It's Contagious ...

[NanceGreggs]

I find some of the postings here of late absolutely mind-boggling. One DUer pitted against another – the most vile things being said, the worst vitriol being spewed.

And that’s just GD and GDP.

I decided to take a break from DU politics and check out the various forums, in search of calmer waters.

What I've learned is that the current vitriol in the political threads has wended its way, like a computer virus, through all aspects of this website.

Some examples (warning – graphic):

A contingent of regular posters in the Crafts Group have managed to rile up the knitters – to the point where those who prefer crochet are being bullied into giving up their hooks and adopting the two-needle method, or else. So far, the cross-stitch crowd are refusing to weigh in – while the tatters and the macramé-ers are taking opposite sides.
At this point, the beaders are the inevitable tie-breakers and are encouraging infighting between all factions. It’s a batik, tie-dyed, candle-making, scrap-booking mess – and the admins are sitting idly by while the bloodshed continues.

The Photography Group have clearly separated into two camps – the classic-black-and-white-no-frills-allowed (starkly unframed) purists versus the technically-liberal-computer-enhanced (and suitably framed) photo-progressives. I understand that, on average, ‘alerts’ in this forum are sent on a three-per-minute basis, and seven Mods have quit and had to be replaced in the last six weeks alone.

The Cooking & Baking Group is so awash in “virtual” blood, you’d think a crazed chef went postal after arming himself with a turkey-baster full of plasma. I don’t know how the current C&B Wars got started – but a quick search of DU archives leads back to a seemingly-innocent OP about coddled eggs. Several dozen granite cookies have been delivered since one poster challenged another to whisks at dawn. Mayhem ensued, and many were Magic Bulleted (aka TS’d) in the aftermath.

Little-known DU trivia fact: There have been more suspensions meted out to members of the Poetry Group than in any other forum on this website. The War of Words is played out in this forum with precision – and a sense of vengeance. After a poorly chosen two-word phrase was used by a single poster in a haiku thread, all hell broke loose – and then some. Members of the Writers Group quickly got into the fray – short-story specialists taking one side, while essayists took the other. The take-no-prisoners battle continues – as eloquently and well spoken as one can expect in the circumstances.

Sad to say, the Humor Group has disbanded due to the lack of humor to be found on DU.

The least noticed, but most influential DU group being …

LATE BREAKING NEWS: Headline: “Peace Reigns On DemocraticUndergound!”

No MSM link yet available, but sporadic Twitter comments support rumors that DU members have reached a peace accord, i.e. half of the website’s members will immediately place the other half on IGNORE.

What we have here is a failure to communicate. For many, this is communication at its finest – or, to be more succinct, mis-communication at its finest. Part of an agenda, part of a plan.

I don’t know who hatched the plot to separate DUers into warring factions – but the Birders Group have been strategically silent on the topic.

Just sayin’ is all.

[Hekate]

1. KnR, and it actually registered for the moment, lol. Glad to see someone's humor is intact

You are a sharp observer, Nance.

Hekate

[Tarheel_Dem]

2. LOL.

:rofl:

[cutlassmama]

3. I didn't even know we had a poetry group and I've been here since 2006

Thanks Nance!

[Zax2me]

4. I don't have the first DUer on ignore...

I know it is hard not to argue sometimes...
I've made a self rule that not any one DUer is going to lose me over any one topic or thread.
That keeps me decent.
But, new still, so, give me time!

[Hekate]

10. That makes absolutely no sense at all, but I'm glad you're decent.

Welcome to DU.

[emanymton]

20. Poetry. It Is Young Skywalker. But You Are Not A Jedi Master Yet.

.

DU poetry group
Capable you see
Always present with a line or three

Ema Nymton
~@:o?
.

[Zax2me]

67. Makes two of us.

[Jackpine Radical]

I'm kinda new too. I think I got here in late June 2001 or so.

Still under 30,000 posts. I've never used the Ignore function, but maybe after I get some experience here I'll try it.

