Reply #23: I probably shouldn't even post this reply, but what the hell...

[wyldwolf]

There a A LOT of people on DU who just aren't grounded in reality.

From the "very out there" rantings of the holocaust deniers to the people who accuse others of being on the payroll of the DNC, DLC, RNC, and individual candidates simply because they disagree with a given point of contention.

To be sure, it isn't the conspiracy theory itself that is the problem, it's how such theories are presented.

There is a big difference between "speculations" and "claims," don't you agree?

We can speculate all day long on a conspiracy theory but to actually claim it to be true void of any reputable sources is where the problems begin.

Yes, I know that many things we know to be true today began as conspiracy theories, but the road to the truth wasn't arrived at publically where enemies could pile on ridicule and effectively broad brush the entire left based on the "wacky" theory.

On an internet message forum, especially one with "Democratic" in it's name, it is very easy (as it happens often) for the Right to cherry pick posts here and present them as representative of the Democratic Party mindset. The politically naive and the fencesitters can, in my opinion, be swayed away from us based on this practice.

There is no doubt in my mind that the following passage was added to DU's Rules page to distance DU, the DNC, candidates, and Democrats in general from some of the general wackiness put fourth on DU:

Democratic Underground is a completely independent organization. Democratic Underground is not affiliated with the Democratic Party in any way, and comments posted here are not representative of the Democratic Party or its candidates.

So I'll call for it again: Post all the conspiracy theories ya want. But if you present them as factual, I think one should be prepared to prove it or have the post removed.