why did you join DU and what keeps you here

i came to vent my political frustration and i stay because of the people, political debate, humor and it's fun laughing at the pukes.:woohoo:

and masochism, in that order

..I stayed for the views.

but I stayed for the Mango Chutney!

though the constant petty flame wars and proliferation hostile/baiting/incoherent posts are forcing me to reevaluate my participation here.

everyone is entitled to their opinion, even if some think it is stupid.:shrug:

their intellectual and moral superiority-or simply come here itching for a fight-and they always manage to suck many hours of time and energy away from issues that really need our attention and activism. I'm exhausted from it all. It's really amazingly difficult to get a few dozen letters or phone calls out of 70,000+ Duers, and that fact alone is very disheartening.

I can voice my opinion and no one calls me stupid. And I have some thoughts that are waaay out in left field... Usually some old hippie will come along and understand exactly what I am talking about. Even when I am unsure myself.:headbang:

:yourock:

After the end of the day, we all agree. Our arguments, while sometimes nasty, at least allow us to see another point of view from someone whose views we normally would respect.

Unlike arguing with a Freeper.

you can disagree about the way certain issues should be handled, but in the end we basically have the same goal.:toast:

:eyes:

:eyes:

:eyes:

sure, there's the entertainment aspect. But given the times, it's now or never for progressive activism. The nastiness of late (somehow brought about by the Roberts nomination-though I'm not sure why)is very counter productive. I see nothing wrong for wishing for fewer flames and more positive action.

this is about the only outlet I have as I am a small business owner in a very conservative (read fascist) area of a very conservative state. Any overt indications of my political philosophy would result in my being forced out of business, probably within a few weeks.

I'm also a small business owner, but my clientele is very mixed politically. Unlike marches or other "open" forms of political activism, the internet allows us all to take action away from the eyes of our neighbors and community. www.moveon.org and www.progressivemajority.org are two great places to start.

already a member of move on. Looking @ progressive majority.
But if the price wasn't so high, I'd really like to spread some truth around these parts, but until my lottery comes through, or I'm finally able to emmigrate...:yoiks:

it's a shame people have to hide their true beliefs in a "free country" for fear of retribution. but that is the reality of living under an oppressive regime:wtf:

Has anyone heard about when the pie is coming?

problems the lat 5 years.

:grouphug:

My mom is here so that's why I came in the first place, but I stay for the news and different points of view that aren't so different from my own.

of like mind. I lurked here (like many others) for a while before I joined. I mostly liked what I saw and finally decided to join. I stay b/c I can have conversations about things that I know at least some people will agree with and b/c I usually have fun.

and I hope your birthday is going well. Lots of presents, cards and such...

:toast:

well, let me wish you a great one.:party:

Thanks!!!! :hi:

still ahead, ENJOY!!:toast:

for that reason alone, go get drunk :beer: cuz I just can't do it anymore. :toast:

and when i TRY to drink OMG:hangover:

needless to say, he doesn't drink :pals:

if you know what i mean.;-)

A different woman, and sometimes it's an amusing place to be.

I mean really, I have read every list multiple times. And I stay because this is a good place to vent my frustrations at what's left of our democracy.

I stuck around because of the free continental breakfast.

plus I loved the Hate Mailbag back in the day. I lurked for a while and then joined. I stayed for the hot tub and top shelf booze in the mod forum.

Maybe the Rethugs stopped e-mailing!

the hate mailbag. must have been before i joined.:shrug:

Because I was tired of hearing the spew on RW talk shows. That and Dubya's dumb as a rock.

be happening here.

Dee

I stay because a) it's working and b) hanging with other progressives keeps me sane. :)

stay for the community, many of whom i now count as dear friends. :hug:

stayed for the late breaking news, then got into the non-political groups as well.

I don't tend to post as much as others. If all I am going to add is "I agree!" or "yeah!" then it's not worth the post.

conservative message boards. It's nice to find people who agree with you:)

I stay for Matcom

Naw, it's the good humor, the sense of comraderie and a general place to vent where people will actually listen to what it is you have to say......

in the (so far) vein hope that we could actually help take the party back from the corporate shills and behavior fascists that have made our only real alternative to the totalitarians, irrelevant.

And since all the people on that site are as crazy as shit-house rats, I thought that the people on DU would be more my speed.

I was right. I haven't gone back since.

when I get to 50,000 posts I get it back.

He sold the dog to pay for this site.

It's true.

he's living on a farm in West Virginia, chasing bunny rabbits.

I came for the steak; I stay for the sizzle.

back when there were 12 of us. I like having all the news I can get in one easy place. It's alos interesting to see how people are doing in other parts of the country.

The debates are good but I rarely contribute to the flame wars.

I really like having easy access to information to debunk those stupid RW chain e-mails that fly around. I know I have pissed off quite a few RWers with my responses.

Mz Pip
:dem:

pissing those bastards off. don't you love it when they get all tongue tied and start making those faces? they all look constipated.:hurts:

...I stay because the rules keep it halfway civil, unlike 99.9% of the political message boards on the Internet.

I'm so fucking addicted! I've laughed, cried, blushed on numerous occasions, been insulted rarely, complimented, challenged and generally found that this website is unlike any other...IT'S ALL GOOD! DU is my home, and I expect to be posting well into the last stages of my life...

