Reply #783: Making it about sides is going to be a problem, unless...

[flvegan]

DU picks a side and rids itself of the other, or DU allows itself to actually become a community again by relaxing the rules a great deal. When I say "picks a side" I mean in a much greater realm than the "loves Obama unconditionally" and "Obama isn't meeting what I voted for" sides. I mean a side on everything. I can tell you now, though. That ain't gonna work.

"Community" is a funny word. I belong to one. In my neighborhood, my intimate community, I know my neighbors by name. I know some things about some, little about others, more than I really should about others. I've got the middle aged mixed race gay male couple a couple houses down. The drug dealer across the street. The nice old man on the corner. There's the drunk, the used car salesman, the trophy wife and her husband who I swear runs a strip club (stereotyping, I know). I know who the Dems are from their lawn signs during every election period. I also know who votes Republican. Some of them, I have no idea what their political compass is. I can have a polite conversation with any one of them about select topics, differing with each person. That's how a community should be. Not an echo chamber, stuck in groupthink gear.

DU has become far too much like the floor of the Senate. Speak your side, but not harshly and not out of turn. There's been way too much "come to order!" lately. A community is more like the bar down the street from the Senate. Everybody gets together. You sit with who you want to and are free to discuss/debate issues with anyone in the room. The place largely self-polices. It's fair, and you make of it what you want.

I think DU would be brilliant if GD was like the Sports Forum. Just have at it. Keep LBN as moderated. Lots of non-DUers read it as the invaluable resource that it is. Hell, I read The Telegraph and The Sunday Times and I live thousands of miles away. I'm not suggesting DU become Sparta, but there are forums (and I'm not going to name names) that have been left decimated, an absolute wasteland because of how they've been moderated. And yeah, I say that with a bit of bias as a lot of good posters (whom I happened to like, yes) have been banned, causing said decimation.

I'm not here to criticize, just offering a possible solution to what appears to be a pretty big problem.