General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Report: Russians used Bernie Bros as unwitting agents in disinformation campaign. [View all]mwooldri
(10,303 posts)I did go to JPR for a time. I even sent a donation - because during primary time, the vitriol between Hillary supporters and Bernie supporters on DU got so bad, that as a Bernie supporter I felt I needed a safe place to go. JackPineRadicals offered that seeming safe space.
How bad? Moderators in the Hillary Clinton group banned DUers from posting in the Hillary Clinton group if they happened to support Bernie Sanders... and vice versa. Banning was not always done on the content of the message left by the poster. I know, as this happened to me.
This left people like me who supported Bernie Sanders felt somewhat out in the cold. However at the end of the day a Hillary Clinton presidency would be a whole lot better than a Donald Trump presidency. Bernie said so himself. Obviously now we know how bad a DT presidency is shaping up to be. We can all agree here (whether you like Bernie or not) that Bernie was correct: Hillary Clinton would be a better president than Donald J. Trump.
However, the primary ended, Hillary was the candidate. Things personally were different for me in 2016 compared to 2008 or 2012. Different job, less money, but more hours. I couldn't support properly. I couldn't afford to naturalize and vote. However, I ended up spending more time at DU again after Hillary got the nomination. After all, in my mind Hillary had to win. JPR became more of a curiosity and I visited there less and less - given that the JPR admin and the majority of the visible, active members there didn't support a Hillary win. I can't remember when I last posted there, and I'm sure it was something pretty apolitical.
I make no apologies for going there, donating money in their early days, and hoping to get a voice for Bernie going. Bernie didn't get elected. But we know one thing: JPR's admins are, quite anti-Clinton. Left wing, "progressive", yes, but no love for the DLC and "Third Way" which is the political philosophy espoused by Bill Clinton and one Tony Blair. If Tony Blair hadn't taken the UK into Iraq... then my viewpoint of him would be different. He is in my mind as complicit as George W Bush in taking the USA and the UK into a useless war in Iraq - there would have been better and more effective means at taking down Saddam Hussein.
Many DUers went to JPR. Those who tended to support Bernie and were put off by the anti-Bernie vitriol here were sorely tempted to stay. I like to think a lot of Bernie DUers who went over to JPR came back after the primary and stayed here at DU. Because that's me.