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Bush orders settlement to conservative GOP website by City of Fresno
Settlement funnels money to local conservative website on orders of president George Bush. Rightwing website "FreeRepublic" to recieve large settlement from City of Fresno.
This is urgent-read and call the attorney general's office as soon as you can. We must stop this criminal give-away to GOP activists at taxpayer expense.
The City of Fresno has announced it is paying a large settlement to the "FreeRepublic", a right wing conservative website/forum to settle a lawsuit filed by Freerepublic alledging defamation and damage of reputation. Some background on the case:
The case FreeRepublic vs. City of Fresno stems from a bulletin sent to Fresno Police by Fresno Human Relations Commissioner Debbie Reyes regarding an event planned on sept. 13th by the Fresno chapter of FreeRepublic Network. This event, billed by Freerepublic as a picnic/rally was a subject of concern to Reyes as she had been made aware of possible counter-protests to the picnic/rally by activists critical of FreeRepublic Network's harrassment of anti-war activists and general right-wing extremist nature. Ms. Reyes faxed a notice to police that there might be possible conflicts at the event and notified them that FreeRepublic was well known as an organized hate group disguising themselves as patriotic americans. This notice and resulting publicity resulted in the lawsuit naming City of Fresno, Debbie Reyes, and Mayor Alan Autry as defendants. They alledged Reyes fax resulted in defamation and filed suit seeking $1,000,000 compensation.
The very very strange thing in all this is George Bush met with Fresno Mayor Alan Autry on 10/15/2003 and there is good reason to believe this lawsuit by the FreeRepublic Network was the main topic of conversation between the two. The FreeRepublic online forum is a darling centerpiece of the GOP party, the largest and most highly trafficked GOP oriented website in existence. Progressive activists have long suspected FreeRepublic receives under the table covert funding directly or indirectly from the GOP party. So it is quite likely and plausible that when Autry met with Bush and discussed this with him Bush told him to pay off these good old-boy conservatives and get some funds into their hands so they can continue their fight against the left and all things progressive.
It is clear that before any settlement is paid to FreeRepublic an investigation into ties between Mayor Alan Autry and FreeRepublic should be undertaken. He has been supportive of their activitys to a suspicious degree and it is apparent he was very interested in arranging for the city to settle out of court on the lawsuit and quickly get some money into the hands of his fellow patriots at FreeRepublic.
Did Fresno Mayor Alan Autry work at the suggestion of George Bush to supply a large cash settlement to FreeRepublic at taxpayer's expense? Demand an investigation.
Contact:
California State Attoney General
(916)322-3360
The City of Fresno has announced it is paying a large settlement to the "FreeRepublic", a right wing conservative website/forum to settle a lawsuit filed by Freerepublic alledging defamation and damage of reputation. Some background on the case:
The case FreeRepublic vs. City of Fresno stems from a bulletin sent to Fresno Police by Fresno Human Relations Commissioner Debbie Reyes regarding an event planned on sept. 13th by the Fresno chapter of FreeRepublic Network. This event, billed by Freerepublic as a picnic/rally was a subject of concern to Reyes as she had been made aware of possible counter-protests to the picnic/rally by activists critical of FreeRepublic Network's harrassment of anti-war activists and general right-wing extremist nature. Ms. Reyes faxed a notice to police that there might be possible conflicts at the event and notified them that FreeRepublic was well known as an organized hate group disguising themselves as patriotic americans. This notice and resulting publicity resulted in the lawsuit naming City of Fresno, Debbie Reyes, and Mayor Alan Autry as defendants. They alledged Reyes fax resulted in defamation and filed suit seeking $1,000,000 compensation.
The very very strange thing in all this is George Bush met with Fresno Mayor Alan Autry on 10/15/2003 and there is good reason to believe this lawsuit by the FreeRepublic Network was the main topic of conversation between the two. The FreeRepublic online forum is a darling centerpiece of the GOP party, the largest and most highly trafficked GOP oriented website in existence. Progressive activists have long suspected FreeRepublic receives under the table covert funding directly or indirectly from the GOP party. So it is quite likely and plausible that when Autry met with Bush and discussed this with him Bush told him to pay off these good old-boy conservatives and get some funds into their hands so they can continue their fight against the left and all things progressive.
It is clear that before any settlement is paid to FreeRepublic an investigation into ties between Mayor Alan Autry and FreeRepublic should be undertaken. He has been supportive of their activitys to a suspicious degree and it is apparent he was very interested in arranging for the city to settle out of court on the lawsuit and quickly get some money into the hands of his fellow patriots at FreeRepublic.
