How and when did you find DU?

[Swede]

I found it during a google search for conservative idiots,and here I am since the summer of 2003.

[Muttocracy]

1. Recommended to come over here when JoeBiden.com blog was shutting down. nt

[JustAnotherGen]

2. Late 2004

Via a friends blog. Joined last year though.

[Beregond2]

3. I think I was doing a search for

the DNC and DU came up.

[elfin]

4. I believe it was early in 2001

Found via Bushwatch. Think there were about 10,000 DUers at that time.

[rzemanfl]

5. I found DU right after the 2004 election when I was ready to go

nuts. I think I was looking for election theft information at the time. I may still have gone nuts, but at least DU gave me a place to talk about it.

[xiamiam]

28. that's when I found du as well..stolen election, broken heart, and a complicit media...

would have lost my mind many times if not for du...

[malaise]

6. 2004 when I was looking for information on the election

I read for a while before joining.

[Orrex]

7. An online friend posted a link to that week's Top 10 Conservative Idiots

That was back in June of '03. I have to admit, though, that I didn't venture into the discussion boards until some time later.

[ixion]

8. late 2001

searching for others who thought the official 911 story was a fairy tale. There were about 12K DU'ers back then.

[rucky]

9. After Colin Powell lied to the UN.

I was googling articles on the war, stumbled upon information clearinghouse, which linked to some articles posted on DU. For awhile there, I thought I was the only one who thought the Bushies were full of shit about WMD's.

[rosesaylavee]

My sister told me about it in Spring 2005 when

we both reeling from the lost election. Joined in July 2005 the week of the train bomb in London and a month before Katrina hit.

This has been a major factor in retaining my sanity these past 3 years. Not sure what I would have done without it.

Extremely fond of this community - warts and all.

[flvegan]

10. I was the first round draft choice in 2004.

Actually, I lurked quite a bit after finding DU through a link at either Buzzflash, Alternet or Common Dreams. Purposely sat our the primaries here, thinking "no, THIS is Sparta".

[devilgrrl]

11. Back in 2001 as result of "Top 10 Conservative Idiots"...

Then I was invited to join by DU's Lazarus

[cwydro]

12. Rush Limbaugh, believe it or not.

Overheard him talking about the site, lol, with his usual assholeness.

But I owe him one for the tip.

edit:typo

[meow mix]

61. me too, left the radio on..

and a sociopath came on crying about the DU lol

[polichick]

13. 2006, when I googled something like "best progressive sites"

[demmiblue]

14. Summer 2004... I don't remember what I was searching for.

[SammyWinstonJack]

15. Feb '01 And I don't remember how I found it. Salon maybe?

:shrug: Just glad I did!

[Tammie]

16. Summer of 2004

Saw it referenced on the DNC blog. I didn't sign up until Katrina hit. I'm mostly a lurker.

[demmiblue]

23. LOL... you beat me! I didn't sign up until this year!

:hi:

[Jamastiene]

17. I honestly do not remember.

I know I used to go to rightiswrong.com a lot and I also went to turnleft.com at one point a lot. I probably heard about it through one of those.

[CTyankee]

18. During the 04 campaign. I needed something to take the place of the defunct "Political Wag."

Nobody seems tohave heard about that one but it was a good site for general politics, not just Dems. I looked around and liked DU best because of the straightforward format and smart thinking.

I remember posting on Election Day how elated I was walking to the polls through the falling leaves and sunshine and thinking a new day was about to dawn in America. That night hubby didn't wake me up (as I asked him to do when we won) and when I first woke up I thought "Oh, no!"

DU has been a comfort for me since that awful day...

[givemebackmycountry]

19. June 2004 - browsing one day and found Bartcop.com

DU was cross-linked on one of his posts and here I am - everyday almost -
DU is like crack for those of us that live in RED states, and long to be with like minded people.

[Lebam in LA]

20. MSNBC Message Board Recommendation

I was on their message board just before the 2006 election and totally disgusted with the posters along with a few others. Someone mentioned DU and I haven't looked back. DU saved my sanity.

