Happy Anniversary DU

[Virginian]

Just after Bush v. Gore, When Dubya was inaugurated there was this little sign along the parade route... "DemocraticUnderground.com"
My how You've grown.

[In_The_Wind]

1. I Love This Thread!

[brer cat]

2. Hell, yeah!!

Our Admins rock.

[Trajan]

3. Wasn'tthat EarlG holding that banner?

... been a long while since then ...

[Virginian]

9. Those were gloomy days

I don't think I could have made it through them without DU.

That was before Keith Olbermann was on MSNBC.

Before 9/11 Dubya was all but invisible.. even when the North Koreans captured one of our military planes.

Everyone seemed to think Bush was doing a great job... Even after 9/11!

DU was the only place I could find anyone that didn't think invading Iraq was to get back at Saddam for 9/11.

[LiberalAndProud]

48. Your recollection is different from mine.

I seem to remember Jr*s approval ratings were tanking prior to his speech from the rubble of the towers, in which he vowed revenge.

http://www.history.com/speeches/george-w-bush-vows-revenge-for-911

[dmr]

4. Been here 12 years today!

That was a wild day and it scared the beejeebers out of me; but DU was just what my broken heart needed.

DU!

Happy Anniversary, DU!

[Hekate]

5. Happy Birthday, indeed

[HappyMe]

6. Thank you Skinner & EarlG!

Happy Anniversary!

[Raine]

7. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY and THANKS for providing us a sane zone

in an insane world.

[Vietnameravet]

8. Happy Brithday!

And I think we should all be proud of the work we have all done in making this wonderful day possible!

No matter how small, each little contribution from each of us made a difference!

[DeeDeeNY]

10. I never saw that sign

I didn't see it because I didn't have the stomach to watch W's inauguration. Finding this site 5 years later helped restore sanity and hope to me as i'm sure it did to so many others during that awful reign.
Happy Birthday DU!!

[MadrasT]

11. Here is Skinner's account of the first 7 days

http://www.democraticunderground.com/articles/01/01/010127_7days.html

[Cha]

17. Whoa, that's funny!

Thank you for that, MadrasT! I read about DU in The Nation mag I got at a NYC newstand on New's Year's Day, 2002.. under "alternative news sources". I didn't even have a computer yet but I got one in June so I could participate online against the bush coup.

I finally turned the computer on in September and joined DU at the end of the month.

My my my how far we've come.. even in our "Neverending Journey".

[UnrepentantLiberal]

25. Cool.

That was funny and interesting.

[winstars]

39. Thanks for that link, reminds me that I found DU in early 2001 from Bartcop

I could not ever remember how I got here, my join date only say 2001, no month or day... I thought it was during the recount but I guess that was earlier. I think when I joined up we were heavily into the newspapers doing the recount, funny, that did not really work out too well looking back...

I love DU and am here everyday reading and learning, thanks for everything...

And look where we are today, a quite different day than 2001!!!

[Rose Siding]

42. Adorable. What do you suppose became of intern?

I was here a few months later but I don't remember an intern.

[greatauntoftriplets]

12. Happy 12th anniversary to DU.

[joeybee12]

13. I started lurking shortly after that...

Took me about a year to join.

[Virginian]

18. I didn't actually see the sign...

It took me a few months to stumble onto the website, but once I found it I was hooked. I only knew this was the anniversary because I had read the account of the first few days cited above.

I had posted on other discussion websites. I stopped when some guy seemed to be following me around. He made snide comments to every post I made. He really gave me the creeps. I started looking out my window to see if he was stalking me in my front yard.
I didn't get any of that here.

[joeybee12]

24. Someone pointed it out to me...

It was the first site I started going to...only one I stuck with, too.

[BumRushDaShow]

14. Happy Anniversary

For the best political site on the 'net!

[calimary]

33. Heartily agreed! This place kept me sane all through those accursed bush/cheney years.

I found my way here shortly after dubya stole his way in (the first time), in early 2001. Been here ever since! This isn't just a website or a chat room or a discussion board. It's a freakin' Progressive THINK TANK!!!

[rurallib]

15. and a thanks from me to my friend for recommending DU to me

she "this looks like something you would like" - boy was she ever right.
Thanks Skinner, EarlG and cyberswede

[byronius]

16. Great post.

[calimary]

34. Love you guys!

THANK YOU for being there.

[Cha]

19. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY DU! Such a Long Way, We've Come..

http://theobamadiary.com/

[dembotoz]

20. thank you for keeping me somewhat sane

[Melinda]

21. My, how our "boys" have grown!!

From this:



To this!



Happy Anniversary Guys!!!


