Seven Days Underground (the birth of DU)

[CatWoman]

Seven Days Underground

Democratic Underground had its official launch on Inauguration Day, January 20, 2001. Much has happened since then. To mark the passing of our first week, we felt that our faithful visitors might like to read a SLIGHTLY EMBELLISHED first-person account of the highs and lows of launching an underground political website. by Skinner

DAY 1 (SAT) - A GIFT FROM MSNBC
On Friday night, we were up until about 3:00am getting ready for the website's big Inaugural Day Launch. We were hoping to be in bed by midnight, but our intern — a young radical from one of the local community colleges — spilled paint all over our banner at around 11:30, and we had to start from scratch. EarlG thought the intern was trying to sniff the stuff, and I wouldn't be surprised if it were true (he kept mumbling something about how "acrylic lasts longer than this latex crap", but we weren't clear on the context). The rest of us are too old for that sort of thing, but we'll keep him around because he is the only one here that knows anything about programming perl. (Fortunately, he got the "Nuclear Button" script working by 10:00pm, before the can of paint arrived.)

On Saturday, we met at our makeshift "office" in Northwest DC sometime around 11:00am. We were supposed to meet at 9:30, but the intern overslept. He showed up with his own homemade "George W. Ass" sign, but we wouldn't let him bring it to the protests — Newshound thought it was "off message."

We got down to Pennsylvania avenue around noon, and were fortunate to claim a prime location right in front of the press bleachers. Protesters were confined to a few "designated protest areas," and it seemed strange to me that one of those spots would be right in front of the media. I guess the communications geniuses in the Bush camp didn't think of everything. The other protesters seemed to be a mishmash of left-wing types: Some dancing polar bears to protest oil drilling in ANWR; Some free-Mumia folks; Anti-death penalty activists; A pretty large contingent of Seattle-style anti-globalization college kids; and even a guy on stilts to protest, well, I don't know what he was protesting. Like us, lots of folks were protesting how Bush stole the election, but there were far fewer of us than I expected. A sizable chunk of the protesters I spoke with voted for Nader. I thought, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be out here freezing my ass off in the rain. But I digress.

While ostensibly there to protest, our real motivation for attending the event was to get our banner on television. (We have no money, and this was the cheapest national advertising campaign we could come up with.) The banner was eight feet long by 3 feet tall, white canvas, with the words "DemocraticUnderground.com" painted in big, black letters. With luck, some Good Democrats would see it on TV and stop by our website, which at this point was sitting unused on a server somewhere in Atlanta (I think).

Sometime between noon and 1:00, EarlG's cell phone rang. His wife yelled into his ear: "Stop shaking the banner!" She, and about a million other people, were watching us on MSNBC. A preliminary count turned up exactly four messages on our discussion board. The first one: "Nice f------ discussion board. There's nobody here." By the end of the day, there would be nearly a thousand posts.

Eventually Dubya's limo drove by our part of the parade route. It was going so fast that the secret service guys were in a full sprint. We decided to pack it up and go back to the office. The intern stayed behind to get some more of "that quality doobidge from the polar bears."

Back in the office around 5:00, we discovered our message boards had become a virtual food fight, and our inbox was bursting with messages like: Your the people who are whats wrong with this country. Why dont you go back to Rusia? Plus, we'd sent over 2,000 angry emails to conservatives using our innovative "Nuclear Button" one-click activism system.

Spent the evening patting ourselves on the back. That is, all of us except the intern, who spent the evening eating 3 loaves of Wonder bread.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/articles/01/01/010127_7days.html

[cynatnite]

1. K&R! n/t

[Strong Atheist]

40. K&R.

I have not seen this before ...

[Starry Messenger]

2. k & r.

And bookmarked. I've been trying to find that all week. Thank you!!

[CatWoman]

15. I like to post it every once in a while

to coincide with DU's "birthday" :)

[Dennis Donovan]

3. I never tire of reading this...recommended!

:thumbsup::hi:

[roguevalley]

57. your intern is my hero. BWAHAHA! I haven't heard 'doobage' in

years.

[maddezmom]

4. Wow

Somethings never change. :D

[CatWoman]

16. ROFL!!!

:hi:

[FarLeftRage]

5. I remember this...

and first reading about DU from Bartcop... I lurked for a year before I joined in Feb. 2002...
What a long, strange trip it has been...