[peekaloo]

21. St. Patrick's day 2002

another site I frequented linked a thread from DU about protests against Bu$h during the parade in Chicago. It was a beautiful sight to behold.

I believe the poster's name was GinaMaria and I have never properly thanked her. :patriot:

[LeftishBrit]

22. 2004 - I think I was looking up something on the 2000 election and found it that way.

[tanyev]

24. Late 2002 or early 2003. I think I found Free Republic first.

I must have googled something that led me to FR. I couldn't believe the insanity I was reading. I started noticing dismissive references to people who were making sense as DUmmies, and finally someone posted a link here or the name Democratic Underground. It was so nice to find this place because I live in a very red area and all of my friends and coworkers were still in must-support-the-president mode.

[Subdivisions]

Early 2006 doing research on PNAC and DU came up in a

Google search. Lurked for awhile then decided to join.

Damn me!

[judy]

25. I found DU in early 2001...

After going into a deep funk on inauguration day - I have hated Ricky Martin ever since -, I was looking for info on the sinking of the Ehime Maru by the submarine Greenville, first scandal of the Bush residency. I found a site, called "Mediawhores On Line", that had a link to Bartcop, Bushwatch, Buzzflash and DU. I added all these links to my browser, in a folder called "Comfort".

I still look at these sites, but DU and Buzzflash have become part of my morning ritual, and have well deserved the name of the folder for these years of shame and outrage.

Thank you DU!!!

[Frances]

30. Same here

I was so depressed over the 2000 "election" that I went looking for like-minded folks online. I found all the sites you did, but I'd forgotten about Mediawhores until I saw your post.

The reason that DU has become my favorite site is that I can find links to all the latest news stories here.

[Patsy Stone]

26. After the theft in Ohio in 2004

dKos wouldn't let us discuss the possibilities of election fraud, so I saw DU mentioned in someone's post, and I've been here ever since.

[Rhiannon12866]

27. I found DU in early 2003, before the Iraq war, thanks to a friend, nuxvomica, who also posts here.

I was freaked about 9/11, here in NY, so was determined to find out what was truly going on in this country, and the world, after such egregious and terrifying attacks. I was scared to death, thought the world was about to end... :scared:

And I no longer remained one of those uninformed voters. I have learned the truth about what has happened here in the past eight years, and so much else, on DU, and am very grateful. And I've passed it on... :-)

I've also made friends here, have met several, and currently live with one of them. ;)

[Lorien]

29. Sometime in 2001. There was a link to it through "The Guardian" UK. n/t

[Dukkha]

31. Unlike McCain I used the Internet!

"What is this Internet you speak of?" Mr Burns voice

I actually found it from a link at AR15.com and joined right after 9/11 in need of some sanctuary

[Arkansas Granny]

32. You aren't going to believe it, but I found DU through - wait for it [

Free Republic!

I had stumbled across FR during a search and lurked around over there for a while just after the 2004 elections. I kept seeing references to DU and thought it might be more to my taste and sure enough, it was.

[TheDebbieDee]

33. I found DU shortly after Saddam Hussein was discovered

in his hidey-hole in Iraq! At that time, there were about 36,000 members here. (I'm not sure but I think there must have been a link to this site from SmirkingChimp.com.)

I was overwhelmed with all the progressive articles and exchange of ideas.

I had suspected that the MSM was feeding us large doses of propaganda with the "news" since the 2000 Election, but I didn't know for sure til I found DU!

[Wednesdays]

34. Not sure, but probably via Bartcop

I was an active poster on the Bartcop forum around 2000 or early 2001 (still check and post there once in a blue moon). I was posting here by summer 2001.

[Orsino]

35. My wife did, back in 2003, so I started reading it, too. n/t

[paregdem]

36. You Know How Google Is...

You start out searching for one thing and that leads to another, then another... This week after watching Lewis Black "Red, White and Screwed" I was googling Lew and I linked to DU somehow. Not exactly sure which page had the link but I'm glad it was there.

