D.U. -- Kicking Ass and Taking Names

[Mythsaje]

Talking to my wife the other day I said something about the Independant Films being released to Comcast for On Demand and she gave me a funny look and asked me when I'd heard about it. I told her it had been a couple days earlier and that I'd read about it on DU. Apparently the staff had only been told a day earlier than WE learned about it.

As I said then--"DU IS the best source for news I've found. We get almost EVERYTHING first."

And I meant it. I can rely on DU for accurate reporting. If a story is questionable, within about twenty minutes EVERYONE knows it.

As most people know, I don't pretend to be a journalist in the classical sense. I don't chase down news stories, I write (hopefully) motivational editorials. But I have to give credit to those here who do the research, and chase down the news and details behind the news. DU has kept me sane and informed over the past couple of years that I've been here and I appreciate it more than I can say.

Our politicos would be well-advised to pay attention to DU in the future. I think it's more than just an on-line discussion group. It's a liberal think tank, research tool, and New Millenia media outlet all rolled into one.

Here's to DU! :toast:

[woodsprite]

1. DU is about the only place I go for news these days. It's Great!!! n/t

[Punkingal]

2. I couldn't survive without DU!!!!!

:toast: It's the best!

[Earth_First]

3. DU is our ONLY source of news...

[niyad]

4. same here--I get my paper for coupons and sales, and perhaps some

local coverage, but for the real news, I come straight here.

[Blue Belle]

5. I right here with ya!

I get the best information from here - and not just politics. You guys have the best science/global warming and consumer information too.

I don't go a day without scanning these forums!

I love the DU :loveya:

[Viva_La_Revolution]

15. "YOU guys" ??

US guys! :hug:

[Blue Belle]

50. I stand corrected!

:toast:

[Minnesota Libra]

6. HERE HERE - I rely on DU for the majority of my news........

....and in just the short time I've been at DU I have discovered DU IS ALWAYS on top of the very latest. :grouphug: :bounce: :pals: :yourock:

[ClayZ]

7. DU is a Philosopher's Stone

[roguevalley]

8. any question you have, computer, you name it, someone will help you

this is the best place ever.

[Kadie]

9. I first came to DU so that I could keep up with the news,

and my young son wouldn't have to watch it on tv. :D

It didn't take long to realize that I wasn't really getting any news from tv. Here is where it is at, and here is the first place I come to to find out what is really going on.

:toast:

[Saturday]

10. It has been my experience....

that if a story is a few hours old you have to go to page 3 or 4 to find it. Things move so darn fast here but I love it. :loveya:

[Us vs Them]

11. I agree. Things are usually found here first.

And if they don't originate here, they're usually linked here within a matter of MINUTES from the original source, ready to be vetted analysed and picked apart by us DUers.

I feel like as I log into this site, I'm logging into the collective of media watchdogs across the country, working 24 hours a day.

You guys seriously rock.

What makes this site even better is that it isn't just a one way highway of information. We share, collaborate, and learn in real time. It seems like a community where people are eager to swap pertinent information. Glad to have found it.

[arcane1]

12. my #1 source for 5 years

and counting! :toast:

[wryter2000]

13. DU is like having a whole team of researchers

I get all my news here through the links people post. It's an amazing resource.

Before I found DU, I was beginning to think that I'd misunderstood our form of government and our history. It seemed as if no one believed in what I'd taken for granted growing up. DU saved my sanity.

[Just Me]

14. True. We are our own think tank and,...

,...it's freakin' AWESOME!!!!

:kick:

We are a stew of resourceful talents and experiences and skills and wisdom. It's truly amazing what a bank of human ingenuity and intelligence and passion and creativity participates in this space.

[twenty2strings]

16. DU and Free speech T.V...

I get up in the morning,check the weather channel,Amy Goodman and Democratic Underground...Sometimes CNN just to see what brand of bullshit they are spreading...It takes about ten seconds and have you noticed,it's mostly commercials. Anyway I don't know how Amy can be so even tempered and cheerful. She and all the encouraging, positive and humorous DU posters start my day better than Maxwell House.Keep up the good work. You are appreciated!:grouphug: :kick:

[catmother]

17. my husband just remarked yesterday that he goes to work and

i don't yet i know as much or more of what's happening in the world than he does. he listens to the radio during his hour commute to work. i answered "well you know as soon as i wake up i hit the remote and watch MSNBC" and then of course i get information from the DU.

he told me something the other day that i had heard on the DU days before.