[Zax2me]

68. I've hung around for years

Not posting, not even a member.
Used the Breaking News forum mostly, daily stop. But slowly worked my way to the GD forum.

Yea, can't say I won't ever use ignore function. 30,000 posts from now I may have a new view...

[tkmorris]

5. Yeah, umm

I visit the Cooking & Baking group quite often. There is no evidence whatsoever of what you are talking about there. In fact I cannot personally recall a single flame-war there in the years I have been frequenting it. Are you sure we are talking about the same website?

[Ellipsis]

6. Yanking on your appendage... she is.

[NanceGreggs]

7. Oh, g'head ...

... play the innocent, as suits your purposes.

Pretend you haven't personally witnessed the street wars between the Spatulas and the Wooden Spoons.

It's like the Sharks and the Jets, only meaner - and I refuse to vote until the perfect Hollandaise sauce is supported by EVERY ELECTED DEMOCRAT who deigns to represent my interests.

[rasputin1952]

29. The Good Old Days of the Cornflake Chicken Wars; breast feeding;

yapping kiddies at the Olive Garden...albeit beyond the confines of C&B...the carnage, oh the carnage...

[pipi_k]

36. I recall one discussion board I visited years ago where many innocent people

were injured during a debate over dish sponge vs dish rag.

[WCGreen]

8. Spot on, Nance, spot on....

[DesertFlower]

9. hey little sister. glad you

haven't lost your sense of humor.

[NanceGreggs]

11. It ain't easy holding onto it these days ...

My sense of humour is as vulnerable as the Chu's fence, as likely to be destroyed as a tail-light on the Southern State Parkway on the eve of Mothers' Day ...

:rofl:

[DesertFlower]

14. i'm beginning to think that the story

about the Chu's fence will live on long after i'm gone.

[NanceGreggs]

16. ...

... it will.

And now I can't stop :rofl:

:hi: :hi: :hi:

[political_Dem]

12. Nance, you noticed the "Reign of Terror". ;)

Thank you for conveying your feelings about this situation. As always your words hit the nail on the head. We need the food for thought-- especially after a contentious week.

:hug:

[intaglio]

13. My partner is a ... knitter and it is scary on Ravelry

Recently a crocheter was found with their brain extracted in the Egyptian style - through the nose with a crochet hook. This was after several incidents where crocheters were found in compromising positions with broken Knit-Picks Harmony needles.

It is rumoured that somebody released woolly bears into someones collection of Wollmeise yarns.

Frightening :crazy:

[NanceGreggs]

18. I didn't want to get quite that graphic ...

... but better the truth be told.

"Through the nose with a crochet hook" - sounds like an answer on the new "CLUE-XTREME" board game.

Colonel Mustard only had a candlestick to fight back with - in the Library, no less.

We live in different times now ...

[pinboy3niner]

26. "Through the nose with a crochet hook" sounds like Vinnie Barbarino...

...of the Sweathogs. If that's what we've become, we truly are in trouble. :)



Thanks for the laughs, Nance. :rofl:

[SeattleGirl]

15. But Nance, I'm not a member of ANY of those groups!

Where does that leave me? :cry:

:P

[NanceGreggs]

17. U R UU ...

Twit-speak for "You are Unrepentantly Uninvolved".

If you can't take up a tatting shuttle and stand with the righteously outraged, you have no place here.

[SeattleGirl]

55. .....

:rofl:

[jtuck004]

19. Thank you for the laughs! that was great,,, n.t.

[old mark]

21. I find the Guns forum to be one of the mose peacable on DU especially compared to

GDP after one of President Obama's speeches, or whenever Mr. Gibbs says something especially memorable.

Could be because most everyone on the Guns group is armed, thus keeping the crime rate down, just as in real life.

Mark

[malaise]

22. Brilliant, Profound

and very funny

Rec

[KharmaTrain]

23. One Big Water Cooler...

Nance...this reminds me of my younger days when I decided I had had enough of the big egos and assholes at the job I was working and took a job as a skid truck driver at a local factory. I thought it'd be a relatively peaceful gig...just do the job and live and let live. No sooner did I start than I met the Jeff Gordon of skid drivers...and he wasn't bashful about talking about it. I learned that they come in all shapes and sizes everywhere.

