I want to be a part of this team, but I should warn you...

[darmok167]

...I am what you would call a "convert" and I have a bit of a sordid past. For much of it, I will not apologize. For some, I will. I am not seeking forgiveness. I am not in search of redemption. I'm not looking for acceptance, either, because in all honesty, I can walk alone if need be. God knows I've done it my fair share of it at times, but that is a story best left for a pathetic country and western song. :)

This November, and for all Novembers I can forsee in the future, unless something dramatically changes, I am going to vote for the Democratic Party candidate, even if it is a fictional character. That is a given. I will never vote for another Republican for the rest of my life. I want to make that clear in advance. Whether or not you guys accept me or not, you can count on my vote now and in the future.

That being said, I know what a hardcore community this discussion forum can be and in my opinion, if I didn't "come clean" of sorts, I would not be being honest with any of you.

I voted for George W. Bush in 2000 and in 2004. Hindsight shows me I made the incorrect decision both times, but at the time I had my reasons, and I will not apologize. If it is of any consolation, I live in a "red state" and my single vote, had it been for Gore or Kerry, would not have changed the outcome of either election. But that is me just making excuses, and I don't want to do that.

Bottom line, if you are willing to accept me, I would love to be a part of this community, because either way, it is likely we will be voting for the same Candidates every November from now on.

Originally, this was going to be a lot longer and more personal, but perhaps I should save some "confessions" for later. :)

That being said, damage done and all, if it came down to "Smartest Republican on the Planet" versus "Amoeba registered as a Democrat" I will be picking the single celled organism because I figure they are both of equal intelligence. :)

[lizziegrace]

1. Welcome to DU!

:hi:

(Confession is good for the soul.) :)

[LadyoftheRabbits]

2. Know what?

Welcome, friend :hug:

[flvegan]

3. Welcome to DU, darmok167!

Good to have you here!

[Bucky]

4. Best entrance ever (or at least so far)

And I'd vote for the amoeba, too. But if it's a paramecium... well, round here we just don't cotton to their type.

[nytemare]

11. What if it a euglena?

That started as a Democrat, then changed to independent?

:D

[Chan790]

78. My senator just did that.

It isn't going over really well.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

5. My dear darmok167!

Welcome to DU!

This is quite a story you have told us here......and I have absolutely no problem accepting it, and you too..........

I do hope that in the future you will be able to bring along some of your still blinded buddies.....and get them to convert to being Dems as well........

But even if you can't......you are most welcome here!

:patriot:

[OnionPatch]

6. Welcome and

I wouldn't complain about anyone who has seen the light enough to proclaim they are never voting for a Republican again. All I can say is, glad to have you here! :hi:

[deadparrot]

7. Welcome!

:hi:

[Nicole]

8. Welcome

:hi:

[graywarrior]

9. So far, I dig you.

Welcome....hope you know what you're in for...:crazy:

[derby378]

10. Welcome to DU, darmok!

I'm a convert, too. Glad you're here!

[Rabrrrrrr]

12. One need never explain, defend, OR justify. For fuck's sake,

I voted for Reagan and Bush (the first one) and Perot (first election) and Clinton in the second one.

Don't worry! (though I voted for Bush and Reagan mostly because the dem candidates were so goddamn incompetent and fucking stupid, I simply couldn't trust them, even though I knew Reagan and Bush to be lying scumbags).

So in some ways, I might be worse than you - I knowingly voted for murderous, criminal assholes.

But, for god's sake, I think everyone has to admit that the dems did not offer a candidate worth a shit at all after Carter and until Clinton. Dukakis? Mondale? I'd rather have mass murderering, earth-fucking criminal shitbags, who at least have brains and leadership skills, for presidents. And, by golly, that's what I voted for.

:-)

p.s. - Gilgamesh and Enkidu at Uruk.