Did Fresno Mayor Alan Autry work at the suggestion of George Bush to supply a large cash settlement to FreeRepublic at taxpayer's expense? Demand an investigation.
Contact:
California State Attoney General
(916)322-3360
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Ok, where is the proof, or even circumstantial evidence of this? Politicians meet all the time. I would have through Indymedia would be more interested in preserving freedom of speech and assembly, rather than promoting conspiracy theories. What ever happened to the left wing committment to civil liberties?
So you throw out this story as fact with no proof and more questions than answers. If you people had a brain you would know Freerepublic isn't a conservative site anymore but just plain GOP republican. Man you guys wouldn't even last a day reporting for the Washington Post or the New York Times. Well then again maybe you would.
For more information:
http://www.libertypost.org/cgi-bin/listart...
Is there actually proof FreeRepublic is a website people gravitate to to express their intolerant views and hateful diatribes? Can anyone provide information documenting a consistent pattern of people expressing hateful views towards Muslims, gays, Hispanics, or others that do not meet their vision of what a "true american" is?
Is there any real evidence of collusion between the Fresno Mayor and FreeRepublic ownership on this? Does he have a relationship with that organization? Is he supportive? If this is the case this should be exposed. Did Bush suggest to the Fresno Mayor that the pockets of his favorite GOP website should be lined? This warrants investigation.
Is there any real evidence of collusion between the Fresno Mayor and FreeRepublic ownership on this? Does he have a relationship with that organization? Is he supportive? If this is the case this should be exposed. Did Bush suggest to the Fresno Mayor that the pockets of his favorite GOP website should be lined? This warrants investigation.
Regarding the comment above, hundreds of Jews, Moslems, Hindus and Buddhists post regularly at FreeRepublic.
Commies post here.
Case closed.
Commies post here.
Case closed.
I don't know why you are acting like this article was made up, or why the 'free speech' side would be that supporting giving the Free republic $1 million because a citizen called them a hate group. You would think that the first amendment position would back up the right of this woman to give her opinion of the Free Republic. The lawsuit was supposed to be all about their being called a name, and not for any harm to their property or anything.
A quick perusal of the Free republic would show a lot of hateful opinions.
During the antiwar period last March, there were dozens or hundreds of comments by people describing their plans to go to the Bay area and run people over with trucks or hurt them with ammunition, and even to fly radio controlled planes which would release poisons on protesters. And then... there were half a dozen real incidents of people with right-wing symbols on their trucks who actually did hit protesters or attempt to. I saw one of these incidents with a pickup. We would have had to have caught them to determine if they read the free republic.
Here is a major newspaper article which backs it up. http://www.fresnobee.com/local/story/7981116p-8852478c.html
A quick perusal of the Free republic would show a lot of hateful opinions.
During the antiwar period last March, there were dozens or hundreds of comments by people describing their plans to go to the Bay area and run people over with trucks or hurt them with ammunition, and even to fly radio controlled planes which would release poisons on protesters. And then... there were half a dozen real incidents of people with right-wing symbols on their trucks who actually did hit protesters or attempt to. I saw one of these incidents with a pickup. We would have had to have caught them to determine if they read the free republic.
Here is a major newspaper article which backs it up. http://www.fresnobee.com/local/story/7981116p-8852478c.html
Text currently on front page of FreeRepublic website. No it is not a hate organization, they would never post stuff like this if they were a hate group:
B.O.N.D. will host it's 5th ANNUAL "NATIONAL DAY OF REPUDIATION OF JESSE JACKSON" Rally on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday,
Monday, January 19, 2004,
from 10-12 Noon
1968 West Adams Blvd.,
(in front of RAINBOW/PUSH L. A.)
Click banner for more info or here for FR discussion thread.
B.O.N.D. will host it's 5th ANNUAL "NATIONAL DAY OF REPUDIATION OF JESSE JACKSON" Rally on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday,
Monday, January 19, 2004,
from 10-12 Noon
1968 West Adams Blvd.,
(in front of RAINBOW/PUSH L. A.)
Click banner for more info or here for FR discussion thread.
Yeah, Muslims are welcome at Free Republic, that's way so many photoshop pictures of Mecca getting bombed during the Hajj were posted there.
Just look at threads on Islam. Most FReepers call it sarcastically, "A religion of love," then go into why all Moslems are essentually evil.
Very few minoritise post at that venue. They post threads calling on others to gang up on polls and disrupt places such as Indy media sites with meaningless junk or hateful ad homenum attacks.
They are brown booters calling for the elimination of all liberal thought in the United States, and an incubator of fascism we should all keep our eyes on.