:applause:

[hwmnbn]

18. I used to have trouble making effective ......

arguments against my repug family members. They were so steeped in the repug and Fox News talking points and I didn't know how to disassemble their bullshit quickly.

Watching it done here by some brilliant people gave me some insights on how to do it. I've learned debate techniques and have a valuable research tool here. Thanks to DU, I know what I'm talking about and can back it up with facts.

The repugs in my family do not argue with me anymore. :rofl:

Here's another to DU! :toast:

[DoYouEverWonder]

19. We are the new free press

the M$M is obsolete and should be ignored.

[RazzleDazzle]

26. Amen. Unfortunately, that's precisely why they have to try to

shut it down.

[WilliamPitt]

20. Indeed

Both of my books have long dedications to DU. They wouldn't have gotten written but for this place.

:toast:

[Dinger]

21. I Usually Hear About Things In The "Librul Media" About 1-2 Days AFTER

I read it on DU.
I LOVE DU!!!!!!!!!!!!

:loveya:

[glitch]

39. It used to be much worse - sometimes 3-6 months before you heard something

and some things are only now coming to the corporate media, like PNAC.
That's a FIVE YEAR LAG. I think the only reason the corporate media is getting better is because people are getting their news from independent (non-corporate, or even corporate but buried deep)sources from all over, posted right here on DU.

edit: K & R

[Sparkly]

22. DUers are ahead of the curve, no doubt about it.

:bounce:

[Hutzpa]

23. Great Minds Think Alike.........what better place to be

to find that saying than DU....will Cherish till I die.

Heres to DU and all DU'ers CHEERS


:toast: :toast:

[KT2000]

24. Not only researched but

DISCUSSED. Even though things move fast on DU, big stories from numerous sources are discussed. The excellent researchers find articles that provide comparisons and a historical context. What is at work here is intelligence and discernment.

Repubs cannot understand this - they are issued talking points and they repeat them until the next memo gets them on another message.

The lazy MSM just reads the same talking points too.
Guess it is much easier to make fun of people who examine, discuss and present varying points of view than it is to read from the memo and collect the paycheck.

[immoderate]

25. More of the same here!

Thanks to you all for helping me be informed, entertained, and (somewhat) sane.:loveya:

--IMM

[Libby2]

27. Cheers

I always come here for LBN.:toast:

[Nostradammit]

28. My wife's standard preface is "you probably already know this, but..."

whenever she tries to tell me something new. And she's almost always right. If it's happened in the world, and it's important, it will eventually get discussed here in great detail, most times well before any other outlets are discussing it.


I hope I'll never know the exact amount of hours I've spent learning things on DU, but I know I never would have survived the Bush cabal this long without it.


Thanks all you DUers!

[seabeyond]

29. a friend told me a couple months ago, she hears it from me and then

envitably will hear a little here and there on the news days after i have said it.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

30. 100% Agree! It is INVALUABLE! Other Than The Bush Finger To The

media bit, that went on here far too long before being debunked, I can't think of a place where I get MORE news, MORE accurately, MORE quickly, and MORE Insightful then what I can get on DU on a daily basis. It is truly the most valuable resource I have found on the web for keeping up with what's really going on, even non political shit!

DU Rocks, Always.

[Midlodemocrat]

48. IIRC, Skinner and EarlG debunked it pretty fast as being a pen

and not a finger.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

53. It Was His Thumb Though. Regardless, I Do Remember The Thread You

referenced where they analyzed it as being a pen. It was before I joined by I was still lurking every day!

[Laurab]

31. DU is amazing!

Like a few others have said - people tell me things they've just learned, and by the time they mention it, it's old news to me. DU'ers don't miss a thing. If ever I need to know almost anything - I look here, and there it is.

I don't know how I would have gotten through the last year and a half without DU - it would have been a lot more difficult, to say the least.

Here's to DU indeed!!:toast:

[eridani]

32. So, whaddya need?

A real estate agent, someone who works in a credit card collection agency, someone who took a Constitutional Law course last semester, a quail hunter, a plumber, someone who speaks Japanese, an emergency room tech? Not only do we have the news first, but also lots of comments from people who have something really relevant to add based on personal and professional knowledge.

[Tesla]

33. We ARE the Liberal Media!!!

Free Speech!!! Woo hoo!!

[4 t 4]

34. I was raving about

DPW to everyone I work with days before it came on the news DU is the best ever

[The Stranger]

35. The LBN Board is non-corporate filtered news events, backed up by

the requirement that there be a link to an actual report.