[nytemare]

13. Welcome aboard.

:hi:

[evlbstrd]

14. Welcome, darmok167.

Don't worry. I used to be Irish Catholic. And ex-Catholics are some of my best friends.
edit: Some of my best friends are ex-Catholics. Aw, christ.

[Floogeldy]

15. I agree with you.

:smoke:

[Nevernose]

16. Is Darmok a Star Trek reference?

If so, your handle fits. There are a wide variety of Democrats here, even if it doesn't always seem like it. Most of us, even at DU, are actually fairly reasonable moderates.

Republicans aren't our enemies; nutcases and extremists are. "Tough on crime" and "fiscally responsible," for example, are Republican hallmarks that have recently come under the purview of the Democrats simply because the Republican leadership have lost their minds in an effort to win elections instead of do what's right.

[darmok167]

64. Probably subconsciously

I am a huge fan of the entire Star Trek franchise, and when I chose a name for DU, I just thought it sounded cool. Now that you mention it, Darmok was a fictional character in an episode of TNG where Picard meets the alien who speaks only in metaphors, wasn't he?

[PassingFair]

17. Welcome to planet Empathy.

Can you feel our happiness at your arrival?

You KNOW you can!

:hi:

[Arugula Latte]

18. Are you kidding? We LIVE for these convert stories!

These are the little snippets that give us hope! Welcome in from the dark! :hi: :toast:

[ZombieNixon]

19. Welcome to DU, darmok167.

:pals:

[reyd reid reed]

20. Pleased to meetcha

And all that good stuff.

Thank you for flying DU. If you'll please buckle your safety belts and return your tray tables to an upright position, we'll be taking off shortly. For your viewing pleasure, we have several forums both above and below this particular one.

Meals are not provided on this excursion, although we might feed you a line or two every once in a while.

Please refrain from smoking while in the Lounge. This is not out of concern for your health or anyone else's, merely a courtesy as it tends to interfere with the hampsters. The tar and nicotine makes their wheels get gummy.

Should a flame war break out, please note that the emergency exits are located...they're located...hmmmmm....

:evilgrin:

Muahahahahahahahahaha!!!!

Anyway...

Welcome to DU.



:hi:

[MrScorpio]

21. Welcome To DU

Stick Around

[NMMNG]

22. Welcome to DU!

Congratulations on seeing the light. :hi:

[AmyDeLune]

23. Welcome to DU!

Have a truffle bar!

[gr8dane_daddy]

24. Your sins are forgiven...

go forth and sin no more. O8)

[Hissyspit]

25. Welcome.

Enlightenment is always better late than never.

[RagingInMiami]

26. Please explain what your reasons were for voting for Bush in 2004

Did you feel he was the one you could have a beer with?

Did you think Kerry was just too intellectual?

Did you really "feel safer" under Bush?

Was it about patriotism?

Religion?

Abortion?

I'm not trying to start a flamewar, but I am just fascinated how anybody could have voted for him in 2004 despite his obvious imcompetence during the previous four years.

[Hissyspit]

27. He/she doesn't have to, 'Miami, but...

I, too, am curious, as I usually am - I would love to see discussion of people's reasons.

[Name removed]

32. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Joe Fields]

75. No, you're right. No one has to explain, and we all have made mistakes

in our life. But at the same time, I cannot understand how anyone who had been paying attention couldn't have seen right through Bush, clear to the PNAC who propped him into power. C'mon, one of the most priviledged guys, coming from America's most powerful family, who had failed his way right into the governors mansion in Austin, who had a dubious, secret background, several shady business dealings... How could he have missed that one? Not paying attention?

[regnaD kciN]

34. I'm curious, too...

I, personally have a hard time seeing how someone could:

a) vote for Bush in 2000,

b) four years later, even after seeing what he did to the country, vote for him again,

c) but then, two years after that, be so angry as to proclaim he'll never vote for another Republican again.