I do a lot more lurking around here than posting and find it amusing most times at how serious people take this place. Yes, it's a great place to catch up and discuss the issues of the day, but it's like any community where personalities can and do get the best of people. Sitting behind a keyboard can be very empowering as behind a screen name and without any direct human contact people will and do post things they wouldn't in a one-on-one situation. While, to the individuals involved, they're out to prove their points, in many cases when it gets personal both get muddied as does the issue.

I also think DU is a symptom of the times. People are frustrated, anxious and easily put on edge. All one needs is to be looked at sideways and all hell breaks loose. It get predictable...but understandable.

A DU vacation is always a good thing. There's a lot in this wonderful world to explore and enjoy...wallowing in the negatives only add to one's burden.

Cheers...

[madamesilverspurs]

24. Applause! and K&R

[mmonk]

25. LOL

"Sad to say, the Humor Group has disbanded due to the lack of humor to be found on DU."

For some reason, that struck me as humorous.

[NJmaverick]

27. K&R

[Beetwasher]

28. Amazingly the members of the 9/11, I/P and Gun forums have all banded

together in unity to try and broker a détente for the rest of the site.

[old mark]

52. Dude, we had to to better than those hostiles over in Cooking and Baking....They are FIERCE!!! nt

[Spazito]

30. LOL, very funny AND right on point....

Thanks for the laugh and the message!

Recommended.

[HughMoran]

31. Very funny Nance - and right on target to boot

:thumbsup:

K&R

[Scurrilous]

73. Indeed. n/t

[DFW]

32. Some anger management is definitely in order

I have always regretted that "get a life" cannot be enforced in a court of law.

Some get their jollies by tearing others down. I always thought this was the claimed
domain of the frustrated right. I stand corrected.

Still, there is a great well of clear, unfettered progressive thought here, unencumbered
by emotional craving to be "correct on all counts" and ready to angrily attack all who
might see things through glasses of a different hue than their own.

You, Nance, belong to this unfettered group, and have been savagely attacked for it in
the past. I may or may not belong, but have endured my share of attacks as well. They
irritate for the length of time it takes to read them, but they drop to the bottom of my
thoughts like a dollop of toxic BP oil to the ocean floor when the bouyancy of positive
comments by well-adjusted, rational people dominate a thread's comments. When one turns
the computer off, I'll bet it's not difficult to predict who gets to turn to a life where
smiles are brought by real people, and not by thoughts of whom they just put down online
a few minutes ago.

[lonestarnot]

33. Now dat is funny.

:rofl:

[saltpoint]

34. This observer yearns for the days of fury, featuring

the dick-centered Duke LaCrosse team and lovely blond coeds mercilessly seized in the blue Caribbean.

Now THAT was substance.

Also my favorite -- whether a 7th grader should be taken to jail by sheriffs for swiping two brownies from his middle school cafeteria. I took the position that he should not be hauled away in handcuffs by law enforcement. It was a mistake. I was pounced upon for being soft on crime. A large faction of the morally outraged descended upon my home set it ablaze.

I've been churchless and itinerant ever since, primed for a mass movement.

I've been living in an abandoned warehouse in Manhattan but may soon be evicted owing to the new owners' decision to build an Islamic Center.

[pipi_k]

35. OMG!!!!

I'm the bane of most factions in the Crafts group, as I refuse to endorse one method of working with yarn over another.

Yes...I am a Yarn Centrist. Reviled by both the knitters and crocheters because I see the positives and negatives in both methods. Well, one would think that would bring both sides together in mutual disgust at a common enemy, but no... they appear to hate each other more than they hate me.

And it gets worse.

Crocheters fight against crocheters over whether 100% Acrylic yarn is softer and easier to work with than Acrylic blends.