Also, posters with more intelligence than most local news directors seeking out stories to inform the Progressive on-line community.

(Honest, I didn't mean to sound like a commercial, just wanted to point out what I think is so valuable about it.)

[stop the bleeding]

36. DU is great for news

:toast:

[DiverDave]

37. This place is a mecca for info.

Another you all might try is Rolling Stone.

http://www.rollingstone.com

The Politics page is light years ahead of any other, very talented and insightful writing.

Check them out.

[CrispyQ]

38. My husband used to question me when I would tell him something

then sure enough, a day or so later he would hear or read it somewhere else, many times without all the facts or the whole story, though. Finally he asked where I get my info & I told him DU. Now it's a game. He asks if I've heard of something & almost always I have -- if I haven't, it's cuz I haven't been on the internet!

Mythsaje, you are right that our democratic leaders would be wise to have someone on their staff surf DU all day! I'm sure they would discover things even they didn't know about & also learn exactly how WE THE PEOPLE are feeling about various issues, you know, the people that they represent!

:hi:

[Mabus]

43. That used to happen around here all the time

The usual scenario: I log onto DU, go through the threads for a while to catch up on the news then I take the dogs in the backyard for a mid-morning break. I'm outside working when my husband comes out to tell me he just caught a snippet on the news about a breaking news story. I ask him what he knows. He thinks a moment and says the details are coming later then I proceded to tell him what I have already read on DU. Most of the time he ends up asking me questions, most of which I can answer thanks to DU.

Anyway, after several years of this he has finally started checking in on DU on his own. A friend of ours stayed with us this past weekend. He's also become a semi-regular on DU. Finally, whenever something is happening I tend to get a lot of phone calls from my political friends. They are always amazed at how quickly I find information or how well-informed (compared to them) I am. I always tell everyone, check out democraticunderground, it is the place to find the news first.

[4_TN_TITANS]

40. Amen to that....

Many thanks to those with the time to research and post the latest news. I only watch the networks occassionally now and it's only to see what they aren't reporting / are filtering out.

Thanks DUers..... :hi:

[Tsiyu]

41. Shhhhhhhhhhhh...

we're just a bunch of stoned slacker elite.

Pay no attention to us! ;)

:cheers:

[Lochloosa]

42. I have a Step-Brother that's an 4 term (soon to be 5th) congressman.

He is always asking where I heard this or that. And it's always the same answer. DU!

[foreverdem]

44. This place is the best!

If a topic or news story comes up on AAR, I'll say to my husband, oh yeah, I heard about that on DU a few days ago. It used to really surprise me that I'd see it first on DU, but now I expect it.

[kiteinthewind]

45. Ditto! DU is my primary news source, since I get NOTHING

from cable news, local stations, or print newspapers! Thanks so mch, DUers, for keeping me on top of issues!! :yourock:

[underpants]

46. I get all the news I need from the weather report

-line in a great Simaon and Garfunkel song

reading DU during the day makes the evening news one of the funniest shows on TV. I can sit there and literally shoot the stories down piece by piece.

[byronius]

47. The only thing I miss is in-depth local news. Someday?

[eridani]

57. That is going to be a long time coming, I fear

Probably some local blog will turn out to be your must-have source for local stuff. For the Pacific Northwest, I recommend my homepage http://www.nwprogressive.org/portal/

[redqueen]

49. Definitely agree.

I've been a political-news addict for years... and LBN is the best place to check first, hands down.

:toast:

[Mr_Spock]

51. I agree - I'm always enlightening people to stuff they didn't know

I love DU :D

[AnneD]

52. I switched to DU news....

during the 2004 election. DU had the story about the stolen tonnes of explosives weeks before MSM AND had links to the imbeded broadcast and photos of the IAEA seals. That chinched it for me. Friends and coworkers are amazed at what I know so far in advance. I keep telling 'em DU. Best threads and knowlegable folks. The StockWatch thread has made me a shreweder investor and has saved my assets. PBS is the only national news I can take anymore. :toast:

[Dr Fate]

54. DU's LBN is the best "front page" in the nation. K & R (n/t)

n/t

[AbbyR]

55. I have learned so much here

It's especially rewarding to know that if I want to write something and back it up, I can always come here and someone will direct me to sources.

I love DU! :toast:

[lonestarnot]

56. whoooofuck'nwhoo DU

:toast: