The Circular Firing Squad Is At It Again...

[Blue Velvet]

Apologies if these words have been already said here today by someone else over the course of this divisive day. Honestly, I've stayed away from DU for most of it because the second I heard this morning's news I feared that the discourse here might degenerate into something less than constructive. And just a glance at the GD thread titles tonight confirm my worst fears.

God, I hate it when the people I love have to fight one another (hint: this means you, DU).

Now, by "fight", I'm not talking about intense debates full of passion and logic and reasoning, in consideration of an argument's merits (or lack thereof). No - that's what I come to DU FOR! But when our passion for fighting in pursuit of the truth starts misfiring at one another, it all just degenerates into the useless, pointless name-calling and vitriol that I see here today (which, apparently, is actually threatening to drive good people AWAY from this (usually) vital, necessary forum).

I mean, sure - I was tremendously disappointed to hear the news this morning, too. But it only adds insult to injury to see forum friends at each others' throats like this.

And what REALLY galls me is to think of how giddy the freepers must be, watching this kind of garish display of infighting, a veritable public meltdown.

So in that respect I URGE you to try and be more understanding with each other if at all possible - today of all days. After all, why compound our misery? Granted, a little venting can be healthy, but please let's try to keep it constructive. This place is one of the last bastions of comfort for me in this fucked up world, and when the seas of my usually safe harbor get this choppy, I have no idea where to turn.

And if you can't do it for me (after all - who am I? I've got less than 100 posts...) then I ask you to consider the fact that some freeper is probably jerking off to every hateful word we hurl at each other here. And, frankly, I don't want to give them the satisfaction.

PEACE.



Edited to clarify metaphor - thanks bluebear!

[Bluebear]

1. Circular firing squad is a description not always apropos

I respect the intent of your post, just two comments: I could give a rat's ass about the giddiness of freepers and; truth is more important than blind loyalty, the latter of which I regard as a particularly freeperish trait.

All the best.

[Blue Velvet]

4. I agree completely that truth is more important than blind loyalty

In fact, the quest for truth is I feel more important than many things, but I don't feel that journey is constructively undertaken with barbs and namecalling is all. And I'm seeing a lot of that on DU today.

And you're right, my metaphor isn't the MOST apt - my mind is weary. I suppose what I was going for is that we have on this forum (for the most part) such great PASSION for truth and justice and liberty, and it just sucks to see people (mis)fire that passion at each other through belligerently argumentative means. It just seems like displaced anger, when we should all be working with more togetherness in the higher pursuit of truth.

PEACE.

[Bluebear]

5. Cheers, bv

We are all so, so weary :(

Better days!

[Name removed]

2. Deleted sub-thread

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[MADem]

3. Ah, yes, the ABANDON HOPE crew

The WHY BOTHER? crowd! The FUGGEDABOUTIT bunch!!!

We know NOTHING. Re: Rove, there's one guy who knows the full story, and his name is Fitzgerald. As for the Monkey going to Eye-Rack, that's a joke in and of itself.

Hey, Webb won the primary in VA; that means the GOP is gonna have to spend, spend, spend like hell, and Allen'll be tied up trying to keep his seat instead of running for the White House. Awwwwwwwwww! No picnics in Iowa for you, Howdy Doody!

[Name removed]

6. Deleted message

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[RandomKoolzip]

7. So the people who continue to believe that Rove has already been

indicted are "pro-hope?"

[Ilsa]

8. Look folks, it was Valerie Plame and Joe Wilson who got stung the

most by today's events, I bet. Sure, we've all been "injured" to some degree by KKKarl getting away with this teasonous shit, but they have to feel really betrayed by the system. They got screwed. And my heart aches for them.

[Blue Velvet]

11. I very much agree.

Many levels of disappointment today.

[Catherine Vincent]

9. "forum friends at each others' throats like this"

You see, that's the thing. These aren't forum friends at each other's throats. The forum friends respectfully disagree with each other civilly. The name calling and fighting that is going on are between individuals accusing each other of trolling, being a freeper etc.

[Blue Velvet]

10. I hope you're right.

This forum is such a valuable resource to me, I just hate to see it devolve into a big brawl. I've just started to take a deeper peek at some of today's threads, and it seems like there's way more bickering than usual. But hopefully, as you say, the disruptors aren't the usual "forum friends" and haven't gone over to the "Dark Side"