:shrug:

I mean, it seems to me that if one considered the way Bush ran the country from 2001-2004 and decided, even after that, that he deserved another four years, I can't see how the events of 2005-2006 could be enough to cause a 180-degree turn in one's politics. What did he do so badly in the last two years that he wasn't already doing during his first term?

[darmok167]

63. It's complicated

Did you feel he was the one you could have a beer with?

Yes, and I still could. I can "get along" with just about anyone. Plus, I'm not one to turn down a free beer, assuming he was buying. I'm not sure He and I would agree on much, but I'm fairly confident I could keep it civil.

Did you think Kerry was just too intellectual?
Did you really "feel safer" under Bush?
Was it about patriotism?
Religion?
Abortion?
I'm not trying to start a flamewar, but I am just fascinated how anybody could have voted for him in 2004 despite his obvious imcompetence during the previous four years.

I was what you would call the "angry white male." I was pissed off at the World, confused about religion and was basically all things conservative at the time. Do not confuse this with neo-con, though. I still think true conservatives are good people at heart and in a perfect World, conservatism would probably work out okay. In a perfect world, there would be no racism/sexism, no greed, no making money at the expense of others and anyone that wanted to could actually pull him/herself up by the bootstraps and make something of him/herself with hard work and dedication. But this World is not perfect and conservatism only leads to a 2 class society, the haves and the have-nots.

Basically, the single event that started to open my eyes was Hurricane Katrina. When I watched dead bodies floating down the street and saw GWB eating birthday cake and proclaiming that Brownie was doing a heckuva job, it really disgusted me. Then when I read on more conservative message boards that "these people" got what they deserved because they should have left, even though for many of them, there was no possible way to leave, I knew I could no longer consider myself one of them and could never again vote for a party that would ignore such blatently obvious death, destruction and suffering.

That was the catalyst. I still had my "anger" but it was redirected in a way. I started trying to figure out why I was so damned angry in the first place. I was a married man with two beautiful children and a pretty decent paying job. What the hell did I have to be angry about?

Long story short, I have basically done a 145 degree turn in my overall beliefs. I'm not going to lie and say there aren't still some conservative beliefs I hold on to, but for the most part, I now consider myself a moderate with a lean to the left.

I'll end this now, because I don't want to write an essay, but hopefully, I have answered some of your questions.

[Lasher]

70. The Republican party has changed

I'm sure the true Republican conservatives are shocked at what their party has become since the neocon takeover. I agree that true conservatives are good people at heart. But today's Republican party has lost its way in their drift to the far right. Ike was a good conservative president, but by today's standards he would have been a flaming liberal.

The Democratic party has changed too. We are now the party that best supports many of the principles that are dear to true conservatives.

[RagingInMiami]

71. In many ways, Katrina was also my catalyst

Not that I ever voted for Bush. Not I ever voted for a republican. Not that I am anything close to a conservative.

No, that was my dad, and ever since I was a kid, we would get into serious political debates. I was the bleeding heart liberal, he was the Goldwater conservative. Before he died in Jan. 2002, he was disgusted with Bush, the war and acknowledged that Bush stole the 2000 election with the help of his brother.

My dad lived in Miami, just two counties south of Palm Beach, the epicenter of where it all happened. There is a reason why Floridians are so pissed off, making four of the top ten angriest cities.

But after campaigning heavily in 2004 for Kerry, only to watch Bush steal another election, this time with the help of computer voting machines; then watching as the media refused to even look into the obvious evidence; and seeing how the bulk of Americans just went on with their lives as if the death of democracy was no different than their favorite football team losing on a particular Sunday; I just simply tuned out.

I stopped watching TV, stopped going into GD and stopped obsessing about the lack of WMDs and the war based on lies. I figured if this is what America wants, this is what America gets. If America is more concerned about Adam and Steve getting married rather than Adam and Steve getting blown to bits in Iraq, then it deserves what it gets.

Then came Hurricane Katrina. She was nothing but a tropical storm hovering off the Florida coast when I first heard about her. Down here in Miami, we were told by the media that it was nothing to worry about. No need to put up hurricane shutters.