[annabanana]

6. I wish I had met the board in those early days...

I didn't wander over here until the spring of '04...

[madrchsod]

23. aaaah.....the good old days

when the lounge had unregulated sex threads.....

[geniph]

32. The Lounge didn't exist for the first several months

It came about after we first started having moderators, because people complained about not having a place to socialize and chit-chat and not be scolded for being off-topic.

--geniph, first registered in March of 2001

[supernova]

7. Thanks for the reminder, CW

:D

I never get tired of reading it.

:thumbsup:

[jhain]

8. Just when I thought I couldn't BE any happier

This is AWESOME.

And, once again to you all- THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART.

This place has seen me through some dark days.

You utterly ROCK.

[CatWoman]

17. I found DU in 2001 via a Truthout article written by Will Pitt

and I really don't know how I could have coped without it.

I was literally crying every single day.

[rug]

9. "Nice f------ discussion board."

:rofl:

[Mz Pip]

10. It was The Top 10 Conservative Idiots

that brought me here, linked from another site. I lurked, I joined, I lost my password, I joined again in 4/2001.


And here I am, still.

[NWHarkness]

11. I saw the banner and signed up that first day

Later, when I had gotten a new computer I had trouble signing in and just took a new name, but I'm proud to have been one of the first day members.

[donco]

12. Anyone have an update on the intern? nt

[johnnie]

87. Got his stitches removed

[proud2BlibKansan]

13. Nuclear Button?

Sounds great. Is it still here?

[Swamp Rat]

14. "George W. Ass"

:D

[CatWoman]

18. Hi Swampy!!

:hi:

:hug:

and of course, if it weren't for DU, I would never have known you :)

[Swamp Rat]

19. CatWoman!

:hi: :hug: :loveya:

[conscious evolution]

39. What happened to the spinning swastikas?

Or was that someone elses' photoshop?

[CreekDog]

20. Go back to Rusia!

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :crazy:

[stevedeshazer]

21. Funnier than seven hundred bucks

Gets me laughing every time.

:)

[madrchsod]

22. i found du from a link at buzzflash...

started in 2001 as a lurker joined i think in jan.of 2002. 11,000 and change member. going back to see the first posts in those days is a trip...reading the namesd of those still here and those who have quit or who have been called home. i hope there is such a place where those who went on without us are watching their dream come true...

it`s been a long strange journey these last 8 years but i think we are about to find our home

[BrklynLiberal]

24. History is always fun...especially this kind of history.

[bluesmail]

25. K&R

The last eight years have been the worst of my life. Yet I learned so much. Thanks DU.

[sweetladybug]

28. I saw the banner on 1/20/01 and I've been on DU ever since

I was soooo happy that I found DU. I was miserable at the time. Without a doubt in my mind, I know Bush and members of his crime family stole that election. My gut told me that Bush and his crime family would destroy our country (and that is exactly what they did) Thank God for President Elect Obama. And God be with him while he cleans up the mess that Bush has left him.
I have learned so much from DU. THANK YOU DU!
Gayle

[proud patriot]

26. I love reading that

everytime

[EFerrari]

56. Me, too.

Skinner and EarlG know what it feels like to live with teenagers. They're 'way ahead of the game.

:)

[Diclotican]

27. CatWoman

CatWoman

A, congratts then, with your "baby" who have grown to a big something in the meantime;).. Have not been here for verry long, maybe a year or so, but have been lurking around here for some year now, I guess it was in 2003-04 I got wind about this DU site..

Nice to have a place where you can find "sane" peopole who in fact belived in same as I did, that this regime of mr Bush was bad and that the Neo-Con dream of how to rule the world could not survive for long.. I would have lost faint in every one of you in the US, if it was not for DU.,... Thank you for keeping me, and that I still have some faith in the US and their pepole, withouth DU I would posible lost the little faith I might have left..

Thushday is a important, and big day for me. The ****************************************************************** Bush is out, and in is coming a man who have a idea how to lead US forward. It wil not be easy, but I do belive, with help from your friends and allied, we can togheter make a far better future, than past...

Diclotican

Sorry my bad english, not my native language

[CatWoman]

33. that's very sweet

:hi:

but this is Skinner's baby, not mine. :)

I wish I could call it mine.

