The Other Democratic Underground Facebook Group

[MineralMan]

has switched to being a "closed group." It had changed into an anti-DU group, for the most part, and now shows nothing to non-members. There wasn't much there worth looking at, anyhow. I'm not sure when this switch happened, since I haven't clicked on it for a while, but the anti-DU faction on Facebook seems to have disappeared.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/2426871461/

The Official DU Facebook page, however, is still there and growing stronger every day. Please visit it and give it a LIKE.

https://www.facebook.com/democraticunderground

[pintobean]

1. It was an open group yesterday

Some right wing asshole got in recently and was causing a bunch of trouble. I imagine they booted him and closed the group.

[libodem]

3. Thanks that makes sense

I was thinking it was a 'hate us' group.

But they actually closed to hide from the haters?

Do I have that right?

[pintobean]

4. Oh, there are some haters there

Mostly tombstoned people who can't let go and want to relive their 'glory days on DU. There are also active members and some good people there. Some use it as a Meta forum and often trash talk DU and our members. I have no idea why they closed it. My previous post was speculation based on that observation. I'm not a member of that group, but I read it once in a while.

[HappyMe]

6. The last time I looked it up (quite awhile ago)

there was a bunch of meta type stuff. I didn't go back. To be fair, there were a few souls trying to get some legit discussion going.

[pintobean]

8. Yeah, the legit stuff is the vast majority of the posts there.

The meta posts are the most active, though. It was pretty active right after Taverner and pab got PPRed. Hawkeye lost another sock about the same time. That all lasted a couple of weeks, then things calmed down.

[HappyMe]

10. Next time I'm on FB, I'll take a look.

[libodem]

7. Hmmmm?

Interesting. Very interesting.

[Blue_In_AK]

11. No, you are exactly right.

There were a couple of Conservative Cave types who were being over-the-top obnoxious.

[CreekDog]

13. A couple? How about all of them.

The list of people I had to block to make that place even half readable (i.e. free of right wing hate speech) is pages long.

[Blue_In_AK]

15. I hadn't been paying a lot of attention until these last two.

The fights were pretty amusing, though.

[Rhythm]

44. And for that, i thank you Creeky...

[zappaman]

31. Yeah, they were being trolled by so e RWer who posted incessantly.

But I love how there is a current DUer with over 100,000 posts who calls DU a "cesspool" and says they have more respect for the guy who runs FR than Skinner.
Why they continue to post here is beyond me...

[CreekDog]

39. this is most definitely true since zappaman and i agree

the downside is that agreement is a sign that the apocalypse is near.

[Chan790]

14. Yes.

Yesterday.

You and anybody else that wants to from here is free to join...including the admins here. (Even MineralMan) The group existed years before the official DU page and was never meant to be competitive to it. (I'm not an admin there, I was just active there then inactive then since yesterday active again. It's a long story. Kind of a funny one, I'll get there.)

Anyways, it was always an open group but there were problems frequently of drive-by RWNJ trolls. There's also very little moderation there, but volunteers who would/could took up the banner and did the best they could which allowed it to remain "open" as a group. (It's always been more troll-infested than DU because it's Facebook and there are more people on Facebook and less people there to moderate...but they got by.) Yesterday, largely in response to the awesomeness of a goats prank against a RW hate page on Facebook, RW assholes and disrupters decided to target it for a troll infestation (The DU group itself had nothing to do with said prank...it's just open and a place where assholes can troll large numbers of liberals.) as a counter-strike. So the people who were hosting closed the group so that every asshole RWer that wandered down the pike couldn't troll and join without some oversight. It's wonderful and probably not going back. Anybody on the inside though can invite people or approve join requests, the "close" is a flimsy gate meant to allow time/space for someone to look at "what are your interests", "what groups are you a member of?", "Do you post RW crap?" of the random passers-by that click "join" before they can post there. If your Facebook wall declares you love Rick Santorum, your political affiliation is Libertarian, you have a shrine to Ronald Reagan, are a member of many RW Facebook pages or you post lots of comments that support RW agendas...not getting approved. Sorry, not sorry.

Unrelated to the group, some of us (me, for one) from here/there are actually people involved with the goat prank. I wasn't leading it, I was just a person, one of dozens, responsible for taking over and destroying a Facebook page dedicated to a national holiday celebrating lynching the President. Damn, it feels good to be a gangster.