Just look at threads on Islam. Most FReepers call it sarcastically, "A religion of love," then go into why all Moslems are essentually evil.
Very few minoritise post at that venue. They post threads calling on others to gang up on polls and disrupt places such as Indy media sites with meaningless junk or hateful ad homenum attacks.
They are brown booters calling for the elimination of all liberal thought in the United States, and an incubator of fascism we should all keep our eyes on.
Is this real these people can claim they are not trying to promote intolerance? From the front page of FreeRepublic:
B.O.N.D. will host it's 5th ANNUAL "NATIONAL DAY OF REPUDIATION OF JESSE JACKSON" Rally on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday,
Monday, January 19, 2004,
from 10-12 Noon
1968 West Adams Blvd.,
(in front of RAINBOW/PUSH L. A.)
Click banner for more info or here for FR discussion thread
B.O.N.D. will host it's 5th ANNUAL "NATIONAL DAY OF REPUDIATION OF JESSE JACKSON" Rally on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday,
Monday, January 19, 2004,
from 10-12 Noon
1968 West Adams Blvd.,
(in front of RAINBOW/PUSH L. A.)
Click banner for more info or here for FR discussion thread
It's widely believed among the denizens of FR that the RNC came in paid Jim Robinson's legal fees when FR got hammered by the LA Times and Washington Post for copyright infringement. Not long after that, JimRob floated the idea of making FR a GOP support site, rather than just one for the reactionary right. A good Google search would probably turn up information on this.
For examples of FR "Love", check out any of the threads regarding immigration or gays.
For examples of FR "Love", check out any of the threads regarding immigration or gays.
Of the so-called proof listed in the links, the only actual link to Freerepublic had nothing to indicate anything close to a hate group. The other links were obvious smear attacks (freerepublicsucks.com)! Now there's a credible source. After investigation of the threads, it seems to me the only people who could claim they are a hate group have some sort of axe to grind.
Here you have some lefty soccer mom with indoctrination on full calling freerepublic a hate group. Why can't citizens go around calling people whatever they want? It's called libel, but this isn't a case of some random citizen making libelous comments...this woman was a city official! Public figures can't make a libelous statement...that’s why freerepublic sued.
The city is settling because it's an open and shut case and if they don't settle they will get pounded like a drum.
Did the "evil, corporate, big business, blah blah blah" President Bush put pressure on the city to settle? Please.... the whole concept is ludicrous. What would the Presidents motivation be? Of course even if he did it would have been sound legal advice.
Then you have all of the "tolerant, loving, non-bigoted" people coming here to vent their intolerance, hate, and prejudice against ANYTHING that's to the right of Stalin, stating that freerepublic IS exactly what she claimed it to be. Of course these are the same people who would call removal of all illegal aliens “hateful”. They called the celebration of Saddam Husseins capture hateful. Getting rid of our unconstitutional welfare system would be “hateful”.
Whatever…believe in whatever delusions that help get you through the day.
The city is settling because it's an open and shut case and if they don't settle they will get pounded like a drum.
Did the "evil, corporate, big business, blah blah blah" President Bush put pressure on the city to settle? Please.... the whole concept is ludicrous. What would the Presidents motivation be? Of course even if he did it would have been sound legal advice.
Then you have all of the "tolerant, loving, non-bigoted" people coming here to vent their intolerance, hate, and prejudice against ANYTHING that's to the right of Stalin, stating that freerepublic IS exactly what she claimed it to be. Of course these are the same people who would call removal of all illegal aliens “hateful”. They called the celebration of Saddam Husseins capture hateful. Getting rid of our unconstitutional welfare system would be “hateful”.
Whatever…believe in whatever delusions that help get you through the day.
FR is the most imp Rep site on the net. The RNC has $130,000,000 to play with now. Is it logical to think that FR is a good source of advertising? Money well spent? 30,000-100,000 voters/day checking in...hmmm.
FR would be of primary interest to the RNC. On the other hand, maybe we are naive to think that $130,000,000 of cash to spend/most influential Rep internet address/election year... might produce COLLUSION.
That combo is better than a winning lottery ticket...pays off every year the Rep party is in business.
BTW, I think the owners are brilliant.
FR would be of primary interest to the RNC. On the other hand, maybe we are naive to think that $130,000,000 of cash to spend/most influential Rep internet address/election year... might produce COLLUSION.
That combo is better than a winning lottery ticket...pays off every year the Rep party is in business.
BTW, I think the owners are brilliant.
Oh, I see, if you are against Rev. Shakedown, you are obviously full of hatred and need to be censored. Silly me, I thought everyone had the right to their opinions. I didn't know it doesn't count if it's not "progressive".
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