"In ‘The Fourth Way,’ Ouspensky described a man who attaches two horses to an airplane and uses it as a carriage. Then he learns how to use the engine and turns the plane into a motor car. But the plane never takes flight. ‘That is what we are doing with ourselves,’ Ouspensky explains. ‘We use ourselves as a carriage when we could fly.’"
--James S. Hersch; Hurricane: The Miraculous Journey of Rubin Carter; 2000; p. 172
This morning, while I drank a cup of coffee, I "googled" news reports on Michelle Obama. The #5 story was a Democratic Underground journal, "Gotcha!," by Ernest Partridge. This is something to keep in mind the next time someone says that DU is insignificant, and that no one cares what the progressive and liberal democrats that participate in discussions here thinks.
Last week, Keith Olbermann asked Scott McClellan if the democratic left had been correct in their views about the reasons that Bush led the country to war in Iraq. McClellan said that indeed, they were. Looking back, one can find numerous DU threads that were 100% accurate in their analysis of that march to war.
I joined DU on December 29, 2003. That was the day that Patrick Fitzgerald was assigned to the Plame scandal investigation. Also on that day, Will Pitt published one of the most important essays on the Plame scandal, one which was later shown to be uncannily accurate – more so than any report in the corporate media. Think about that.
My goal on DU was to provide insight on the Plame scandal that was not available in the corporate media. There was a wonderful series of discussions known as the "Plame Threads," which I believe were one of the most important things on this or any other internet political discussion forum. I remember a few years back, when DUer "symbolman" posted a thread in which he noted that I had provided information about one of the grand jury events that would not become public knowledge for more than a year.
The DU:GD-P discussions have been different in nature than the earlier discussions about the war in Iraq or the Plame scandal. They have been at times acrimonious. But a lot of important information has been put forth, and this section of DU has reflected both the good and the bad associated with the 2008 democratic primary.
DU continues to provide information that is reported in the mainstream media, and things that are only reported weeks or months afterward. In January, after Senator Ted Kennedy endorsed Barack Obama, I detailed a conversation he had had with President Bill Clinton, and the three reasons Kennedy decided to publicly endorse Obama.
About a week ago, in a conversation with another DUer ("Me"), I said that in the tradition of news being reported on this forum before by the mainstream media, I would what message Representative Rahm Emanuel had been tasked with delivering to Senator Clinton. Although there were journalists from the major newspapers and cable news networks aware of it, this was not being reported. The corporate media has an agenda, and it does not always include telling the truth.
There are, of course, numerous DUers who provide information that is just as important – or more so – than the things I mentioned that I have posted on this forum. I listed a couple of things I reported here, because they are obviously the things I am most familiar with. I also can say that I have, over the years, discussed topics from DU with aides to politicians in Washington, DC. People take this and other internet forums seriously. The ability of two democrats – Howard Dean in ’04 and Barack Obama in ’08 – to raise campaign funds by tapping into the energy of the internet is something that both democrats and republicans are fully aware of.
As we approach the summer, we should keep two things in mind. First, there are forces that are not interested in promoting the democratic party, who are targeting internet political discussion forums. Their goal is two-fold: to plant lies, and to create divisions among the grass roots. There is, for example, a person who is identified as a "retired" agency member who posts half-truths and outright lies, to try to divide and conquer. Many DUers know exactly who I mean. Malcolm X taught us that if we listen to these people, we will be carrying an umbrella on a sunny day, and getting soaked when it rains.
(There are also some untalented, disturbed people who simply cause disruption where ever they go. They are insignificant to our purposes.)
Second, it is time for us to focus on using DU as more than a discussion carriage. That is something that each and every one of us can contribute to. Please focus your efforts on the positive threads here, and avoid the nonsense.
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