So yeah. There's a DU group separate from the Official DU Facebook page. It's full of DUers, it's really not that interesting...it's basically an extension of the Lounge how the Lounge used to be years ago because a lot of Loungers that got banned here for things they said did in GD are still there Lounging it the F up. It's now just no longer open to RW assholes who want to post "All yous libtrads r goin to hell cuz you haet Jesus Christ." on the walls or tell us why we should support Rand Paul.

[libodem]

20. Saw the goat prank here, yesterday

Loved the goat prank. Top notch, pranking. Good on you for participating.

[zappaman]

32. The goat prank was the best thing I've seen on FB in some time!

[uppityperson]

23. Library Girl and a couple assholes were causing problems. They closed the group and booted them. It

may become useable again rather than being used to post rw and anti-du rants. And LG madness.

[stevenleser]

34. Which one was Library Girl? May I ask to please Pm me the name?

Thanks!

[FloridaJudy]

35. The stuff they posted was beyond vile

Including telling female posters - including me - that "You just need to get laid" when we responded to personal attacks on Progressive women. The c-word was also deployed.

It was the most racist, homophobic, misogynist crap imaginable. So yeah, a number of long-time members got together and closed the group. It was the sane thing to do.

[libodem]

2. The closed group makes me curious

All I want is to see inside now. And know all the user names. Okay l'll get over it. But who is there and what are they discussing? Is it a troll farm? Is that where they come from? Inquiring minds....okay done. Enough.


But, but but.....

[WilliamPitt]

18. It was overrun yesterday by wingers and Newtown conspiracy theorists.

The door was justly closed and locked. The only trolls there were the ones that got broomed after the group was closed to stop the invasion.

[libodem]

22. Starting to sink in

I'm getting it. Slowly.

[Pretzel_Warrior]

5. nice post for #60000

[MineralMan]

30. Ha! I didn't notice that.

Funny.

[yuiyoshida]

9. I don't use facebook..however...

HERE is a twitter page I do like, ....


https://twitter.com/demunderground

[CreekDog]

12. Did they close the group without your permission?

OMG.

[MineralMan]

29. I'm sure they did, since I'm not a member.

My DU screen name has come up there a few times, though. Imagine that...

[Puglover]

36. ROFL!

I just blew coffee out my nose.

[The Straight Story]

16. I'm a member there

Super secret stuff, like Project Z (someone stole project X).

Don't really see it as an anti-du group, though some do post such things from time to time. Nice way to keep up with members past and some current. Adults hanging out having adult conversations and having something in common.

Pretty simple.

[fishwax]

17. they closed it b/c it was getting trolled by right wingers

There is certainly some criticism of DU there, but I wouldn't agree that it is primarily an anti-DU group.

[WilliamPitt]

19. Heh.

I can see seven replies to this thread, but this reply will be #19.

Telling.

[uppityperson]

24. Why take time to announce an ignore? Does this help DU not suck? Thanks for your consideration Will.

[CreekDog]

40. i was trying to do the math and figure out who you have on ignore

i think i wasn't far off.

[WilliamPitt]

42. U math bro?

[CreekDog]

43. i even science!

[bettyellen]

21. I closed it!! never did really post there, but got a message asking for help with the trolls….

seems I was made an admin a long time back and never realized it. So I zapped a few trolls and shared admin privileges with a poster who is there very frequently. And closed it, because people were begging for that.
But I expanded privileges so that any member could approve new members. So it's actually more open, in a way.
Not even sure what closing it means- is it less visible now? No idea! I just did as I was asked.

[CreekDog]

25. i'm sure past and present Free Republic members are saddened by this development

but don't let their whining trouble you.

[bettyellen]

28. i love cjeek dog!

[CreekDog]

41. !

[pintobean]

27. As a non-member, I can only see

who the members are. I can't see any posts.

[qnr]

37. I had forgotten all about it until I received the notification that you'd closed it.

Not the fault of the group, just facebook's algorithm on what it decides to inform you of as far as recent activity goes.

[bettyellen]

38. i was getting notifications about people joining, and had no idea why!

[WolverineDG]

26. The actual DU haters group de-camped to another "invite only group"

after posting some rather telling messages in this group (of which I'm a member), tipping their hands as organized disrupters & outright liars. Apparently they forgot the group was "open" & included a wide variety of posters, not just their particular clique.

And I can confirm this particular group was only closed yesterday in order to get rid of a right-wing troll. Otherwise, it's pretty quiet in there.

[MineralMan]

33. Ah, OK. I haven't clicked through since

before Xmas. I check in there every couple of weeks...or did.