General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsI Found Democratic Underground because of Al Franken
I'd lived in small town Carolina for a decade in the 90s and was beyond frustrated with all politics, I was sure there were no other Democrats in this state at all and Bush being installed in 2000 almost did me in. I found Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them by Al Franken and felt such relief to find all the information inside. If I remember correctly, after I had my eyes open with so much truth, the last page encouraged me to check several web pages to stay informed and DU was listed there. At DU I found like-minded people, an oasis in a world that was so shaky (but now seems so tame in comparison to what we have today). At DU I found protesters at the 2001 inauguration and crowding the streets of NYC that no news outlets were discussing, I found candidates who needed funds and calls made, I found people sharing research and info that predicted disaster years before it happened, and I got the message to stop reading DU and volunteer! I did that and found Democrats, liberals, and progressives hiding in my back yard, really! We rolled up our sleeves and made change happen and many of the campaigns I worked on won and I even landed a job in Congress. All from one book by Alan Franken.
The irony is not lost on me that Al Franken, Trump, and Moore are having the results they are. Lies and the lying liars who tell them.
Thanks to my time on campaigns and in my job, I understand why he was so careful in his wording with his statements. It is a sensitive and serious topic and has to be handled correctly. When he asked to be investigated it told me so much. If you are still reading DU, Senator Franken, and read this, please do not resign your position! Let the investigations continue! And thank you for everything you have done.
And to anyone else who is reading this, if you are feeling the same red hot anger I am feeling right now, vow to get involved in as many campaigns as you are able without harming your health. At least do one local and one Congressional campaign, you will be glad you did. Donate supplies to local Democratic headquarters, money to campaigns, register voters, walk precincts to get out the vote. If you are in a safe state, go to a southern state's page here on DU and adopt it. I'm a fair person, I believe that each person deserves to have their political beliefs and vote without hindrance. But I am in a place where I wouldn't mind if we never have Republicans in the majority anywhere again. Let's do this. For Senator Franken, Senator Wellstone, democracy, and the truth. For all of us.
Egnever
(21,506 posts)Thank you for all of your hard work!
SaveAmerica
(5,342 posts)flamingdem
(39,332 posts)Hortensis
(58,785 posts)...hi.
SaveAmerica
(5,342 posts)And I celebrated! It gave me so much hope, now to stay focused on the future to make that happen here.
Hortensis
(58,785 posts)Now the corrupt knuckledraggers are only a majority. Her promise to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 has to be examined in context. It's currently $5.15.
We advance.
SaveAmerica
(5,342 posts)Hortensis
(58,785 posts)Big no to RIP, Social Security.
SaveAmerica
(5,342 posts)I would check in after a day of campaign work, see that message and keep on pushing. Don't give up, this clean up won't be easy!
SaveAmerica
(5,342 posts)"I, of all people, am aware that there is some irony in the fact that I am leaving while a man who has bragged on tape about his history of sexual assault sits in the Oval Office and a man who has repeatedly preyed on young girls campaigns for the Senate with the full support of his party," Franken said.
He just got Dan Rathered and I hope his decision to resign 'in the coming weeks' means he will be looking for a way to fight back and ultimately not resign.
I'm with you, Senator Franken.
ismnotwasm
(42,020 posts)And I do live in a safe state. I have Democrats for Senators, governor and representatives even our new mayor. I am ashamed to admit that I never have adopted a red state outside of a few donations. Thats an excellent idea.
NewJeffCT
(56,829 posts)It was a year or two after the Bush "election" in 2000 and I was depressed that I could not find much in the way of "liberal" oriented news - MSNBC had just fired the reliably liberal Phil Donahue from their network after he spoke out about the upcoming Iraq War... then, a few months later, I heard Bill O'Reilly calling for Al Franken's upcoming Lying Liars book to be banned, or maybe he threatened to sue Franken... well, nothing piques my interest more than trying to ban something. So, I picked up the book and devoured it quickly. What a funny and smart book! It really gave me hope that there must be others out there like me, so I googled something like "liberal news forums" and the first one that came up with a site about Bill O'Reilly called something like O'Reilly Sucks (it's still there - http://www.oreilly-sucks.com/ )
Somewhere else on the internets, I was debating some RWers on the issue of the week and I asked on this guy's forum for support to help debunk these RWers, and then he said that he doesn't really know, but www.democraticunderground.com was a great place to go if you needed more information like that. I then found DU in October of 2003 and have been here ever since.