In fact, on the day she made landfall, I was sitting by an open window, enjoying the tropical breeze. I received a call from my friend in California who asked me if I was getting prepared for "Hurricane Katrina". It's only a tropical storm, I told him. This is one of the drawbacks of tuning out. You tend to rely on second-hand information.

A couple of hours later, it started raining. Then storming. I shut my windows and noticed that this "tropical storm" was actually quite strong. I even ran out into the rain and phoned my friend in California to allow him to hear the strong winds. "This is what a tropical storm sounds like. Imagine what an actual hurricane sounds like."

Then the winds got stronger, forcing me inside. And the windows started rattling. And the lights went out in my neighborhood. A few hours later, I turned on my battery-operated radio and learned that several people had died in South Florida from the storm. That tropical storm Katrina had been upgraded to a category one hurricane moments before making landfall. In fact, the Miami Herald headline read, "Sucker Punched" over a picture of downed power lines, shattered windows and toppled trees.

Katrina continued tearing threw Florida and hovered in the Gulf of Mexico gathering strength and momentum. She became a category two. Then three. Then four hurricane.

On the third day after striking Miami, as I still sat in the dark, Katrina turned into a category five hurricane and barrelled into the bayou. On the fourth day, as I still sat in the dark, the levees broke, drowning the Big Easy.

And on the sixth day, after finally getting my power restored, I turned on my TV for the first time since the 2004 election, and was shocked to see how everybody was acting so surprised of the storm's power. As if Katrina had emerged out of nowhere before striking New Orleans. And all I could think of was that there was no excuse for New Orleans to get "sucker punched". Anybody in Miami could have told them that this was no ordinary storm.

And the denial and blame and the bodies just piled higher. And all I could think about were the people I met the year before in New Orleans during a cross-country road trip. I thought about that artist who drew my picture. And the musician who bought me a beer. And the group of waiters who welcomed me into their group one night at a bar after they got off work. I fucking cried, man.

And all shrub could do was attend a fucking fund raiser?

That was the moment I tuned back in. That was the moment when I decided to attend the antiwar protest in DC the following month. That was the moment I decided to bring up my hatred for Bush no matter where I'm at and no matter whom I offend, and no matter what kind of trouble it gets me into.

After all, New Orleans may not have been worth saving. But America is.

Welcome aboard.

:toast:

[babylonsister]

72. Raging, you are quite the writer; I was riveted. And welcome to DU,

darmok167! We're glad you're here! :toast:
The response to Katrina was a travesty; I pray no one forgets.

[1gobluedem]

81. I know I can't

I was in NOLA two weeks ago and toured just a tiny slice of the devastation. I tried to get it down in words while fresh in my mind but don't think I succeeded. There are so many reasons to despise this administration and this leads the list. To think we're spending $1 billion A DAY in Iraq and people in NOLA are still waiting for the keys to the FEMA trailers they've had since March. It's shocking and shameful and disgusts me.

Welcome to DU, darmok167. We're glad you're here!

[RagingInMiami]

82. Thank you

The Katrina ordeal always stirs up my strongest emotions, which always makes for the best writing.

[Patiod]

73. I think Katrina was a turning point for many

End of last summer, we were in a bar in the middle of Wyoming - definitely the only Dems for miles. Got to talking to a trucker who was sitting next to us, who identified himself as a racist the moment we said we were from Philadelphia (can't remember exactly how he phrased it, but let us know he could never live in a city with our particular racial demographics).

Just then, they showed pictures from New Orleans on the TV, and he volunteered "now, you know if those folks were in San Diego or some other rich area, the National Guard would have been there and it would be the biggest rescue effort you've ever seen." He went on to express his disgust at the administration's incompetence.

We were surprised. But it alerted us that Katrina was about to become the eye-opening event that let people know, contrary to the carefully-crafted image that had been put before them on Fox or CNN or CBS, that the people at the wheel of this ship of state didn't have a CLUE what they were doing, and that their only concern was for Big Money.

