I have been posting on my local newspaper's forum...

[TN al]

...lately. Needless to say it is not the pleasant community that is DU. I have spent my time on the forum "correcting mistakes" that more conservative posters have made in their facts or rounding out the information that they have presented when they have not told the entire story. I sometimes do this zealously. In the process of doing these things I am not afraid to call a duck a duck. That means that if I can present facts to show that you have lied I will tell you that you are a liar, or that if a reasonable person could conclude that your conclusions cannot be drawn from the facts you are presenting I will call you on that as well. Sometimes the adjectives I use to describe how poor your reasoning abilities are can be very pointed. I often get as good as I give. My wife tells me that I should be less zealous in defending my democratic ideals. She says that if she were a new poster on the forum she would be quickly run off because of the tone of the posts of all of the posters. I tell her that I have to take these wingnuts on as forcefully as I do because if I didn't they and others who think like them but are a little more timid will think it is just fine to express their often bigoted hateful speech to whoever is around to listen. What do you all think?

[bainz]

1. Paragraphs n/t

[TN al]

3. Paragraphs? I don't need no stinkin' paragraphs!

[bainz]

6. Need?

Sure, you dont need them, but then again you asked "What do you all think?"

[proud2BlibKansan]

2. I post on my local newspaper board too

The hate from the right is just unreal. Rather than defend my progressive ideals, I spend most of my time correcting their mistakes - with links of course.

It's really kinda funny. They get hateful and are kicked off and then come back with a new identity. One of them even said tonight that he was getting tired of having to recreate his identity all the time! LOL Like that is my fault?

They really just don't get it, do they?

[Gold Metal Flake]

4. How could I judge without examples?

Bring in your favorite exchanges and share the love.

[Bitwit1234]

5. You ought to go to the Frey

you don't have one republican that posts anything informative. You would think they are all ten year olds.

Hate hate hate. Instead of discussing bush or the democrats actions or mistakes they just post smearing and slamming remarks.

They have one poster oldsalt that is posting crap about John Edwards and his wife's cancer. Like rush he is saying Edwards is going to use this for a sympathy vote. And he shouldn't run because how would he explain to his kids when she passes away and he's not there and all that crap. In the interview on TV didn't Elizabeth Edwards say she wanted him to run. How can they be so dispersible.

[thoughtanarchist]

7. Keep it logical.

I do the same, posting to the forum of my local paper. I find it best to stay levelheaded and logical, using caution when I'm feeling zealous. Your local paper comes with a built-in readership, and you are representing the alternative view to a larger audience than you may know.

By sticking to a high level of discourse, you will win over their readership and you'll have a better chance of reaching the more uninformed audience.

I'm not insinuating that you would depart from reasoned discourse, but I know I get heated at times, and it takes a bit of effort to reread and refine my messages before hitting that "publish" button.

I always try to model my communications after the manner of Thom Hartmann; calm, sane, levelheaded, and with an arsenal of background information on the subject at hand.

[silverojo]

8. I think you're right and she's a total wimp

Sorry, dude, but it's true...what does she expect on the "internets", everybody singing "Kumbaya"? :)

[live love laugh]

9. I used to do that. I think it's important work and I know what you

mean about not having others agree with you. But I do bet that if you have been posting for a long time, you find more and more people agree with you. Even in the worst times-at the beginning of the Iraq invasion-there were many who agreed with me. It takes a lot of time to research and provide facts to knock down straw men from unthinking freepers. You are doing a service, educating people who wouldn't otherwise know the truth. Even those on your side are enlightened by what you provide. Keep up the good work. It's actually a form of activism since the war we are in is not about terrorism--it's really a fight for hearts and minds.