DU vs. FR Polls

Several times a day postings pop up with links to various on-line polls that one might participate in. Most are worded so as to elicit either a liberal or a repressive response. I respond to almost all of them.

Although I have spent very little time reading the Free Republic website, in fact only having read threads which were linked from DU, I am only guessing when I say that I suppose people who post there probably point their readership, such as it is, toward on-line polls as well. Things being what they are neither side should be able to sway the outcome of even an obscure polling source if both sides have equal access to it for about the same amount of time.

And there lies my question. I am sure that there are Freeper who watch this website constantly and I suppose that as soon as they seen a poll mentioned here they immediately go the the Free Republic website and post a pointer. I also imagine that more than one link to a new on-line poll we find here was first noticed over there.

Is this an accurate assessment of how it works. Are there people here who read their trash regularly and give us heads up on stuff they found first?

over there, with the target of the 'trash' comment reversed.

Really, the sites are identical, just bizarro versions of each other.

Both post threads about Freep/DU this poll, both go on and on about the other side being hateful and then turning around and hating both the other side AND some in their own party, and on and on.

:)

but freepers are much more homogenous than we are. Over there you will rarely find heated debate among members (at least not without charges of dissemblance and/or a subsequent "zotting"), whereas this is a regular occurance here.

I mean, are there any forums which have been started by DUers who got thrown off here?

Because there are at least 4 or 5 spinoff forums from freerepublic. Why? Because they eat their own. They constantly ban their own posters, even longtime friends, if a poster doesn't stay in lockstep with the following truth: "George W. Bush is who we support." Not McCain, not any other republicans--except insofar as those republicans are part of Bush's power structure.

One time I saw a melee on freerepublic that got close to bannings, when Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin had done something that some freepsters didn't agree with. Posters came close to being banned simply for insisting that Sensenbrenner should be held accountable as a PUBLIC SERVANT--a person who was ELECTED TO SERVE HIS CONSTITUENTS, NOT the other way around. The freepster admins didn't like any criticism of one of their republican boys, even to the point that they couldn't accept that Sensenbrenner was the servant of the public--not the other way around.

Needless to say, for one of their posters to come out and say "GET US THE HELL OUT OF IRAQ!" or "THIS WAR WAS NOT JUSTIFIED!" would result in that poster being instantly banned.

I don't see this sort of thing happening on DU. The bannings I've seen have been of disruptors.

I see DUers being free to criticize ANY democrat.

So I don't think freerepublic and DU are two sides of the same coin.

Really, the sites are identical, just bizarro versions of each other.

We spell better and are more coherent. :dem:

this expalins why they keep slaughtering people in Iraq.

Of course they try to Freep the polls. They are evil aren't they?

Honestly I don't know if the same occurs here but I assume it does, but no one posts links FROM FR saying "I found this poll on FR, let's DU it". I assume they just make a new post here linking the poll without referencing FR or whereever.

Now as to the relative influence of the sites, it really depends on true readership and more importantly the willingness of people to do things like "cheat" using scripts and what not to vote repeatedly on polls that don't log IP addresses.

or "please unfreep this poll," and the like. Although, I think in most cases this refers to a high percentage of support for the conservative viewpoint, and not necessarily any coordinated action Freerepublic may be taking.

Every "hit" on their web site increases the value of their advertising. Visits are recorded, and used as a way to lure advertisers. The last thing I want to do is help FreeRepublic.

I've lurked over there a few times just to see what form of mental masturbation they're indulging in, but I really don't want to be part of building up their CTR.