Happy Anniversary DU!!!

[NBachers]

30. Ahh yes- reflecting their well-deserved fame and limitless wealth

My day would not be complete without several visits to Democratic Underground. It's the first place I go when the computer boots up.

[calimary]

35. Agreed! It's been just exhilarating being here today especially!

I check in every day, too. This place has been my refuge.

[Diclotican]

22. Virginian

Virginian

Congrats DU.. The little child is starting to grow up, to a big person now ... One of the few places who sanity prevailed under "W".. And still a interesting place to be

Diclotican

[AsahinaKimi]

23. YAY!

[jaysunb]

26. Happy Birthday DU

I've been here for nearly the entire time and it has been (and remains) a place of refuge, comfort and stimulation.

Thanks guys ! Well done.

[dog_lovin_dem]

27. Thank goodness for DU!!

I didn't show up until late 2004, but this place helped me keep my sanity through the Bush reign. Happy Anniversary!

[LVdem]

28. Happy Birthday DU... and many more! nt

[RainDog]

29. k&r

[CherokeeDem]

31. In the aftermath of the 2000 Election...

I'm not certain how I would have survived without DU. I worked for Gore in Florida...co-chair of a coordinated campaign office in Miami and in the thick of the recount. Other than the loss of someone I love, nothing was so devastating as Gore's loss. I found like-minded people here and since then have shared so many tragedies and triumphs...through elections, 9-11, Katrina, Newtown...everything. Good or bad, even with the occasional troll...this site is one of the most important sites on the "Intertubes."

Bless our little political geeks for starting this site and saving our sanity.

Happy Birthday, Democratic Underground!

[underpants]

32. 12 great years

I have been here 11 1/2 years (Oct 2001)

[TygrBright]

36. Oh, my... that brings back memories.

Them was some freaky forums back before Our Fearless Admins managed to refine the system. But always fun and always with interesting people!

Glad we're still here.

reminiscently,
Bright

[Permanut]

37. A voice of sanity in the madness..

a lighthouse in the storm. The most valuable political information source on the planet, then and now.

[4_TN_TITANS]

38. I wandered in the wilderness from 2001-2004

when I finally stumbled onto DU thru a link from Wonkette, I think. Thank-you to everyone for eight years of a haven for sanity. And happy birthday DU. I'm going nowhere for the foreseeable future. I never thought I could grow so attached to an 'online community'.

[sad-cafe]

40. cool

necessity often brings about some of the best inventions.

[Supply Side Jesus]

41. DUand so many early sites were a lifeline in a stormy time

Happy Anniversary DU

[zeemike]

43. I was pretty down that day and watching on C-Span.

And then they showed the protest crowd and I saw the sigh Democratic Underground.com and typed in in my browser....and saw that first message that said Nice site...there is no one here....but I kept the URL and checked back some time later and then became hooked.
The admin put a lot into this place, and that is what made it what it is today...the best board on the net.
Happy anniversary DU

[MsLeopard]

44. I found DU a few days after the 2001 inauguration

and have been here ever since. Yes, low post count, but I've been here through the 8 long years of carnage during Bush - couldn't have made it through without DU - and now for 4 years of our President Obama. And I'll be here for as long as I'm here. Love this place despite the changes I've witnessed from when there were a handful or people who posted (at the beginning) to today. Happy Anniversary indeed!!

[ellisonz]

45. Wow

The Admins must be getting old

[tiredtoo]

46. Just checked my profile

and find i did not become a member until 2009. How i ever made through those years i will never know.
A little off topic here but a short while after joining i was in Virginia and tried to get to Democratic underground. The server had the site blocked for profane language. what the fuck ???

[proud patriot]

47. ahhhh the dismay at the 200o election had brought so many great people together

people have married
people have died
people have helped each othe through many many trials .

It's been an honor to witness as a member and and as moderator.

that 10,000 number creeps closer for me and the memories of those posts will last a lifetime.

[xxqqqzme]

49. I couldn't - wouldn't

watch anything from that horrible, terrible day, so I missed the banner.

A few months after 9/11, I sent a rantful, rambling email to a good friend. I was appalled at the bravado and continual display of American exceptional-ism. (We were not the first country to ever suffer a terrorist attack). I could not believe anyone, in their heart of hearts, thought dumbya could lead a dog on a leash, let alone a country. "Go shopping"? Are you kidding me!?!

My friend sent me a link to DU in March, 2002.

I spent many hours here, puzzled over DU slang and abbreviations...'freeper', 'LIHOP', BFEE. A sanity bridge - a lifeline.

Sure don't want anything like those 8 years to be repeated.

Thanks for everything!