Oh, wait. Scratch that. :)

[Diclotican]

38. CatWoman

CatWoman

Maybe you who founded DU in 2001, can it YOUR baby, when you se how the baby have grown to quit a part of the progressive side of the United States of America.. Many who are, on this saide of the aisle, have survived because of DU and the possibility to steam off some of the disgust we all have had the lat 8 year, when the right wingers have trying to tell us all, that residence to the new right wing world was futile, and we just have to comply, and be happy about it..

And yes, Skinner did have a child, a little baby;)

Diclotican

Sorry my bad english, not my native language

[juno jones]

29. Thank you for the history

It's always enlightening to hear these stories.

I found you guys right about 9-11 and lurked periodically for awhile before decloaking. I've not agreed with everything said here but this place has definitely helped keep me sane the last 8 years.

Thank You and Happy Birthday! :party:

[Johnyawl]

30. I found DU in March 2001, I think it was Bartcop that linked me

I was still lurking when my wife (Geniph) joined, and started posting like crazy.

Even by that time it was still constant freepers. We were in the first or second wave of volunteer moderators (I have CSR). Every Friday evening and Sat morn it seemed like a turkey shoot, blowing the freepers away. They were still coming in waves, but Skinner and EarlG had figured out how to contain it.

I remember you, Catwoman, from the early days

[CatWoman]

31. And say hi to your beautiful wife and kitties for me

:hi:

[Johnyawl]

34. She's skulking around here somewhere...

...hehehehe

[geniph]

35. Well, hello to you too, sweetie!

Long time no (interact?).

We found DU in March, after desperately seeking the Interwebz for months ("there has to be SOME website SOMEWHERE for other people stunned and disbelieving that the country voted for that imbecile!"). I'm pretty sure it was a link to the Top 10 Conservative Idiots from Buzzflash that got us here. I remember the old days of OSD and Kali and Zan and all the others, and I remember the two first schisms - first when Kali left and took the entire Dirt forum with her! (Dammit, some of my best opposition research was in that forum, too!). I remember the second schism, when so many regulars left and went to Capitol Grill or Grilling or whatever-the-hell-its-name-is, because of the "gay greens." They thought some of us were too pro-gay and too pro-environment and not pragmatic enough.

I was one of the earliest moderators, volunteering for Gays, Guns and Abortions (Civil Liberties, Gun Rights, and Reproductive Rights, I think were the original names, but that might not be quite right). What a trio of forums that was...I will say this, though. For two reasons, I actually never tombstoned anyone. Firstly, because the topics in all three forums are hotly debated among Democrats (still are), more widespread dissent could be allowed. Secondly, because I am not now, and never will be, an early riser, and the East Coast moderators who were my partners always beat me to the damned trolls! ;-)

There have been times when DU damned near saved my sanity, and to this day, even though I spend very little time here nowadays, I am profoundly grateful to those who had the idea and the gumption to start it, and have had the persistence to stick with it, all these hard years. Hugs and kisses to EarlG and Skinner, and also to Elad, who came in later and saved their coding sanity.

[Shiver]

51. I wanna hear more early stories like this

I've only been coming here for about two years, and only joined back in.. September? Can't remember. These stories from the beginning are simply fascinating...

[whyzayker]

52. Kali's Dirt files can be found...

..here.
http://tinyurl.com/75qsyl

http://web.archive.org/web/20031011151811/www.democraticunderground.com/cgi-bin/duforum/duboard.cgi?forum=DCForumID12&az=list&archive=yes

When the Dirt forum was closed much of her excellent work was sent here. Here's one of my favorites. Talk about foreshadowing.
CIA Role May Grow in Preventing Terror Attacks
http://tinyurl.com/762ysc

Check the date of the article.

[CatWoman]

66. Hi Geni

:hi:

I couldn't agree more :)

[truedelphi]

83. Question: What was the Dirt forum??

And like you, the DU community has helped me keep sane.

Though I didn't find it until the first (and awful) week of November 2004.

[Missy Vixen]

36. I was standing in front of our television on Inauguration Day, 2001

in utter disbelief. I broke into sobs when the media filmed Bush's limo turning the corner onto the parade route. The hundreds of thousands of people who'd braved the rain and cold, all their signs and their anger, were finally in plain view. They were THERE, and they were as mad as I was.

I saw a sign in the crowd that read "democraticunderground.com", and I ran to our computer. I think I've been here ever since.

