A Couple of Questions

[Akoto]

Hi there,

Firstly, thank you for operating this great website for so many years. It was a bastion of sanity when Dubya was in power. That said, a couple of slightly unpleasant questions for you ...

1. In recent times, have you noticed the same distinct shift in DU's tone that I have? There seems to be a great deal of infighting, negativity, and general viciousness when compared to the past. People appear almost eager to seize any opportunity to attack fellow members. Am I imagining this, and if not, does it concern you enough to try and do something?

2. The second question ties in somewhat with the first. What is your opinion concerning the board's dramatic shift against President Obama? I understand that he's done things people don't like, or has not attended to matters they feel he should have. That said, it has come to a point where they presume guilt before innocence with every single thing he does. Some are even stating outright that he serves big business, is under the thumb of the Republicans, and/or needs to be primaried in 2012. Criticism is one thing, but it seems to me that this atmosphere abuses the 'we always support the Democratic party, but you may criticize' clause in the rules.

Thanks!

[Skinner]

1. Yes, the tone has changed.

1. I believe the shift in tone is entirely due to the fact that we have a Democrat in the White House. We are very concerned about it, and we are working very hard to change it. Only time will tell if we succeed.

2. The fact that many members criticize President Obama is a consequence of the fact that he is the President now. FWIW, the vast majority of people criticizing him here have been DUers in good standing for many years -- some of them since 2001. I don't think we can reasonably tell them that their opinions are not valid.

We need to figure out a way for everyone to share DU, and to be able to have the DU experience that they want. We have a number of changes coming that should help address this problem. But it is not something that will be fixed overnight.