Welcome Darmok. I doubt there's anyone here who believes EXACTLY what they believed 10 years ago on every single issue, so we all understand that folks' opinions evolve if they are paying attention and thinking for themselves.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

84. That's a very heartfelt reply

Good for you. We all question ourselves from time to time.

[enigmatic]

28. Welcome

And thank you for being honest:)

[skids]

29. Check out this guy -- he's walked your path.

Here's a diary you'll want to look at at dailykos -- you have to scroll back a year or so to get at his posts about it, but he's a recovering republican as well. I think you'll find it interesting.

http://www.dailykos.com/user/advisorjim/diary

Welcome to DU!

[Nite Owl]

30. Welcome home!

Hope you enjoy it here and that you will be able to shed some light on just why half of the voters of our country would vote for Republicans. I don't understand the reasoning they use to decide that and it would be a help to try and figure out why.

[heliarc]

31. Welcome

I am very very left of center and sometimes I feel at odds with the folks here. Either because they are right of me or left. You will encounter a lot of heated debate, and a flurry of evidence supporting all manner of points and counterpoints. In the end, that should be the point, and I'm very proud of an America that encourages inclusion over the alternatives out there. Welcome, Welcome, Welcome. I hope that you are not turned off by what you see here and that you find the debate a welcome refuge from your past. Thanks for your humble words. Politics for me is a matter of life and death, and words like yours do not fall on deaf ears.

[Lasher]

33. The road is long, with many a winding turn.

Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. Isaiah 60:3

[Broken_Hero]

35. Welcome to Du..:)

:toast: :hi:

[regnaD kciN]

36. By contrast...

...I cast my first vote ever in 1974, and it was for a Republican (Governor Francis Sargent of Massachusetts). He was a friend of my family, lived in our small town, and, besides, he was one of the last of the breed of "liberal Republicans."

When I first moved here, I voted for our Republican County Councilman, but he was a populist and envirionmentalist "gadfly," and eventually switched to the Democrats himself.

And I voted for independent candidates for President twice: John Anderson in 1980 and Ralph Nader in 1996 (note: not 2000). In each case, since I was living on the west coast, the election had already been "called" by the time I got to the voting booth.

Otherwise, it's been straight Democrats.

[RagingInMiami]

37. There are republicans and there are democrats

Then there are incompetent fascists.

[democrank]

38. Glag you`re here, darmok167.

Hold on to your seat. You`re in for a wild ride.

[OneBlueSky]

39. diversity of opinion is what drives DU . . .

the corporate media gives only one side to every story -- and often very incomplete and/or distorted . . .

on DU, you hear both sides of controversial issues, which can help you make better decisions based on facts rather than ideology . . .

so welcome . . . big time . . . :)

[Guava Jelly]

40. welcome Aboard

Sure wish we would have had you with us in 2000!
But hey People change. I voted for Ross Perot

[Vinca]

41. Welcome! Feel free to bring friends. (Pass the truffles, please.)

[Mountainman]

42. I would be very interested in your reasoning. Welcome to DU

I think that all the reasons to vote against Bush we so evident in both elections. It is a wonderment to me that people have taken so long to get it. What did you think then and how has it changed?

[darmok167]

65. Please see reply #63 n/t

.

[mntleo2]

43. Welcome Aboard!

:hug:

I am a lefty and always have been. Some here are more conservative than I am and I do not agree with them as they do not agree with me. The beauty of being an American is that we are all different and have different views. The real art of disagreement is to respect the other person and we do disagree here on DU where we have had some of the Best. Flame. Wars. Ever.

We have lively conversations here and there are very diverse communities here and it is not hard to find a place where you can find a 'home'. Wherever you spend most of your time, I can guarantee you will find friends and understanding.

