You might be a ratfucker if you attack party brothers/sisters on the eve of an election

[DirkGently]

78. Impacting policy is what criticism is FOR.

Voicing opinions on a Democratic website may or may not push opinion anywhere. It is, at the least, a discussion among (supposed) Democrats about where policy should be. Things have sometimes gone along the path of opinions expressed on DU, but unless someone fesses up to being directly influenced by something here, it is simply a part of the national conversation.

That is entirely a different thing from claiming that Democrats who voice criticism of any kind are somehow just killing enthusiasm for the party in general. No one is going to stay home on election day because someone on DU disagreed with Obama (or whatever the supposed blasphemy is this time).

In fact, people who care deeply about both Democratic politics and small "d" democracy in general might think that trying to push the Democratic party toward better principles would actually strengthen it. That is, after all, why people voice their opinions in the first place -- to improve things.

There is a place for purely facial unity, sure. And if someone is so angry at current Democratic Party policies in general that they want nothing further to do with it, this is not the board for that discussion.

But that in no way translates to equating the Democrats on DU who want change of any kind being some sort of undermining traitors that can only help by shutting up. That is, respectfully, every kind of rightwing and "authoritarian" nonsense that a lot of liberals think holds the party back.

And while I don't find questioning people's motives particularly helpful, frankly if we wanted to witch hunt for possible deliberate sowers of havoc within the ranks, I'd look at the people telling us we need to be more like Republicans. Less tolerant of dissent; more worried about appearances than substance. Absolutists about loyalty but infinitely flexible regarding principle.

If I believed there was any genuine "ratfucking" going on, I'd assume it was there, amongst the "shut up and vote or you're a traitor" folks, rather than among liberals pushing us further from the Republicans.