Mercy, mercy me... DU ain't what it used to be.

[FlemingsGhost]

Remember that feeling when you realized your favorite kick-ass band no longer quite had that "edge" anymore? You know... after the platinum record and the sure career-killing Grammy. Various responsibilities of success and/or growing older squelched the rebellious, "nothing to lose" attitude that garnered it attention in the first place.

It's quite understandable, really. They reached a point where they now do indeed, have something to lose. That piece of shit Econoline van has been replaced by a state-of-the-art tour bus. Spouses, children, record company executives and business managers are now their most doting "groupies." Small intimate clubs became halls and theaters, which beget stadium and sports complexes. After a while, one spends so much time feeding the machine, they end up starving their souls. Sure, the passion is still there. However, they are now operating from a completely different footing and have been forced to redefine their priorities. Inevitably, the resulting artwork reflects the change...

Surveying DU lately, I can't help feeling "the underground" isn't "under ground" at all. I'm not sure its even noodling around in the basement anymore. Don't get me wrong, that's not a bad thing. The sound of dissent resonates louder than ever. (And in no way am I fearful of success.) "Earl G," "Skinner" and "elad" rigged up a fantastic high-tech PA system, placed a microphone on the cyber stage and invited us all to belt out a progressive tune. Thank you, guys.

But as the audience grows and the message louder, so too does the pull of responsibility, accountability and the egotistical trappings of success. There has been a noticeable change in the manner of which the boards at DU are monitored and subsequently managed. There seems to be a growing intolerance towards what is quickly deemed as inflammatory, offensive or politcally incorrect. Heavy-handed moderators move or lock threads at whim, citing rules that are somewhat ridiculous in their concept. An atmosphere of excessive self-censorship is being fostered and it is somewhat disturbing, in my opinion.

Is it me? Is DU losing it's edge? The very birth of this online endeavor was highly provocative in its conception. The website name says it all... This isn't one of those, "Goodbye forever, DU" or slam-the-moderators-because-I've-been-wronged threads. I don't feel slighted in the very least. I am concerned that perhaps my expectations regarding debate and poltical discussion no longer jibes with the path layed before me.

Or maybe I'm getting too old for this shit. After all, I still like bands like R.E.M and U2, I just seem to only listen to their older stuff. Ya know, before they became superstars...

[LittleApple81]

1. Be as it may, a larger "audience" creates the possibility of better

"returns". That means more people spreading the word. The contributions might not all be to everybody's liking (not as idelaistic, or ideological, or whatever) and more dissent, and more freepers... but as a rather more recent addition (I have been here since May, I think) I really appreciate DU. I am addicted. I have finally learned to select what I want to read but I find many, many ideas that energize me or make me think and allow me to communicate those ideas more intelligently to my conservative acquaintances.

[BlueJazz]

2. I have to admit ....I've seen a lot

of threads locked lately that I couldn't understand what the big deal was...
I've seen 2 NICE threads locked because of "excessive punctuation"
and one because of more than necessary capitalization.
I love DU also but like a lot of things... the old days are gone.

[rudeboy666]

3. I hear ya

...but the 'edgies' don't win general elections.

Let's be frank, the masses are not going to be bohemians anytime soon(possibly never).

The best we could do is support candidates that are not Republicans(or conservatives).

[AngryYoungMan]

4. Don't fetishize obscurity.

eom

[rbnyc]

5. You just described the late 80s and early 90s.

DU actually seems pretty much the same to me, but I have a way of only paying attention to the stuff I can use.

But I love your analogy. I loved Siouxsie and the Banshees, up until the album with Cities in Dust and that cameo in Pretty in Pink (I think that was the movie). I loved the first Wolfgang Press album. My whole senior year of High School and Freshmen year of college seemed to be about disappointment with my latest vinyl.

[LibertyorDeath]

6. Thank you DemsUnite agreed 110%

It's their loss & more importantly ours.

[Rowdyboy]

7. Well, the rules you dislike were very carefully thought out

presented to the membership, debated, and approved by a (approximately) 2-1 vote. You can't be all things to all people, though DU and the moderaters do their level best. :shrug:

[DS1]

8. well in that case, I call the dumpster behind the Chinese take-out

if we're headed for a "Behind the Music" drug addled crash, might as well call our spots now! :evilgrin:

[Skittles]

9. that CAPS rule . . . . .

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

[EarlG]

10. If you have an actual question

about our policies, please post it in the Ask the Administrators forum and somebody, probably Skinner when he gets online (since I'm just popping in for a moment) will answer it for you.

If you just want to complain about how much DU sucks, feel free to do it elsewhere. But forgive us if we've become less tolerant recently of people using DU to complain about DU. If you like spending time here, by all means spend time here - post and read, enjoy yourself. Most people seem to find it quite easy to stay within the new GD rules, and in my opinion the level of discussion has improved markedly over the last couple of weeks.

If you find yourself constantly irritated by the way DU is run, or the way the moderators enforce the rules, or if you think there are too many people here, surely the simplest solution is to simply not type our URL into your browser.

EG