Am I the only one shocked at how many DUers still don't "get it?"

[brer cat]

131. I agree that DU has changed greatly, Blue_Tires.

DU has moved from discussion and sharing points of view to "my way or the highway" with zero tolerance for even a slightly different perspective. There are way too many threads that are nothing but shouting matches. Where DU was once an environment where we could learn from one another, it is now more of a forum to showcase the poster's pov. The littering of DU with endless threads on the same subject is illustrative of that. Have you noticed that some OPs attempt to shut down discussion by telling anyone posting a different pov to start their own thread? Unbelievable.

I think the reasons for the change are probably numerous, but one is the increase in our membership. In the early days (when I was a lurker), DU seemed to be more of a virtual family where there were quarrels, and a few crazy uncles and aunts in the attic, but for the most part we got to know each other and were tolerant if not respectful of other opinions. Now we have a lot of "strangers" among us, and that may be causing a lot of the hostility.

As to the issues with Zimmerman, the sin and root of Z's guilt, was the initial profiling of Trayvon. Nothing that happened after that could mitigate his guilt. Even if he had stayed in his car and let the police come to handle the "situation" that existed only in his mind, we should still be outraged. Why DU strays from that is beyond my understanding. I wish we spent much less time discussing whether it was legal for Z to stalk this young man and more time discussing what we can do to get that big target off the backs of our black citizens. We have no chance to change our legal system until we agree on the moral issues. And I am afraid that we will not even discuss the pertinent issues if we ignore or dispute that racial profiling is the norm, much less if we excuse such behavior because it is legal.

I hope that you can stay on DU, Blue. You have raised points that we all need to ponder if DU is to remain a dynamic forum. I seldom post and try to avoid the most contentious threads, but you have made me realize that I am as guilty by my silence as the originators of racists posts. If you can't see your way to remain, I wish you godspeed and a soft landing in a new forum.