Knitters attack each other over whether the American style of knitting is better than the Continental style.

Plastic needles vs bamboo...

circular vs straight...

Pull the yarn straight from the skein, or rewind it into a ball...

It's getting to the point where one can't even go in to read without having to bring along a pair of embroidery scissors for self protection...

:scared:

[tavalon]

37. Yep, and I'm all in this kumbaya mood

[Dystopian]

38. Too funny!

Thank you, Nance...

Brilliant!
:rofl:
I'm usually crabby in the morning...
Thank you for cracking me up!



peace~

[Born_A_Truman]

39. K & R!

Hope the new rules include all locking posts by mods be in haiku.
:)

[CaliforniaPeggy]

40. My dear Nance!

Wow, who pissed in your cornflakes???

I knew there was a reason I've been staying out of the Poetry Group...........:scared:

This is perfect, and I have tears from laughter!

Spot on, as our mutual friend said upthread......spot on!


:rofl: :rofl:

[Scurrilous]

41. LOL

:thumbsup:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

42. grins and thanks

:D :applause:

[Whisp]

43. LOL! Bless you, Nance. K&R

[madrchsod]

44. thanks for putting everything into perspective...

[elleng]

45. Sorry you feel this way, but I certainly understand.

Must say, tho, as a regular lurker/poster at photo and cook/bake, I've noticed none of the vitriol of which you speak. I guess I've either learned to avoid it, or don't spend enough time there.

unless I missed :sarcasm: !!!!

[POAS]

46. Your research on the Birder group is flawed...

They have split into the the descended from dinosaurs group vs. the not-descended group.

The fight has all but rendered the group extinct.

[azmouse]

47. You amaze me.

Your humor is dead on and shows DU for what it sadly has become. Thank you. :hug:

[The Wizard]

48. Thanks for the Saturday

stop and chuckle.

[lunatica]

49. DUers conversing on any given forum

[RagAss]

50. Classic !... Thanks Nance.

[hedgehog]

51. Excellent!

[trumad]

53. I'm pretty certain we won't see any flame wars

in the Ask the Admin section.

[MrScorpio]

54. Dynamite, Nance

To deprive us of your insight should be a crime.

[Bobbie Jo]

56. Love you, Nance

Big K&R! :kick:

[Peacetrain]

57. Now that is funny....

[H2O Man]

58. One of the high points,

and not just in the context of DU, is having the opportunity to read your contributions. Thank you for them. You are very much appreciated.

I have been posting about my current grass roots efforts in my ole' hometown of Sidney, NY. In order to prepare for last Thursday's meeting, I spent time reading from Gandhi, and from Muhammad Ali's wonderful book, "Soul of a Butterfly."

Gandhi once wrote, "It seems to be so very hard to maintain detachment of mind in the midst of raging fires." I had not been aware of his participation on DU.

Ali often quotes Sufi wisdom, including about the need to find peace within, in order to maintain the balance needed in life. I suspect that many of the balanced OPs on DU:GD sink rapidly, while those containing raging fires rise to the top.

[Stinky The Clown]

59. In every neighborhood ginmill, however, peace reigns as the usual Saturday night crowd shuffles in.

Ever is it thus.

[Cha]

60. Brawaawawa,,

"The humor group has disbanded"! Life would be so unpleasant without a sense of humor..that's how I handle.

Here's to you, Nance, and your inimitable sense of turning a phrase with delicious humor. :fistbump: :party: :toast: :popcorn::patriot::D}( O8) B-) :7 :P

[BlueMTexpat]

61. If only ...

all wars were Haiku wars.

Imagine the devastation that could be avoided - although some of us might die laughing!

Thanks, Nance! Any week with both the Top Ten and one of your posts is a good one!

[Just One Woman]

62. Have noticed it too

But I suspect we have a rodent problem. I have noticed a few that I perceive to be moles and trolls. For the most part, people have treated me with respect. I love DU, even with arguments. Passionate people have passionate ideas that sometimes cause passionate responses.