So most of the time we learn to be respectful when we disagree. One thing I have learned here; I am silent when I feel disrespected (which has been maybe two times and I hope I have never been disrespectful myself). Silence is *not* always consent, it can be just making sure that you don't say something you regret later, imo. I am often silent for this reason (besides it often just leaves the other person's comment just sitting there, lol).

Anyway as a far lefty, I have found some other critters like me who are of like mind. You will too and that is a good thing as you orient yourself and become more comfortable with the changes you have made.

Oh. And btw, I am proud that you came out and told the truth. Yeah I feel like some of the others here because this man and his people have caused more death, misery and poverty both here and abroad than any politician in my memory. I knew immediately what they were, when lies were spoken (like WMDs in Iraq) and that they were evil (but then I knew of many of them when I worked as an activist in the 1980's when they were creating death squads and misery in S America). Because they got away with the terrible things they did then is why these people were able to come back to make even more horrors.

I have been voting since 1973 and like some of the others here, I am curious as to why you would vote for people who had a history like that. Unlike some of the others in this thread, I would never ever vote for a murderer ~ or anyone who willingly fraternized with them anymore than they had to. However, I forgive people if at least like you they come out and say they are different now. IMO the more people who wake up the sooner we will get these criminals out for good this time.

So welcome aboard and I hope we have many more conversations in the future where we learn from one another!

My 2 cents

Cat In Seattle

[bowens43]

44. Welcome!!

[bluestateguy]

45. You don't have to agree with DUers on everything

This place wouldn't be much fun if we all agreed all of the time. The only issue that I would say goes 100% one way here is the Iraq War. Otherwise, we debate, and even fight, among ourselves. For my part, I am pro-gun and pro-death penalty.

[ixion]

46. Welcome to DU, darmok167!

:toast: :party: :toast:


it's okay. you're among friends. :hi:

[magellan]

47. How nice

You're not looking for forgiveness or acceptance; it so happens I'm not interested in giving any, either. So we should get along just fine.

One day.

Welcome in any case.

[LynnTheDem]

48. Welcome to DU.

And welcome out of the leagues of rightwingnuts; stupidest MFers on the planet.

:hug:

[Mnemosyne]

49. Glad you've seen the light darmok167! And

welcome to the DU! :hi:

I am hearing stories like yours more and more. There may still be hope!:applause:

[silverojo]

50. Welcome to DU!

Always nice to welcome a Republican who's realized the truth. :toast:

[Name removed]

51. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Name removed]

55. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Jensen]

52. A Warm Welcome to DU!

It does my heart proud to see America Waking UP!!!I hope is not too late....Wake Up America!:patriot:

[A-Schwarzenegger]

53. "but at the time I had my reasons"

Like others, I'd love to know why you voted for Bush twice
and what exactly made you change, and change so radically.

[darmok167]

67. I never said I had good reasons...

...I said I had reasons.

The reason I will not apologize for it is because I don't think it would do any good. Words are hollow, it is actions that count.

I regret my votes in 2000 and 2004, but like I said, it wouldn't have changed anything had I voted the other way.

However, I can make a pretty decent argument. If I can convince two people to vote for the Democratic Party, and they can convince two more people, and they convince two more, we might just be onto something. Sort of like a "Pay it Forward" without the sad ending.

[mntleo2]

79. You Are A Powerful Voice Too

...because you are a convert, and people may want to know why you converted. See people like me are already "that way" and so there is suspicion I have an agenda (which in a way I do have, my agenda is that I want freedom for EVERYBODY not just the elite with myself included).

But you, why would you come over here unless you found some things drastically askew??? This is why people like John Dean are interesting to me. I am wondering what took him from the Nixon adminstration, which was pretty corrupted with a pretty neocon way of thinking, to where he is now? I do not think Mr. Dean is much different than he was then, but I do think he no longer thinks of we lefties as "the enemy" and finds we are actually in agreement with one important thing: We all love the Constitution, we believe it should be honored, and that ALL Americans should benefit from it, not just a few elite.

