https://members.freedomalternative.com
Starting from January 2025, the above link is the default for interactions with our financial and logistical supporters. The previous patchwork is slowly being phased away.
As a transitory measure, there will be a high degree of lenience on procedure throughout the month of January 2025 until all or most of our backers are on the platform.
To join the FA Members, you need to require an invite. Conditions:
- Have a valid e-mail address
- Be a confirmed current donor ($5/mo or more, any method, any place)
- Be an individual of good character or without a record with us
The conditions above must be met concurrently.
If you do not meet the conditions above, there are some other exceptional situations where we may admit people:
- Individuals who qualified in the last 2 years for Donors’ Circle [transitory measure in January 2025]
- Individuals who supported our work in non-monetary ways [real-life activism, logistical support or valuable knowledge]
- Special cases
Individuals who require membership under the exceptional route are kindly required to make their case clearly and conclusively.
Simplified procedure:
Then head here:
This will take you to this form:
The form is very straight forward and self-explanatory.
Yahoo.com e-mail addresses have been permanently blacklisted. We’re done trying to appease one of the least trustworthy e-mail providers on the Internet which, after leaking everyone’s data twice and then hiding it, and then lying about it now wants to LARP as a secure provider excluding even multi-million dollar trustworthy services.
Please use a valid e-mail address that you check.
In the text area, please mention the reason(s) and other relevant information.
While the “Proofs” section is not mandatory, it may ease our pain and yours in some cases. Please make use of it if applicable.
In the (we think rare) cases you need more link spots, the “Add” button allows you to add more links.
Applications that contain links to dangerous websites or viruses or anything outside the scope of our work will be rejected!
We review the applications periodically. If it is approved, you will receive an e-mail about it and how to activate your account. Please follow the instructions. It should be pretty straightforward. In case your account is not automatically activated, please don’t panic. We review the process and try to get everyone in. Still, if days go by and you don’t hear from us, do create a ticket with this issue.
Note about ”proofs” links
There have been some misunderstandings about how to use those things.
A Patreon profile link looks like this: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=XXXXXXX where the Xs are 7 random digits. If you choose to make use of the ”Display name” feature then it will look like this: https://www.patreon.com/your_chosen_name_here.
To find your link, head ”Home” while logged in to your Patreon account and on the right side click the ”…” button and choose ”Copy link” from the dropdown menu.
That’s it. Now paste it wherever you need it (such as the application form for FA Members).
On Subscribestar, things are a little bit trickier. In theory, everyone has a profile link. In practice, those who are not publishers (called “Stars” over there) struggle to find it. This issue is also not consistent across the platform.
However, all users get assigned a code in the format: User#XXXXXXXXX where the Xs are a random alphanumerical combination.
Please write that down either in the text area or in the “proofs” links in the format: https://www.subscribestar.com/subscribers/user#XXXXXXXX. This speeds up the approval process.
In case things still go wrong or are still unclear, head here:
https://services.freedomalternative.com/en/customer/create-ticket/
Fill in the form as follows:
- Use a valid e-mail address that you check frequently (preferably one you’ve interacted with us in the past) WARNING: Yahoo addresses routinely do not work. Please avoid addresses ending in @yahoo.com or aliases that forward towards one. Thank you.
- Select Support (selecting something else may result in your application not being noticed for days or weeks)
- In the field Subject try to mention whether you’re requesting an invite or are encountering a different problem
- In the field Message mention why you qualify for FA Members or what exactly the issue is. You can attach screenshots or other evidence as necessary
After you created the ticket, wait for a while (up to 48 hours) before banging at the door, please. Before doing so, please do check you spam folder as well. Most likely you will find your invitation there. When you do, please be kind and also click Not Spam 🙏
Once you received the invitation, please follow the instructions. It should be pretty straightforward. In case your account is not automatically activated, please don’t panic. We review the applications. Still, if days go by and you don’t hear from us, do create another ticket with this issue.
NOTE: Invitations are valid for 14 days. If you do not redeem it in that time, you need to require it again.
Need to know once on the platform
FA Members was created in order to unify all communications with all of our supporters. That includes logistical supporters, activists, small time donors and also the most generous supporters who’ve been with us for 10 years now.
For new users, there are four classes that you need to be aware of:
-
- Validating (gray)
- Unauthorized (dark red)
- Podcast (green)
- Donors’ Circle (blue)
By default, all new users are in Validating stage which is self explanatory: the user must wait for validation. Users in the validating class cannot log in at all.
If you find yourself in this situation, do try to reset the password. If that still doesn’t work, then wait to be validated or, if more than 24hrs have passed, open a ticket specifying the username and the e-mail address used to create it. We will either manually reset your password or validate your user, depending on the circumstances that caused you getting stuck.
Please be patient. We’re still a volunteer-based organization.
Rome wasn’t built in a day either.
By default, validated users are in the category named Podcast (colored green).
Users in the Podcast class can download some torrents (like the podcast), view the chatbox (but not contribute to it), vote in some polls and are subjected to restrictions on both what they can see and where they can contribute on the Forums.
Users in the Podcast class are also subjected to the ratio rules, which will be slowly tightened.
Users who qualify for full membership (Donors’ Circle) are kindly required to make use of the Helpdesk.
You will notice an expiration date on your profile. Upon expiration, your user will be automatically switched to Unauthorized. To prevent that from happening, don’t forget to gib shekel. Please do check the FAQ page on the platform for further information about that.
To prevent abuse, the expiration date is NOT visible to other users.
The users colored in blue-ish are the Donors’ Circle as known since 2020.
Users in this class can access the full features of the platform and the most generous of them get to invite another person.
Users who opt for more consistent support (be it logistical or financial) also get to contribute to making strategic decisions and be informed routinely on what happens with their money. There’s plenty of surprises there (in both senses) and this is why we cherish our donors so much. None of this would’ve been possible without them.
All other bells and whistles typical of such a platform have either been disabled or changed. Especially those concerning users.
Miscellaneous
Although not obligatory, we strongly urge you to use the qBittorrent client and a Mozilla-based web browser. The reason we created the platform is precisely to end the patchwork of accommodating dozens of use-cases prior to 2025. Help us by making our job and yours easier!
Also as a transitory measure: Everyone from all tiers as of January 3, 2025 will also be invited.
The FAQ page will be periodically updated and corrected. Please be patient throughout January if your question is missing. As a transitory measure do create a ticket if you encounter something not covered here or in the FAQ page.
Warning: The validation process may be clunky for some users. We once again appeal to your patience. Our dedicated team is working on improving all aspects of the platform. Very likely by the time you read this the problem has been solved already 😊
With all of that being said, we’re looking forward to hearing from you on FA Members!
Last update: January 15, 2025