A quick call for civility.
First of all, I love DU, as it is a strong community of Democrats committed to progressive values. There is a lot of wonderful people here, with interesting viewpoints and with a lot of knowledge to share. This is a great community to learn and to become intellectually engaged.
However, it does sadden me that sometimes, when some hot button issues are discussed, the discourse tends to go down the drain to the point that threads lose their purpose. We all can agree or disagree vehemently, without making assumptions about the other person or by berating anyone. In fact, let's appreciate the diversity of thought that exists among us, as it is for the most part rooted in the same set of progressive values, whether we realize or not.
So, if I have offended anyone or made anyone feel uncomfortable in any recent discussion, I apologize. Every one of your opinions is a possibility to learn, grow, or at least see a divergent opinion, and I hope that you will receive my posts the same way.
= new reply since forum marked as read
too often it seems to go by the wayside. 
rather than being distracted by all the non-issue distractions. This administration, Trump himself and his staff, almost all of the GOP and many foreign actors are feeding the world with massive amounts of lies, non-issue diversions, disinformation, and self-promotions that keeps the whole world's head spinning. It's very easy to fall victim to this flood of useless "news".
It's no wonder our nerves are on edge and that's exactly the effect they desire. It distracts us from concentrating on our most crucial issues of the day, where Republicans are destroying our most precious government services and protections bit-by-bit, day-by-day, and mostly hidden from our view.
America has become an increasingly selfish, divided, isolationist, and reactionary nation of late. Let's all try to counter this trend by being more tolerant, thoughtful and humble. Let's also try to understand that DU'ers are a very diverse group (that's great!) with highly varied upbringing and education wrought from many different cultures and hardships.
Each time I have an urge to comment here, I try to stop and ask myself "will I be adding anything constructive to this thread?" and "is what I'm thinking of saying based on truth?". I do, however, understand that we all on occasion simply need to vent our frustrations and emotions.
Many times with pause, we may find it's best to say nothing at all..........
.........
Thank you. I am happy to be among smart people,
And try to think that at times people do not realize the written word can be harsh.
But I can assure you this board is a miracle compared to others. None of us agree on everything, but one thing is ceratain! We all want a Democrat in the White House and Democrats in the Congress! That is the important thing!