[treestar]

37. Someone else linked a post on another board

When here to read it, I started looking around. This must have been before the 2006 elections, because I remember being here then.

[qanda]

38. I believe it was the Summer/Fall of 2002, before the run up to the Iraq War

I found a link through Mediawhoresonline and have been coming here ever since.

[dixiegrrrrl]

39. TPM had a reference/link spring 2006

It was the beginning of the Attorney General story, I was enjoying doing some research and posting at TMP, but over time I realized DU had such a variety of links and information, plus the added bonus of really edgy humor, so now I just sit around and press re-fresh most of the day.
TV hasn't been on for months and months.

[cayanne]

40. Feb 2004

About 3-4 weeks after it started.

[Minimus]

41. Summer of 2004 - found site while looking up some RW propaganda

my ex-boss (and his family) was spewing. I always fought back with facts and they hated it! I lurked for awhile then joined in August.

[TZ]

42. I think it was about 2002 or 03

That my friend Lizerdbits showed me the website and I read the conservative idiots on a regular basis. Didn't enter the discussion forums until Jan 06 though.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

43. I used to post on AOL message boards which were filled with Bushbots, and when I would research

by using yahoo search, I came across posts at DU and was impressed with how well researched they were and sourced. I also felt a kindred with the political views. This was back in 2002, while the war drums for Iraq were beating. I didn't join back them but lurked, reading.

When 2004 was just stolen, the AOL boards became unbearable and I wanted to support the recount efforts. I joined AOL in mid November 2004 and haven't left since.

[FlickLives]

44. I've actually been a lontime lurker but just joined a few days ago

when a was looking for 'mccain lipstick on a pig' on yahoo because I knew McCain had used this term before he hypocrtically attacked Obama. I'm not as well versed politically as the rest of the members seem to be here on DU, but I'd like to voice my support for Obama and help point out the hypocricy on the right when I can.

[nini]

45. 2001 - a link at mediawhoresonline.com

.

[Bozita]

71. same here. MWO in '01

[DemoTex]

46. "Conservative Idiots" also (friend sent me link in early 2001 (March?)).

I joined DU in May 2001.

[GreenPartyVoter]

47. Found it in 2001, I think, looking for Dems to talk about progressives

working together. Got run out on a rail, though, for being a Green. Was quite some time before I dared to come back again.

[kimmylavin]

48. 2004 Election.

Found the Top 10 Conservative Idiots.
Didn't start posting until a year later, though. :)

[magpie]

49. Began viewing in 2001

The destruction of the ancient Buddha statues in Bamiyan sent me into a horrible state of dread. There were others here that knew then 'something wicked this way comes'.
Joined in 2002.

[gulliver]

50. Right after Sept. 11, 2001

Bush bunny hopped all over the country and just about burst into tears on video in the Oval Office. But people were giving him 90% approval. This was after letting the Israeli/Palestinian situation degenerate in his first month in office. I had to find the other 10% who knew Bush was still the unfit numbskull he always was.

[CitizenLeft]

51. around April of 2004...

...I had been listening to Air America, then heard about Mike Malloy on that Chicago station. I started listening to him, and one night he mentioned a post on DU. Looked it up that night, and have been checking in or posting ever since. (my profile says I joined in 2005, but I had a previous profile that I forgot the password for - doh! - so I had to re-register with this nic).

[Maestro]

52. Early 2004

when looking for a respite from the freeps overtaking many forums, many of which had nothing to do with politics.

[Ikonoklast]

53. Link from another progressive website, can't remember which one

Lurked for a while just to make sure DU was the real deal.

It is. And here I am.

[DailyGrind51]

54. I get together with a bunch of other hold-overs from the '60s "left",

once a month and one of them mentioned "Democratic Underground", then I heard Thom Hartmann refer to it and caught the link on the WCPT-AM 820 website.

[NancyG]

55. 2004 after the election; I was devastated.

It was so helpful to find a refuge. I even turned off the news, couldn't stand it. This place saved me.

