In case you missed it over the long Thanksgiving weekend, this is our semi-annual fund drive.
Please consider a donation or subscription. Also, given that this is CYBER MONDAY, consider using the Amazon.com links in the sidebar since a small portion of your purchase goes to Legal Insurrection at no extra cost to you:
One-time Donation:
Subscriptions: You can subscribe monthly (and cancel at any time) — use drop-down menu to pick an amount.
Legal Insurrection’s first “building fund” raiser was last April. It brought in much needed revenue that I think was put to good use here and at the related websites, College Insurrection and Elizabeth Warren Wiki.
As always, we strive to make as much of an impact as a small, part-time website can make, to cover stories others are not covering, to grab onto pants legs and not let go no matter how hard they kick at us.
But I think we can do a lot more, to be more disruptive of the narratives, to make more of a difference. It only takes one fly to spoil a whole lot of ointment.
We’re constrained by lack of time and resources, and the two are connected.
There is no vast right wing conspiracy funding us. We rely entirely on advertising, donations, Amazon.com revenue sharing, and my pocket. The more resources we have, the more we can do.
To the inevitable doomsayers, I say: At least we try. If the nation goes gentle into that good night, as least we raged, raged against the dying of the light.
Donations are an important part of our revenue stream. Subscriptions, where readers agree to pay a certain amount per month (cancellable at any time) are particularly helpful, as it gives a measure of predictability.
Your support is appreciated. Donations are NOT tax deductible (but you knew that).
This post will be “sticky” for a while.
(Featured image via: YouTube)
DONATE
Donations tax deductible
to the full extent allowed by law.
Comments
FWIW,
Can’t get the donate button to open.
Try now, I put in new code.
Done.
Oh my God.
Obama admits he’s a better speechwriter than his speechwriters.
Obama admits he’s a better policy wonk than his policy wonk advisers.
But Obama admitted that even he himself can’t write code.
I can hear 2016 from my house:
Mrs. Jacobson: “Bill will never allow you to go back to your lives as usual …”
What ? I own a handful of domains. The total net cost to me is $ 11 / month for unlimited hosting. Plus $ 15 / domain once a year for registration. Unlimited storage and bandwidth. Excellent hosting company. You can find cheaper, too. But I like them.
Exatly what ‘costs’ is it you hope to get contributions to defray ?
You’re overpaying.
I don’t care for an itemization of any costs Wm has to defray. Running a bunch of websites is hard work. Hosting costs may be cheap (I’ve got a sweet deal from Arvixe) but there are always things you want to add to your site that you’ve got to pay for cuz not everything is free.
Besides, pjm, quit yer bitchin’ at coughing up an occasional/regular $5 when you’re getting some of the best value for no money on the internet.
When my workday is done (cuz I don’t know my PayPal password without a book), I’m gonna cough up.
Again – WHAT costs ? Pocket change for hosting and domains reg. WordPress is free. Name something on this site that wasn’t free to Prof J.
I have no problem with him asking for money – but calling it ‘A building fund’ and saying ‘put to good use on the websites’, I want to know what expenses there are to be paid, because I don’t see any here.
Dude,
Are you a shareholder in LI? If so, pry to your heart’s content. That’s your right.
If you aren’t a shareholder in LI, be happy with the intangible dividends.
I’m sure a guy who’s a Harvard Law grad and Ivy League law professor started blogging to score big with his tip jar. Jeez.
I have no problem with him asking for money, either. I’m just asking about the label he puts the request under.
It’s his website, he’s free to ask for your first born male heir if he wants.
I also run half a dozen sites (each with its own .com name) for very little money, and I do it myself. I could not build, nor maintain an LI-type operation and neither could you for that little bit of money. You nor I have the number of visitors that come to this site. Heard of bandwidth? If you can’t visualize and understand that, and the other costs of running a professional website, then you indeed have very little experience or knowledge in this matter. If you come here often, and I think you do, then hit the tip jar to show your appreciation.
PayPal’d to LI, Wm.
Look at it this way.
Professor J didn’t burn over $600 million of taxpayer money to build this website.
He didn’t spend 3-1/2 years working to start this website.
He isn’t doing his best to destroy 1/6 of the economy.
But … this website actually works! And he’s on our side!
I think you have too many windows open on your computer screen and you meant to post this at healthguv.com.
Thank you and other readers for the support. As tempted as I am to respond to the negativity, I think I’ll pass. The wife thanks you too, she’s the witness to what it takes and how much we both have to give up to try to make this work. It’s readers like you who keep us going.
Done.
I’m not sure what Mr. Jacobson means by ‘inevitable doomsayers.’ If reality happens to be doom I want to know about it. To me the worst doom is not facing reality. If I know the truth I can take it on and fight it.
Happy to help. Enjoy your Thanksgiving. 🙂
http://pjmedia.com/tatler/2013/11/27/heres-how-your-president-thinks-of-thanksgiving/
Happy Thanksgiving! (my favorite holiday) and a Blessed Hanukkah!
A blessed and Happy Thanksgiving to all. Now on to prepare some delicious Oklahoma crab dip from Pow Wow Chow ….