[Dystopian]

63. I must do this

:kick:
Sometimes...we just need to laugh.


peace~

[NanceGreggs]

75. Yes, sometimes we do ...

Actually, we need to do it a lot more often.

[immoderate]

64. Argufyin' in DU groups!

:scared: I hope it doesn't reach R/T. They're so peaceful there. O8) C'mon, religion, theology, there's no fighting!

And who would disturb the peace in the Gungeon? Can't happen.

Must have been a bad day, Nance.

--imm

[NanceGreggs]

80. Bad day?

I restrained myself, buddy.

Didn't even get into the stuff that goes on in the Bicyclist Group. You never know if impressionable kids might be looking at their parents' interntetz postings - and I wanted to maintain my threads' traditional PG rating.

[immoderate]

82. If the bicyclists are going to butt heads...

I'm putting my money on the pro-helmet side of the argument. And I didn't realize the bicycle demolition crowd was so prominent.

It's a jungle.


--imm

[scentopine]

65. we need a beer summit where democratic leadership

can call us the 'r' word or claim we are "are on drugs" and liberals respond by agreeing to go soft on torture and send trillions to wall street, we'll go hard on impoverished Afghanistan and tough on impoverished teachers, we'll agree to tax credits for corporations and support off-shore drilling in sensitive areas and promise to send them money and vote only for democrats. Deal?

NO FUCKING WAY! Centrists and right wingers in both parties want this war by denying us representation. Let them enjoy the spoils of their supposed victory against the "professional left". By stubbornly refusing to acknowledge the legitimate complaints from liberals democrats are throwing gasoline on the fire.

Democrats publicly shit on us, republicans publicly shit on us - we've done nothing wrong - we don't write the policy rewarding the rich and punishing everyone else. It's right wing policy in DINO leadership circles that is destroying us. The "left" has been shut out. We aren't to blame. Obama has split the party. You are seeing that here. Oh - I get it, we are supposed to go along and shut the fuck up.

We need a third party where we can oppose the converging interests of corporate sponsored democrats and republicans. This "two" party system has failed to look after the best interests of the nation.

[Oldtimeralso]

66. Late Breaking News From the Birders Group

Nancy stated "I don’t know who hatched the plot to separate DUers into warring factions – but the Birders Group have been strategically silent on the topic."

This is just in: The Birders Group Tweeted that there is a distinct separation in the group as most feel that the supporters of flightless birds should not be allowed to post.

[harmonicon]

69. I find some of the posts here to be mind-boggling as well, but not just of late (nt)

[AngryAmish]

70. Fuck. The, Knitters.

'nuff said.

[cliffordu]

71. I know what you mean about that fookin' poetry group -

I tried using a runcible spoon as an alliterative metaphor and almost lost an eye in the
melee....

[rpannier]

72. Showing your bias I see...

...purists versus the technically-liberal-computer-enhanced...
So, we're a buncha purists are we??? While they're the liberals???

I told everyone at the classic black-and-white wine and cauliflower mixer that you were against us and now I have proof!

On a serious note (well sorta) It is a very funny post. You are to be congratulated. It must have taken quite a long time to create this piece.
Thanks again.

[NanceGreggs]

74. If this post means I'll never be invited ...

... to the Wine & Cauliflower mixer, I take back every word I've said.

[rufus dog]

76. You know what I say?! Fuck the beaders!

They are always causing shit and there is no logical reason to allow them to post at this site.

[NanceGreggs]

77. I'd had a few PMs about you ...

... being anti-beader. I didn't want to believe it.

So now I know the truth. :wow:

[madmax]

78. Nance - this is a great post.

Sad in it's truthfulness and yet hysterically funny. As a frequent flyer at C&B I just roared with laughter. Sorry :(

I've missed you and your return with this post just made my week. :hug:

[madmax]

79. Great big heartfelt K&R n/t

[ElsewheresDaughter]

81. is there a vaccine available?....

I love you Ms Nance...you always brighten my day


thanks for the morning chortle