I suspect that neo-cons actually believe they are making it good for everyone. But they live in a dream world because anybody who thinks it is just fine to have it all while others right next to them starve, is not being moral to people like me, it is not even American. Also that they need some "daddy" to tell others and themselves what to do is ... well it seems to me to be a bit, infantile. I know what is right and wrong as does everybody I know unless they are either insane or do not have all their brain cells working. I do not need some "daddy" telling me what to think or do. When that "daddy's" mandates cuts into a neo-con's world, well they will become converts too, I susopect, and that is coming.

So hang in there and wewe will all keep thinking. To me that is what DU is all about, it makes me think, and does not require me to march to some drum all handpicked and made shiny so I don't realize it is just hollow air in the middle.

Cat In Seattle

[elehhhhna]

80. Welcome aboard.

All is forgiven.

[Lerkfish]

54. welcome, and here's your free toaster

ok, I was kidding about the toaster.

:cheers:

[Skittles]

58. LOL

OK that was funny :D

[zanne]

56. Time will tell. nt

[Jamastiene]

57. Welcome. Hopefully after spending some time

with us, you will convert further and realize that a one-celled organism is often smarter than the smartest Republican. A one-celled organism would vote Democrat if given the opportunity, because it would know that the one-cell it saved could be its own.

[rug]

59. Go, and sin no more.

[IdaBriggs]

60. "Regret, Repent, Repair" -- Welcome to DU. Get to work! :) nt

[wildhorses]

61. welcome to DU...

:hi:

come early, stay late and, post often

it gets addicting

[ellie]

62. Welcome!

Don't worry about your sordid past. We all have them. I used to date an accountant! hahahahaha Just a little big tent joke.

[Sugar Smack]

66. Well, just help us get him out of office now.

[buddhamama]

68. Hi, darmok!

I giggled out loud at least twice reading your post; if you knew me you'd know that, that act makes you alright with me.

I am pleased you decided to join us. Welcome aboard! :)

[femmocrat]

69. Welcome to DU, darmok!

Hope to see you back here early and often!

:hi:

[ScreamingMeemie]

74. You ARE part of this team darmok...

...and I'm glad to have you. Whatever warts...er confessions...may come. We all have them here. It's just here, most of us will admit to them. :toast:

Looking forward to getting your perspective,
Laura

[varkam]

76. Welcome to DU, darmok!

It's my estimation that you are already on better footing than the 30-some-odd percent of people who still support Bush, as you've had the insight that you have made a mistake and the courage to admit as much.

Welcome to DU! :toast:

[Chan790]

77. Hey no problems here

I think everybody has a sordid past of some sort, something they regret. As for me, my extended family is like the who's-who of boonie backwater northwestern CT Republicans. I used to be one too, but now I get dirty looks at family functions and nobody will talk to me because they think liberalism might be contagious.

Good lessons from my short time here:
For all the talk of DU being hardcore, we're all rather quite accepting, except in those cases of people who show up to start trouble, call names or throw things. They get the tombstone. I'd point out tombstone-worthy behavior, but it gets erased post tombstoning and it's against the rules. I think the hardcore reputation is just there to keep the wishy-washy independents out. DU isn't wishy-washy.

General Discussion (GD), where all the "real" political debate occurs, is kind of like the Korean DMZ, you have to keep your head low. They've been at each other's throats for 4 days now over Jon-Benet Ramsey. If you comment there on either side of the abortion debate, Israel vs. Palestine/Lebanon (There is a forum for that anyways), or anything stronger than your preference for Democrats(and even that sometimes) you'll get mauled.

That's why most Loungers stick to the Lounge. (That's this laid-back hip and progressive area you're in right now). We tend to be a little randy, irreverent, and profane, but it's what make the Lounge fun.

Welcome to DU and welcome to the Lounge. :hi:

[SeattleGirl]

83. Welcome to DU, darmok167!

:hi: