Thousands of people can't take the Quiz!

The Advocates for Self-Government is facing a serious emergency.

Once I explain the problem, I hope you can step forward and help us fix it.

Last Thursday (November 4th), thousands of people tried to visit our Web site to take the World's Smallest Political Quiz.

But they couldn't.

Instead, all they got was an error message.

The problem was our server: We got so much traffic that our shared server overloaded -- and turned people away.

Thousands of people who wanted to learn about libertarianism got the door slammed in their faces.

This problem isn't new. It's just getting more serious. Over the last few months, we've been getting hints that our shared server was reaching the breaking point.

The problem used to be mild and sporadic. Every now and then, when traffic was heavy, our Web site would run sluggishly. Or, when people tried to order from our online store, they'd get an error message.

But now that mild problem has become a crisis.

Now, people are being TURNED AWAY from our Web site.

The cause of this problem is simple: We're getting a LOT more traffic than we expected.

Normally, we average about 4,000 Quiz-takers a day. That number usually picks up during election years, slows down in non-election years, and then really surges during presidential election years.

In 2004, for example, just before Election Day, a staggering 28,000 people a day took the Quiz.

That wasn't a problem. We expected the surge, so we had contracted for extra server capacity to handle the load.

But this year -- a non-election year -- has been different. Instead of our usual 4,000 Quiz-takers a day, we're getting 6,000-7,000 Quiz-takers per day.

We're not sure why. I suspect it's because of the Quiz's increasing fame. The Quiz is being mentioned in more newspapers, in more classrooms, and in more online discussion forums.

The Quiz is also becoming global. During a two-week stretch in October, for example, we got a surge of 8,000 Quiz-takes from one Web site in Japan.

That's good news -- except that we weren't prepared for it. So, our shared server (the powerful computer and massive hard drive that hosts our Web site) is groaning under the strain.

In addition to turning people away, the Web site is running *very* slowly at times. Some Quiz-takers must wait 45 seconds to get their score. In today's fast-paced world, people won't wait that long. So they bail out. They go somewhere else.

By my estimate, we're losing 1,000 visitors a day.

In 2006, we're planning a major upgrade to our online store. With that upgrade, we also plan to switch to a dedicated server. That dedicated server will handle next year's increased election-year traffic -- smoothly and quickly.

But because we didn't expect a big surge in traffic until NEXT year, we didn't budget for a dedicated server THIS year. As a result, we don't have the money to make the switch.

The Advocates operates on a very tight budget. We don't have a big bank account to help us through an unexpected emergency.

That's why I need your help.

We need to raise $4,300 right now.

It will cost about $750 a month for a dedicated server and technical support. There's also a one-time cost of about $1,300 to make the switch (to transfer our files, create back-ups, troubleshoot, and so on).

That $4,300 will get us through the next four months -- when we planned (and budgeted) to move to a dedicated server.

Your help, right now, can solve this problem.

Your help will allow an additional 1,000 people a day -- every day, for the next four months -- to take the World's Smallest Political Quiz and learn about libertarianism.

Without your help, those 1,000 people a day will be locked out of our Web site, or may give up because it's running so painfully slow.

This is incredibly frustrating.

You and I work so hard to spread the word about libertarianism -- and it really upsets me up to think that people are being turned away.

That's why I'm turning to you.

Can you make an online donation to help us?

Ten people each giving $430 will solve this crisis. Will you be one of those 10 heroes?

Or, 100 people each giving $43 will fix this problem. Will you be one of those 100 friends of liberty?

Anything you can give will help. $25 would be appreciated. $10 would make a difference. If all you can spare is $5, we'll accept it gratefully.

You'll rarely have an opportunity to do so much immediate good.

If we raise that $4,300 in the next two days, we'll be on the new dedicated server by next week. And that means thousands of people will get trouble-free access to our Web site -- without lock-outs and frustrating delays.

Please make a contribution right now.

You know, when I'm tempted to give in to frustration, I remind myself that the Advocates has friends like you -- friends we can count on during times of crisis.

Thank you so much.

                                                                                                    For Liberty,
                                                                                                        

                                                                                                      Sharon Harris, President
                                                                                                      Advocates for Self-Government

PS: Any minute, traffic to our Web site could surge again -- and start blocking people out. We need to fix this problem now!

We can't afford to slam the door in the faces of people who genuinely want to learn about liberty.

That's why your donation means so much.

Please, give whatever you can afford.

Our donation page is safe and secure. You can make a donation with 100 percent confidence.

Note: If you try to make a donation and can't get on, please try again in five minutes. Don't give up. Thank you!