The new chapter in Chelsea Manning's story is opening a whole new vista in bigotry here

[IngridsLittleAngel]

24. Sad, but true.

I know, it sounds funny from someone with about a dozen posts, but I have probably been lurking and reading here as far back as 2005 or 2006. I've seen my share of what LGBT's have endured here over the years. It's a big part of why I've posted so little, and, I think have made all of one post outside of this group so far. Why would I post outside of this area? What reason do I have to feel safe out there?

I have time and time again been shocked and hurt over what I've seen here over the last three days. The posts I've seen time and time again are the kind of hateful, hurtful shit I expect to see in comments to Yahoo! articles, or CNN.com, or even Freeperville. I've lost count of how many times I've scrolled back up to the top of the page or checked the URL to make sure I was on the right site. "Yep. I guess this IS DU. Says so. Could've fooled me..."

But then, maybe I am the fool for being fooled. It's just the same ol' song and dance here at DU. When it's time to tap the GayTM or get us to GayOTV, well, let's mend fences. The rest of the time, it's FU for us LGBT's at DU.

I had to alert on a post this morning. First time I've ever alerted on a post here. Oh, sure, there have been many times in the past I'd wanted to. But this one was so appalling that I just felt there was no choice. I know, though, that I can expect it to wind up being kept, and at least one of the jurors personally attacking me. After all, it seems that how DU rolls anymore - especially when we try to stand up to the transhatred that has become all the rage here this week.

What has gone down here this week is exactly why it took me years to finally register an account, and then months after that to even post at all. Really. Why would I want to be here? Why would I want to be in a place where I probably have a bullseye on my ass in 99% of the forums/groups?

What I've seen this week has made me think back to something I said so many times in the last 12 or so years. It'd be election time. I'd have friends on both sides of the aisle (though, for obvious reasons, I now have far fewer Republican friends than I used to) nagging me. Vote for "their" guy. Vote for "their" party. And it would seem, more often than not, that both the D and the R were anti-LGBT equality. So, I would paraphrase the most famous player from the old XFL, Rod Smart. I'd tell them "Yeah. I look at the Republican, and I think 'He hate me.' And now, I'm looking at the Democrat, thinking 'He hate me too.'"

Well, good job on the part of the bigots on our "side" here at DU this week. Because for the last few days, I've found myself thinking about the typical Freeper. "He hate me". And now I look at the bigotry here over Chelsea Manning, think of the typical DU'er, and find myself thinking "Yeah. He hate me, too."

Meet the new DU. Same as the old DU. Indeed.

Though, I'm sure one day soon, Skinner will be back to "mend some more fences". Forget the fences. Maybe it's just time for him to start taking out the trash.