Just please let DU be a site of joy in November. Or December, whenever this thing is decided.

[Starry Messenger]

56. After the 2004 election

I lurked for long time and then finally signed up for a a screen name. Then I lurked a lot more. I've been posting more lately. I spend hours here.

MPK

[tekisui]

57. After the 2006 election and Gonzo's hearings.

I had been checking other blogsites for news, alternet, liberal oasis, etc.

Came here more and more, joined a little over a year ago.

[Tindalos]

58. Came over from Buzzflash one day

In 2001, I desperately needed to find somewhere that reflected the reality I saw around me,
not the dreamworld of the media. I've been lurking on and off since then. Last year, I decided
I couldn't be silent any longer. They can come and get me, but I won't shut up.

[SmokingJacket]

69. Me too -- got a little tired of Buzzflash and looked at the links

for something new. Got totally sucked in! I lurked for a while and joined in 2004, just after the primaries...

[applegrove]

59. I was on the Bill Maher forum site. I was looking for something a little

less confrontational (freepers just depress me with their willfull ignorance and cruelty about others)and people there were talking about the DU. I signed up in about February 2005.

I had orignally signed up for the Bill Maher site because I felt so sorry for Democrats (I'm canadian) who had lost the 2004 election and I wanted to help them out and over the horror of four more years of Bush.

[pleah]

60. 2007, after I got my own computer. I used to go to the

Newshole, then to Crooks and Liars, then to DU.

spelling error:eyes:

[morgan2]

62. shortly after 9/11

was refreshing to find people who weren't buying into everything Bush and his minions were saying on tv. It was hard to talk about it in person without offending someone, but just knew from all the bs bluster on tv that many were lining up to exploit the tragedy.

[LWolf]

63. November 2002.

One email group I participated in regularly was embroiled by scandal and people choosing "sides" when the list owner was arrested for serious crimes and turned out to be, er, nothing like what he presented himself as. I walked away.

Another got embroiled in political fighting. It wasn't a political group, but the election of GWB, and 9/11, stirred up political enmity. Since it was a local group, and I knew and spent time with all these people in real life, I walked away from that, as well.

I was sick of being inundated with right-wing, republican bullshit. I went looking, deliberately, for someone, anyone, who recognized GWB, his administration, and his march to war for what it was.

I found DU. It was smaller, friendlier, and definitely more "left" in those days. At least, it felt that way to me, lol.

I got to talk to actual liberal/progressive/left-leaning people. I loved it, and I stayed. As the site grew, left the "underground," and became more mainstream/centrist, many of the lefty friends I made drifted away. I still connect with some of them on other, more left-friendly boards. Still, while more centrist than I care for, DU still opposes GWB and, to a smaller degree, republicans, so I'm still here.

[Alexander]

64. 2002, during the elections.

I also wanted to keep track of all of Bush's abuses of power.

[Crunchy Frog]

65. I found it just about the time of the Iraq invasion.

I was desperately looking for a forum where people were actually critical of the war. I first found it through a link somewhere to Top 10 Conservative Idiots, but it took my awhile to figure out that there was a forum attached.

I lerked for several months before registering.

[TexasLady]

66. I had to check to be sure

Sep 13th 2004, during a search for liberal politics and forum, or something similiar.

[ladyVet]

67. Sometime in 2001, before 9-11,

followed a link from a low carb forum member, liked what I saw and lurked around for a long time, joined in Oct 2004. I don't post much, but I'm here almost everyday.

[Mari3333]

68. I was on DU for many years as Mari333, since 2002 I think

DU helped me thru some really hard times. I left for a long time, but come on here occassionally now . I couldnt log in on my old account, so I started a new one. I suppose , after so many years, one's old account is deleted. I must have had thousands of posts back then. Now, I mostly lurk. This election cycle has become too interesting not to. Namaste.

[lynettebro440]

70. 2003 but didn't write anything till 2005

Took a subaticle after we lost the election but came back last november after obama came out.