Julie

[Patiod]

42. And I got sucked in by JulieRB

who I knew from BartCop

[snot]

37. K'd, R'd, & thoroughly enjoyed.

[lonestarnot]

41. Woohoo! Thanks for sharing that!

:applause: DU rocks baby! :yourock:

[Maeve]

43. Thank you, O Woman of Cat!

This needs to be brought back up to remind folks of where we started AND how far we've come.
:toast::party: :loveya: :kick: :hug: :grouphug: :pals: :yourock: :woohoo: :applause: :patriot:

[leveymg]

44. Can't wait for The Big Book of DU. A surefire best-seller.

:toast: :party: :hi:

[11 Bravo]

45. K&R! Best post I've read in months!

I followed the links all the way through, and it was fascinating. Thank you, CW!

[byronius]

46. Can't express how important this site was and is to me.

Lurked since election day 2004, when Randi Rhodes mentioned it as a 'news clearinghouse'.

More like Center of the Information Universe.


Thanks for this story. Got me all emotional.

[DemReadingDU]

47. Thank you for posting the history

I never knew this before

:applause:

[Qutzupalotl]

48. I found you that day, thanks to that banner.

I promptly forgot my login name. I didn't try again until over a year and a half later. But it's been great.

[DailyGrind51]

49. Should we now change the name to "Democratic Surface Dwellers"?

[Flirtus]

50. Nope. Keep the name.

Remember the past. Don't repeat it.

[Vinnie From Indy]

53. You are quite an entertaining writer!

I like the way you write. It is very descriptive. I could picture in my mind a sleepy intern with a "George W. Ass" sign. That is too funny!

[CatWoman]

64. Vinnie,

I didn't write this; Skinner did :hi:

[LaPera]

54. DU should revert back to that old format page for one day, I've forgotten

what it looks like....I got to DU around February 2001 (under a different user-name) while doing a Google search and found Top Ten Conservative Idiots....

I would change it if I could to Top Ten Republican Idiots, because the word & name republican is a shit name now, even many republicans hate it and they much prefer the labels "Conservative", or "GOP", or "the Right", etc... Since EVERY "Conservative" votes republican....call Conservatives what they are, fucking Republicans! (Keep up the pressure on the republicans, call them republicans every chance you get).

But I would love to see that old page again...

[KoKo]

55. Oh my, I remember that. Seems like decades ago....Remember we'd thought he'd be gone in '04?

Sheesh...what a time we've all had. Too exhausted to even think of some good memories. Maybe the time for reflection isn't, yet. I'm biting nails until I see AirForce-1 get the hell outta' DC..before I can wax nostalgic. :hi:

[hlthe2b]

75. Damn, I don't know how I ever made it through the "re-selection"

Four years of hell was bad enough. Eight years--damn--eight years of our lives!

[KoKo]

80. I thought I'd died when Kerry lost due to corrupt voting machines...thought my life was snatched

away for a second time...and that was after Ken Starr's Witch Hunt against Clinton. It was a really dark time for me and for many of us who were around here, then. :nuke:

[hlthe2b]

82. Yup.. and I had four solid years of DU addiction by then...

It got even worse after that... I needed my crutch!

[KoKo]

84. I still have scars from the bandages..after the crutch....

:hug:

[Autonomy]

58. I could swear

I heard about DU on democrats.com prior to 1/20/01, but maybe I am remembering wrong. I used to read their email digest every freaking day from Summer, 2000 through November, 2004, when they went on a permanent hiatus. For some reason I did not join DU, or even lurk much. I guess I didn't see the point of preaching to the choir. I finally joined in Summer, 2005, after democrats.com had gone all but defunct, and after I had taken some months off from politics after November, 2004.

Btw, Nader voters from 2000 still make me nauseous when they justify their crap.

[Politicub]

59. What a great walk down memory lane

:)

:hi:

[Jawja]

60. Greetings, Cat!

Kicked and Recommended....:hi:

[CatWoman]

65. Hi Jawja!!!

:hi:

[tclambert]

61. Thanks for the history. As a newbie, I'd never heard it before.

My son told me about Top Ten Conservative Idiots. I read it and laughed for years before finally joining up this election cycle. I have always been a swing voter. Yes, I voted Republican a few times (for John McCain in 2000). But the last few years, perhaps eight, the world has been forcing me to choose sides. For a long time, I even resisted calling Bush the worst president ever. Then he added a Hoover-like financial disaster to his bad fiscal policy and disastrous war. Meanwhile, Republicans were insisting he was "smart" and "honest" and a "good leader."

