About/Contact/FAQ

* satellite image of Liberty SC from Google Maps

About @ Liberty To Say:


This site is dedicated to Liberty ... not only the town, but liberty itself.


Liberty South Carolina is located in Pickens County : South Carolina : USA


Its coordinates are listed as:


Latitude: 34-47'29" N
Longitude: 082-41'45" W


The word "liberty" as defined in the Nisus Thesaurus:

liberty (as in "autonomy") n. : immunity from arbitrary exercise of authority: political independence  

liberty (as in "freedom") n. : freedom of choice: "liberty of opinion"; "liberty of worship"; "liberty--perfect liberty--to think or feel or do just as one pleases"; "at liberty to say whatever one wishes"

In 1979, at age 5, I moved to Clemson, South Carolina ... my father became very involved in local politics. Seeing corruption and incompetence arise; he chose, at the loss of popularity, to stand up for what he believed in. After a trying divorce, I chose to stay with him as we moved to Six Mile, South Carolina in 1983. He found only a few honest allies who cherished liberty and constitutional freedom in the 1980's. If only he had been able to utilize the power of the internet and could've harnessed the wealth of information it now contains. During most of the late 80's, I attended Liberty Presbyterian Church.

In the early 90's, after graduating Daniel High School, I briefly attended Clemson and a few college transfer classes at Greenville Tech. I also audited journalism classes at the University Of Georgia In Athens in 1994 and 1995. In the late 90's, I moved to Greenville, South Carolina where I worked independently as an Apple Computer Technician. In 2007, I met my beautiful wife online. From the moment I met her, I knew she was the one. I moved to Liberty, South Carolina to be with her in 2008. She instills creativity in me and supports me in everything I do. She has high morals and high standards - she holds people to those standards. If they fail, she, like me, asks for an answer.

If you've got questions about Liberty, ATLIBERTYTOSAY.COM has the answers.


This site supports Liberty and the surrounding areas of Pickens, Six Mile, Clemson, Central, and Anderson.

A brief bio of the author of AT LIBERTY TO SAY:

(As published in the The Best Of Technology Writing 2008):

I've enjoyed writing all of my life. I have people tell me that one day of my life as an Apple Tech is like 3 months of their lives. So, I have always enjoyed sharing my day to day experiences with others. In 1994, I started writing and moderating for FireFly - one of the first social networking sites on the internet; similar to today's MySpace & FaceBook sites. In 1999, I started journaling on Slashdot. In 2002, I carried my writings to my own website which eventually became my current blog on blogger. In 2005, my blog was listed in the Blog 100 by CNET.

~ Philip Smith

Please feel free to leave any comment, question, or suggestion.


I moderate comments on this site. Know that I will try very hard to get your comment approved and posted as soon as possible. Comment moderation serves as a great way to be able to contact me without me having to post my email address. Just comment on any article to contact me (Editor & owner of AtLibertyToSay), the post will not appear ... I will see it, and respond accordingly. You can post your email address within the comment if you want me to respond directly. Again, your email address will be perfectly protected and will NOT be published.  


I will publish meaningful critical comments with linked/backed up disputes of any facts or opinions I voice here. Dissenting opinions, without direct attack on me, worded in a G to PG-13 manner will be instantly approved. Baseless attacks without any supporting evidence will be deleted and/or unpublished. If I can determine a pattern from a particular individual of misbehavior, you will be reported to Google's Blogger Admin.


FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions):


Q: Why did you start this site? Why now?


After moving back to this area in 2008, I noticed that something was missing. That something was information. That something was a presence on the web for Liberty. That something was answers. I hope to fill a void left by the likes of the out of print Liberty Monitor newspaper.



Q: What is the purpose of this site?

More than reporting as a journalist, I want to observe Liberty as a resident and provide as much information as possible to everyone that lives here.

Q: Do you accept money from the businesses you review and does that affect your review?


I will always mention if the reviewed business is a sponsor of this site or if I received any compensation from them. Their compensation will not affect the review as most reviews are intended for informational purposes. Stories that are editorial will be labelled as such and should be pretty common knowledge that such a business wouldn't really care to sponsor such content. No sponsor endorses any content. All writings on this site are owned by its specific author.


Q: Can I contribute to this site?


Sure ... just post a comment on any post here and I will evaluate your information. You can also help me by pointing out any grammar errors or date facts you may see that are incorrect.


Q: Can I use a picture from this site/ Can you please attribute me for the photo you have on your site?

Sure, just leave a comment any where (preferably on the article in question) ... it's not always easy to find the original owner / poster of a picture. If you see art or images that belong to you; I want to give you credit. Just let me know.

Q: Why can't I see my comment immediately?

After researching on the popular websites that allow anonymous comments, I have come to the conclusion that the average anonymous commenter doesn't contribute much and is an easy source for trolls to stalk and belittle people and businesses baselessly with idiotic "You suck" type comments. While I certainly encourage ALL COMMENTS (good or bad) I would rather make everyone's experience here a happy one. Very few critical comments further a discussion or merit and encourage responses. I could care less about my image through my critic's opinions, but I do care about the direction of the conversation here. You can still say anything you want, I will see it, but the world wide web may not see it.

Q: That's a very questionable advertisement, why would you allow a sponsor with such an ad?

I am still in the early stages of setting up my Google Adsense advertising. I'm told that it can take up to a year (or more) to filter out most of the junk advertisements. I neither approve or disapprove of ads, but know that I am trying very hard to filter out bad content. If you see a questionable advertisement, just comment on any article and I will investigate it for removal by adding to my blocked ad list.

Q: What lawsuit were you involved in and where can I find out more information?

You can Google for Bidzirk vs Smith and read more on my technology blog FIXYOURTHINKING. Ars Technica did the best write-up about my case. This case established three key factors of blogging: 


1) A Functional Analysis to analyze blog posts as defamation, as trademark infringement, and as invasion of privacy.


 2) Defamation in blogs must be provable. For instance, I called the owner of Bidzirk a "Yes man". The Federal Judge said this was unprovable as true or false and has very little meaning in a positive or negative light. I also backed this up by saying that MOST people on eBay are "Yes men" and often over promise and under deliver. 


3) Invasion of Privacy can not be pursued if a picture is made publicly available on a publicly accessible website; especially if by the Plaintiff. The Plaintiff attorney tried to make the claim that I posted a picture of the Plaintiff and his wife, when in fact; I merely linked to the picture to back up the fact that their new marriage may have gotten in the way of the dedication level to my business with them. 


4) I also established a Pro Se litigant's right to travel with concerns to a webmaster defending a case Pro Se. 

(Feel free to email me about further details in regards to this case.)

I rely mostly on friends and family to help me with comment moderation, grammar mistakes, and other site matters that require attention.

Thank you for reading ...