Making that Donated Star Really Mean Something...

[Crankie Avalon]

Donating "stars" for fellow DUers is a beautiful gesture and one we might be indulging in more and more the closer we get to the holidays.

It is, of course, each of our own business whom we choose to donate for, but I would still like you to see something I found when I accidentally happened upon a mini (and I mean mini) Freeper site. They have so little to talk about apart from being mad about living in a world with so many non-white and gay people in it, that they actually have an entire one of their forums devoted to DU.

Their jealousy of a successful site like DU is palpable, and this was from a thread where they were talking about DU now having 59,000 members (we now are closing in on 60,000--this thread is a few days old but is still up because things move very slowly there). Anyway, they just couldn't take it...I mean, how can it be? Why isn't it them with those numbers!!! Pathetic. Anyway, they were trying to make their own failure more bearable by saying that DU isn't really that successful and doesn't really have that many members.

"Date Joined May 2004
Total Posts : 37

Posted 11/28/2004 9:47 PM (GMT -8)
LOL... maybe 5900. I have 5 names that they kicked off but they still count em. I have two names now and someone donated for me...lol.

I now have a star!!!"

I'll send the link of where the quote came from in a PM to anyone who wants it, but I'm not going to post it publically because they don't deserve the spike in traffic their otherwise dead little site would see from even a brief mention in DU. Besides, you wouldn't want to visit. Trust me, it's really boring apart from the slight comedy of their "DU-envy." They aren't even a pimple on the pimple of the ass of insignificance.

My point in posting the quote is to try and show that donating stars is a gesture worthy of a little care if it's to mean as much as it should. A few weeks back, I was seeing threads where people were donating stars to the first person who could "guess what number I'm thinking of from 1-20" and the like. Again, it's your money and your business, but the above shows what can happen to your hard-earned money and good intentions if you just donate in a gimmicky way to someone you're not familiar with.

If I couldn't afford it myself and someone donated for me, I would feel very honored. I would like to feel it was because they had seen me around, liked what I brought to the community, and had done it out of respect and maybe even affection. Certainly, if I donate a star to someone this year, that will be my motivation.

Anyway, I realize I may be stepping on toes, so I'll wrap it up. After all, I've only been here six months, myself, so who am I to talk about this to people who, in some cases, have around since DU's inception? Besides, I know that maybe the Administrators are thankful for any donation, no matter in whose name it comes in. I'm not, in any way, saying to do it less often. I'm just saying maybe we should look at the way we do it. By donating for someone, you are inviting them into the community in a way they hadn't been in it, before. Ideally, they should be people who will appreciate it.

Sorry for going on about this.

[Modem Butterfly]

1. You know, I thought about that too

I didn't bring it up publicly because I felt like it would be taken the wrong way, since I was operating on suspicions and paranoia only. I appreciate that you have concrete proof of this and I, for one, will think twice before donating in someone else's name again.

[Crankie Avalon]

3. Yes, but let me stress once again...

...I'm not saying anyone should donate less often than they otherwise would. I'm just saying to take an extra pre-caution by maybe knowing a little about where the person has been coming from.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

4. Yeah, but you know how much time and energy some of them devote

to trying to troll here. That person had 5 other names. Trolling is a very big part of his/her sad little life. Hell, how long was the unmasker here? You can't tell easily, sometimes.

[Crankie Avalon]

5. Well, I guess there's no way to avoid it, completely...

...just like in the rest of life, you open up to someone and there's a chance it will turn out to be a person whom you were mistaken to trust. But it's important to keep doing it if you're going to keep being a person who interacts with the world.

Let's hope as best we can that the right people get the stars and that we weed out the easy and obvious ones so we can at least minimize this sort of thing.

[Modem Butterfly]

9. Hear, Hear!

Each DUer needs to be aware of this potential, and then decide how he or she will deal with it on his or her own terms. I don't think we can have a blanket policy on this. I sincerely hope everyone will at least be aware of the potential for abuse. What they decide to do regarding this for themselves is totally up to them.

[LDS Jock]

2. This makes me really sad

A donation to anywhere or anything in the name of another is a beautiful gesture. Why must they be such a**holes and ruin it? I also don't understand their obsession with this site. I can see the ocassional look over to see what is going on but a whole forum dedicated to making fun of DU is kinda weird.

[Phillycat]

6. Eh, who gives a fuck? DU still got the money.

They'll eventually get banned, but DU still gets the donation, and really, that's what the damned stars are for.

[Feathered Fish]

7. My donated star was wonderful!

During the funding drive I really wanted to donate, but being a university student with a monthly income of about $1000/mo, I obviously didn't have the cash to do so. I tried getting in line to grab star from whichever member that was giving them out, but with no luck. I was pretty new with a low post count and since I don't contribute too much to the boards (ie. one line responses) I wasn't really deemed worthy. Anyways, someone out of the goodness of their heart one day just said 'you want a star? there you go' and there it was, my own star. So grateful!! :loveya:
After x-mas, when I should have some extra cash, I'm going to do some research on a newbie who has no star. Someone thoughtful who really can't afford it, but who deserves it, and it will be completely anonymous.
I think this case of a freeper snatching a star from a well meaning DUer is pretty rare. People around here usually do research on the posters who they want to give a star to, as I experienced in my quest.
I hope this post is coherent - I just woke up! :)

[StClone]

8. This must really bug them at some level

Or send them on a manipulative sadistic high.

They come to DU hoping to make trouble and actually find the people here open and take to them to the point of donating a star for them.

How could you not find that refreshing (or frightening to some) when they have this preconceived notion about us.