In 2004 I thought for sure the country would wake up and throw the bum out. And a day after the election, Republicans and religious zealots were gloating. I was disgusted.

Tomorrow I get my hope back. I have been waiting a long time for a great president. Kennedy was the last one. The greatness of America has slowly eroded since his murder. So many lost opportunities. And the major parties insisted on playing stupid partisan games.

I don't know if this website helped make tomorrow happen, but it made me feel better when the world tasted bitter.

[road2000]

62. Longtime lurker, here.

Can't remember when I joined or how I found the site, but I remember clearly the old format. Used to love the Hate Mailbag and Bob Boudelang (sp?)

Congratulations on your "birthday", DU!

[onethatcares]

63. buzzflash got me here too.

looking for progressive political websites and there was Democratic Underground.com. Hard to believe it's been 7 years and without you guys, I would have blown my brains out thinking this previous maladministration was the way our country was going to be forever.

I luv you guys, even the freeper lurkers who get tombstoned. There's just something about the amount of intelligent conversation available here that keeps me coming back.:loveya: :yourock: :headbang: :pals: :hi: :bounce: :toast: :woohoo: :patriot:

[kilaana]

67. Wow!

Great story... I never knew how it all began. I don't recall exactly when/how I found my way to DU, but I just want to thank you guys SO MUCH for this site! It's helped keep me sane for the last eight years!

[stlsaxman]

68. Always love reading this, takes me back... i remember seeing the banner then Bart

mentioning DU. Felt right at home. Took me what felt like years to break a 1,000 posts.

When was the crash that forced Skinner and EarlG to redo the "member since" count? and what caused it?

[stlsaxman]

69. K and R #69- wooohoooo!

pardon my adolescence

[barbtries]

70. well, i came late to the party

but i'm sure glad to be here.

[zeemike]

71. A long strange trip indeed.

I came here on Jan 20 2001 when I saw a young man among the protesters holding a sigh saying democraticunderground.com and went to my computer and looked it up.
I must have been early because I remember the "Nice F..... site there is no one here" post.
It was brilliant of skinner to use the signs and banner (although I did not see the banner) to get his site out there
But what was more brilliant was the name Democratic UNDERGROUND because to us older people it invoked the idea of radicalism of the 60s with the Weather Underground, and at that point in history I was feeling pretty radical myself and I guess there were many more like me that felt that way.

I know I have read probably hundreds of your posts Cat Woman and the ones that were just plain fun like the cat posts in the lounge.
so many good memories...

[proud patriot]

72. Happy Anniversary Democratic Underground

:patriot:

[Earth_First]

73. View number: 1776

:patriot:

[hlthe2b]

74. I always enjoy reading this....

Skinner ought to come back and add to it, though! And, Elad, when did you come on? What happened to the gorked intern and where's Newshound? LOL

I so clearly remember Skinner's sign during that weekend protest. It gave me hope--there were folks out there as pissed off (and attentive to what was going on) as I.

[pleah]

76. k&r

:patriot: :applause:

[Avalon Sparks]

77. Thanks for the memories!

And a million thanks for DU - MY only thread to sanity during the Dubya years. I don't know what I would have done without you. I've been a proud member since 2001.

THANK YOU!

Tonights is the Residents last night as Preztledent. Never thought this day would come!

[debannbull]

78. member since roughly Feb 03

Found DU through DFA.

03 memories: bought my first political bumper sticker January 03, after hearing Dr Dean speak; made my first political contribution; first phone banking (not as bad as I feared). Hosted a Meetup; hosted a campaign worker;

Only post occasionally, but devoted, sometimes daily reader. 100% agreement on it being a sanity saver. Laughed, cried, posted, looked forward to reading Auntie Pinko's posts. (Miss it.)

date edit

[countmyvote4real]

79. Love it. Thank you for that. n/t

[Raine]

81. THANKS...

for posting this! :thumbsup:

[rosesaylavee]

85. What would I have been without DU?

Insane.

Thank you Skinner et al for starting this site and maintaining it thru thick and thin these past 8 years. It hasn't been easy - it would have been so much harder without knowing you all were there just as spitting mad as I was.

[Mrspeeker]

86. WOW thanks

kewl post!

[kskiska]

88. I was here on Day One - Before that there was NOTHING.

I saw the banner and typed in the URL. It was full of FReepers that day.