It is very easy to be a subscriber for very nominal amounts. Those of us that read here and occasionally comment have far greater access than we do to, say, the Wall Street Journal, or yee gawd, the New York Times. I’m grateful for it and for every time I see Professor Jacobson’s sites referenced or linked by others. So I subscribe. It doesn’t cost me what the Wall street Journal does, about a third actually, by a long shot but is worth more. I am free to choose what I pay, which seems fair to me. Go figure.
Happy Thanksgiving and a Blessed Hanukkah to all of you.
True on all counts. None of which relate to my question.
What an ego, dude, lol. I mean, wow.
“pjm” … if I’d been trying to address your comment(s) I would have used the “reply” feature. You are free to hold your opinion, as I am to hold mine.
Three cheers for indefatigable blue state conservatism!
I truly appreciate the web site and the work WAJ is doing.
I commend his spirit and effort!! It is a pleasure to contribute
Cheers to all
Prof. Jacobson and co-authors, thank you very much for providing this useful news + opinion resource. I’m happy to kick in a little money.
May I also offer a little fund raising advice? You will raise more money if you are specific about how you’ll spend it. For example, you’ll raise some money to “cover stories others are not covering.” You’ll raise more money if you give a list of specific issues to be investigated to determine specific faults. Think of fund raising as selling service, not as asking for contributions.
Happy Thanksgiving & Happy Hanukkah
Take good care and enjoy the day.
~~
My chair is still there, recalling the empty suit sitting in an empty chair.
As a colleague, RB, commented elsewhere:
~~
May God Bless you all, Bless WAJ and his family and friends, and may God continue shed His Blessings on the Great Republic, the United States of America.
This is just a general comment addressed to no one in particular.
Dear no one in particular,
I find it bad form to cast an air of suspicion when a blogger you trust merely asks readers to consider donating (and he asks much less frequently than many other bloggers).
This is not a publicly traded company and readers are not shareholders. As President Obama would say, “The product is good,” (only, in this case, it’s actually true) and the writer(s) are merely *asking* readers to *consider* donating *no donation too small*
I couldn’t care less if the money were going to a Legal Insurrection news helicopter (the “LI Eye in the Sky”) because, as my dearly departed mother used to say, “A few bucks ain’t gonna make me or break me.” And I say that as someone who’s often a bit nervous about what day the landlord will deposit Luke’s rent check every month.
If, after thinking it over a bit, one were still disposed to seeking itemization, why not inquire in a private email rather than casting aspersions, intentionally or innocently, on the blog?
If that still wouldn’t suffice, why not give the rest of us a break and go over to Instapundit and badger Professor Reynolds about his frequent reminders to use Amazon through his site? What’s he doing with all that money? (More power to him, I say. It’s just like advertising; you’re free to tune it out for whatever reason.)
If you’ve ever taken a class in economics, there is a phrase that really pertains here: “Opportunity cost.” Professor Jacobson is spending an inordinate amount of time fighting the good fight for free, or pro bono if you will, when he could be spending all that time putting that Harvard Law degree and Cornell law professor resume to making (I shudder to think) how much $$$ per hour? (Again, I shudder).
That all said, let me say that I can’t believe Professor J has never responded to my brilliant fundraising idea to hold an annual LI summer convention in Las Vegas. Just one weekend every summer. He could make enough money to hire dozens of full-time writers.
LukeHandCool (who, if he were ever a TV news anchorman, would take a cue from Dan Rather in one of his crazier states and end each broadcast with the simple, one-word inspiration, “Brevity.” And who, in this diverse nation of sometimes crazy fusion, will now check on how is Japanese wife’s Japanized version of his mother’s Czech nadivka stuffing is coming along. Unlike Luke’s mother’s nadivka, his wife’s is … unpredictable, for lack of a better word. Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Hanukkah!)
Greetings everyone. I just registered. I’ve appreciated this website for quite some time and the time and work it takes to keep it going.
Last evening I shopped Amazon via this website in order to help a little. Not done shopping tho:-)
Supporting a website where we get the truth and facts on the issues is little to ask imo. A very nice way to say “Thank you”
Thank you Professor and family & Happy Hanukkah; Happy Thanksgiving to everyone as we give Thanks for our many benefits & Blessings.
Question: When I enter Amazon through your portal I see your site name in the URL. Then I have to sign in with my account and your name is no longer there. I am hoping this is normal protocol and you get credit for the purchases I make.
It should track.
Happy Thanksgiving, to you and your family, Professor.
Your website is much appreciated; it’s so nice to have a straightforward, intelligent source of information and analysis.
God Bless.
Most people are probably aware of this but if you open the Amazon portal from LI and then bookmark it to your desktop or other area you can make purchases in the future without necessarily coming to the site. This ensures LI will get credit for all your purchases whether your on the site or not.
Thank you. That’s helpful:-) Also just found out that Amazon has a 30% off Books. See details here!!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=amb_link_396540822_1?ie=UTF8&docId=1001915101&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=special-offers-1&pf_rd_r=0XV4R4XPBRVX2VA80Y41&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_p=1681222342&pf_rd_i=B00A44R140
I hope this is ok to link to that. I just went there from LI to Amazon and found that.
It takes a lot of work to keep something like LI current, interesting, and insightful. Well done Professor!
Delighted to donate … after all, LI is just one more thing to be thankful for 😉