:kick:

And I wub you too! And your wonderful posts and thoughts...you are one of the reasons I stick around! :blush:

:woohoo:

:applause:

I appreciate your input a whole lot...

:applause: back atcha!

thank you:pals:

Oh and the political discussions and the witty repertoire. :D

And I stay because of my addictive personality.

This is my first and only chat room/message board that I have ever been involved in.
:grouphug:

but since i came here i've almost totaly forgotten about it.:shrug:

you are guilty of feeding my addiction. Thank you.:)

there could be worse ones you know.:hi:

I found it, loved the fact I could come to one place for the news I was looking for....stayed for Conservative Idiots, Bob Boudelang, and others. After the 2002 and 2004 elections the emotions here seemed to change hourly. It was a good place to heal...:)

It's kind of like school.....there's the jocks, the stoners, the beauty queens, the perverts, and the geeks, dweebs and spazzes. It's a place to rant, argue, learn and laugh...

Hell of a place if I do say so....

I stay because I've found it. I'm going to a Helping Democrats Get Elected Meetup and a DSM Meeting this weekend!

something - found the "conservative idiots" stuff - lurked off and on for a couple of years before finally joining.

I joined to keep up with all the news the corporate media hides from us and to check out what the progessive people of the world have to say.

Sometimes I even post.

"we're not just kids, to say the least
we got ideas to us that's dear
like capitalist, like communist
like lots of things you've heard about
and redneckers they get us pissed
and stupid stuff it makes us shout
oh dance with me oh don't be shy
oh kissme c**t and kiss me c**k
oh kiss the world oh kiss the sky
oh kiss my ass oh let it rock
of the april birds and the may bee
oh baby......
it's educational
it's educational
it's educational
it's educational
it's educational."
UMASS - The Pixies

I couldn't believe there was a "moral" element that re-"elected" **! I was sure something dastardly happened and I came here to get answers. I'm glad I found this site--it's where I get the "real" news of the day.

be myself, also one where I wouldn't get completely out-of-control angry or hurt all the time. I have very thin skin.

Now I am only hurt or angry part of the time, and I can control it better. Better living through chemistry, and through posting where there are like minds only. Call me isolated; I don't care. I need to survive.

sometimes not. I was too shy to speak up, but when I moved to the Boston area, I realized there were a lotta people on DU from here. I thought I'd be able to make some new friends here in the Lounge. I don't post much in GD or anything.

:hi:

i lurked around for awhile before i joined:eyes:

Not only did I find lots of information (and pointers to more) on black box voting machines and other election problems, I found a well-designed website, interesting discussions, humor, and lots of pictures of cats.

DU could use more chocolate, however.

:dem: :dem: :dem: :dem: :dem:

I can't remember whether I first saw the site shortly after the Supreme Court appointed Bush, or whether it was in the run-up to the Iraq War - both were such distressing periods, when it seemed as though all of America had gone mad and that there was no rationality left.

I think I probably "discovered" DU a few times through Googling key words related to my concerns over the election and later over Bush's pre-Iraq war-mongering. I do distinctly recall getting some critical information via DU that I used in letters of August 2002 to my Senators and Representative, attempting to encourage them to halt Bush's march to disaster in Iraq. One Senator and my Congressman did the right thing in that regard. US Senator Gordon "Hairboy" Smith did not listen to me.

I'm sure there's a place on DU where I can find my exact join date, but I don't know where it is. I generally only posted in GD, LBN, and other political forums until a few months ago when I really started hitting the Lounge hard.

I stay at DU for the information, the news, the analysis, and the insights of others on the political and news forums. And I enjoy the general hilarity, insanity, and camaraderie of the Lounge.

Oh, one more note: if you don't regularly read the articles in the articles section, please remind yourself to do so. There is some great analysis and writing there:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/articles/index.html

and what keeps me here is the same.
But...
I've made some amazing friends here too...

I wasn't politically aware / active at all before that book came out.

So, thanks to Bill O'Reilly causing such a stink, my curiosity was aroused and I bought it.

When I read it and realized that I didn't know who Karl Rove was...that this pasty worm of a man had been pulling dirty tricks for years...I decided it was time to get educated.

I can't remember EXACTLY how I "found" DU, but it was most likely from Googling and following the paper trail out of Franken's book.

:toast:

for pro-democratic party stuff. I came upon this message board, lurked for about 2 months and decided to join. And I stay because like everyone esle here, I hate Republicans, I hate this asshole of a so-called President, and I want to see them go down in flames,to laugh my ass off at them, and because I want my country to be restored to what it was before they came and took over.:dem: :kick: :patriot: :patriot: :patriot: :patriot: :patriot: :patriot: :patriot:

trashing it. I didn't even know what a blog was. My son built me a computer and I hooked up to the DSL I've been paying for, for years and went straight to DU. It took several days to be able to log in because I have hotmail and I had to be cleared. It took me several months to reach 1,000 posts because I usually comment and move along. I was very pleased to find so many like minded folks here. The lounge is funny as hell. DU gives me a place to vent my frustrations. I like the exchange of information and learn a lot every day. Although I don't have any 'buddies' I feel close to may of the unique 'personalities' especially in the lounge. They seem like friends even though they probably don't have a clue who I am. I really do love you guys.

impact on the politics that were frustrating me. The reason I stay, the same.