Time to cut the crap. Obama Derangement Syndrome doesn't really exist.

[ConservativeDemocrat]

386. You ask several good questions...

...let me see if I can answer them.

First, the vast majority of people are not looking for dissent and discord. Many of the worst look only for validation, and you can see this both in Republican and Green hardliners. Tellingly, many on this site wax rhapsodic over the halcyon days of yore when the D.U. was a pure echo chamber of their views (a rose-colored fantasy about as true as the rest of their assertions). This is absolutely not the kind of place you send an actual centrist or even moderate Republican who is, shall we say, Dem-curious. Not if you want to keep them.

Let me give you a real life example. I have a friend who is a pro-life Catholic. She also happens to agree with the Democrats on every economic issue under the sun, and probably could give Manny a run for the title of most-economic leftist (including things I see as completely unrealistic, but I digress). Anyway, despite her other views, she still had a lot of trouble supporting Democrats until she met one of the political directors of Planned Parenthood, who explained to her all the things that they were doing, and were in favor of, to make sure that women did not get into such a terrible situation in the first place - the vast majority of which were completely opposed by their counterpart Pro-Life group (because about 50% of Pro-Life supporters in lOregon are also against contraception as well). This helped her move fully into the Democratic camp, since contraception is one place where she is fully opposed to the orthodoxy of the Church.

Had I, instead, sent her to post her misgivings about abortion on the D.U. (which would have immediately made her the target of the counterproductive screamers here as they insulted her every way under the sun) it is highly unlikely that she would be voting for Democratic candidates right now, and Oregon needs every Dem vote it can get, at least on the east side.

In short, there is a reason why politicians "stay on message". This is because it works. At least for people who are reachable.

Now, as a side point, let me put in an addenda about people who are not reachable. In general, you need to recognize that when someone has become so emotionally invested in hatred that they invent conspiracy theories, create strawmen, make comparisons of people they purport to "support" politically to NAZIs, and/or feel entitled to just make "facts" up, you are never going to persuade them of anything. However, pointing out lies and logical fallacies is still useful. Others read it, and facts do matter.

Still, the DU is entertainment, not activism. All the armchair "activism" in the last 10 years on the D.U. hasn't flipped the election of so much as dogcatcher. Whereas I can tell you that in some elections I personally made more voter contacts than our margin of victory in Democrats getting into office, which is a good feeling even if you know you weren't the only one pitching in.

- C.D. Proud Member of the Reality Based Community