folks who take a scientific view of the Crevo debate are gone, either voluntarily or involuntarily. There's no further reason for endless threads full of quotations from creationist websites. Just recognize that the theory of evolution is a scientific discipline, not a religious one.
To Religious Zealots: 1. Learn to get along with each other. 2. The Roman Catholic Church is not the Antichrist. 3. Those who claim Christianity and accept Jesus ARE Christians. All of them. 4. Christianity is the religion of less than 1/3 of the world's population. Learn something about the others. Most have similar moral values. 5. Read the book of Matthew frequently.
To All 20-something Freepers: 1. Not all people over 50 are your enemy. 2. Consider joining the military. "Let's you and him fight" is not a suitable slogan. If you think the war in Iraq is a great idea, join up and help. 3. The worth of a person is not based on whether you'd "hit it" or not.
To Freeper "Activists": 1. A successful rally involves more than 10 participants. 2. Freeping worthless online polls is not activism. 3. You want to be a real activist? Join the military.
To 2nd Amendment Zealots: 1. Not everyone needs, or wants, to own a firearm. 2. "Out of my cold dead hands" may be a prophetic, not a practical slogan. 3. Gun porn doesn't entice people to your cause. 4. Threats are rarely a good means of persuasion. 5. If you're under 35 and a non-veteran, join up. The military will supply you with weapons and targets at no charge.
To Terri Schiavo Thread Denizens: Terri is still dead. There are worthwhile battles out there, but they have nothing to do with Terri. Not everything is related to Terri. Visit some other Free Republic threads, please.
To Rabid Bush Supporters: George W. Bush is not a deity. He screws up, sometimes. A slavish dedication to a single politician is not productive.
To Bush Haters: George W. Bush is not Satan.
To Photo Buffs: Not every thread requires a photo of a woman in a swimming suit. Equally, not every thread requires a photo of Helen Thomas. Life's more complicated than that.
To The Language Challenged: Language matters. Spelling matters. Grammar matters. Capitalization matters. Punctuation matters. You may be the smartest person on the planet, but if your posts look like they were written by someone who never got out of elementary school, they won't matter. If you want to make a point, try to make it well. Use the spelling checker. Proofread your posts before clicking the Post button.
To The Don Quixotes at FR: Diana Irey had no chance of winning. Neither did Katherine Harris. Both were lost causes and used up valuable resources. Not everyone who pointed that out to you is an enemy. Alan Keyes is not a viable candidate for anything. Newt Gingrich cannot win the Presidency, nor can Tancredo. Pick winners and work hard for them. Don't waste your time and other resources.
To Jim Robinson: A forum where no dissent is allowed is not a forum. It is just a place where people post. It's your forum. Don't let it disintegrate by eliminating everyone with whom you disagree. I see a real danger here that Free Republic will become more and more insular as time goes by. That will diminish its influence. Still, it's your forum, so what you decide is what it will be.
To All Freepers: Get along. Free Republic, in the four years I have been an active poster here, has fragmented more and more. It has devolved into little groups, each with no tolerance for other groups. I've mentioned some of them above. Free Republic could become a useful forum, if it was not broken up into cliques. This is not High School. It is the real world.
Not everyone who disagrees with you is a liberal. Not everyone who shows up here as a new member came from DU. Not every newby deserves being Zotted.
See you all. It's been interesting. Who knows? I might be back someday.