if this is a group, ie a "safe haven" why am I limited in what I can post?

[ellenrr]

[MADem]

1. You can't post things that make members of the group feel threatened.

There's an underutilized Middle East group that is a bit less restrictive...also an underutilized foreign affairs group. Maybe those are better fits.

[ellenrr]

2. ok thanks I'll check them out. Why are there different rules for this I-P than others?

eg (if I recall from the guidelines) cannot post photos.
can only have an OP with an article.

[bemildred]

7. It was originally a "dungeon", always has been really,

because it was too noisy and disruptive and tended to take over other forums, one of several such dungeons back in the day.

Now it alternates between quiet and what you see, depending on what Bibi is up to.

A number of the more intesting posters on both sides, or not on any side (the ones worth talking to) are not participating at present too.

[ellenrr]

10. well... I understand, that like any forum, if one doesn't like the rules, one can go elsewhere.. but

I don't understand the different rules for I/P.

there are many controversial topics on DU, for ex Guns - which do not operate under special rules.
I do like to share perspectives with like-minded people, and learn from others.
As for some people who have nothing to say,
and only want to blow things up -
well one can always put them on ignore.

anyway, thanks for yr feed-back.

I've been here a long time, but don't spend a lot of time here, so -- trying to navigate.

[bemildred]

11. All I can say is your questions are not new.

If you follow the old rules at the top and don't let yourself be provoked, you are safe enough down here. I don't remember the last time I was hidden, and I post what I like, pretty much. The jury system is actually more lenient than the old rules IMHO.

[ellenrr]

12. do people get notified if their post is removed, hidden, moved? I don't mean just here,

but anywhere?

[bemildred]

13. Never happened to me on DU3, so I don't really know.

However, since hides lead to timeouts, I am sure you hear about those. Removal is a mystery to me, but I think it goes with being banned, so there is nobody to notify, so to speak.

[Scootaloo]

14. if your post is hidden, you'll get an alert about it

I don't know about if they get locked or moved, as it's not happened to my posts (but then i've made rather few OP's, and aside from a dissertation on the psychopathy of conservatives, all those have just been news articles...)

[ellenrr]

3. where is the Middle east group? nt

[Jim__]

4. It's under International.

DU Home » Latest Threads » Forums & Groups » Places » International » Middle East (Group)

[ellenrr]

5. got it. thanks. well-hidden.;) nt

[azurnoir]

9. The problem is that about the only 2 places I/P is allowed on DU is here and LBN within LBN's rules

I suppose it could be discussed in in international affairs but only as it relates to US policy, outside of that it is quite limited

[MADem]

8. I'm afraid I've steered you wrong--the ME group's sop specifically prohibits

I/P conversations. Sorry about that--I didn't think there was that restriction.


A group for discussions related to the Middle East and a meeting place for DU members who live there. (This group does not host discussions of the Israel/Palestine conflict.)

Given the shit hitting the fan in the ME, that kind of ensures that group is going to stay a bit moribund...Palestine hasn't been jumping this much since Yassir was a young man raising Cain from over the border. The Palestinians will, as they've been for eons now, be portrayed as sinners and saints depending upon perspective. They'll be used for propaganda all around the region.


I think that in the "OLD" DUs, there was too much hammer-and-tongs re: Israel and Palestine. There's much less now. It used to be you couldn't post a picture in I/P, because there was some drama about people posting pictures of maps that said this group was "entitled" to this chunk of land, or what-have-you. Also, no showing any of those Dome of the Rock shots! Those were like hard core porn, that's how much DU didn't want to see 'em!

Don't know why this issue is equivalent to the Gungeon here, but it is. People have a tough time weighing the issues and understanding the perspective of "The Other." It's all "Battle lines being drawn, nobody's right if everybody's wrong."

If you want smart talk on this issue, you're probably better off going elsewhere. DU just doesn't have the diversity of viewpoint to handle these discussions--it's not a slam I'm making, there, it's just a fact. We don't have many Muslims here, and we also have a lot of people who don't realize that there's such a thing as Palestinian Christians. Too often, when discussions get heated, people get frozen out of the group. It's just not a place to let the fur fly, and most people who want to discuss the Palestinian issue do, in fact, want to let that fur fly.

[bemildred]

6. I post a lot in Foreign Affairs because there is less noise and disruption.

And Latin America and National Security. This place is full of people who don't care what they say,