Why do you think the lounge is a lot slower than it used to be?

[Tobin S.]

For those who have been here a while, you may remember when there was usually only 2 hours difference between the last post in the thread at the top of the front page as there was from the one at the bottom. Today there is about 7 hours difference and that seems to have been the norm here for a while. Is membership down overall? I guess things slowed down a bit when the sex thread ban went into effect, but I don't think that's the main cause. Maybe it's several different reasons. What do you think?

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. It IS slower, my dear Tobin...

I suspect it's because a lot of folks who used to post here, no longer do so. Some left voluntarily, some not...

But their absence has made a huge difference in the pace, and the vibe, of the Lounge.

:hi:

I'm glad you're still here!

[Tobin S.]

2. I think we have a good group of regulars here

and I know people leave for whatever reason, voluntarily or not. I guess we just aren't adding people at the rate that people are leaving and that seems odd for a site of this size and popularity. Does the lounge have a bad reputation?

[rrneck]

3. Summer? nt

[Tobin S.]

4. No, the trend started a long time ago.

We're talking over the course of two or three years. Maybe longer.

[CreekDog]

44. 2009+

:shrug:

[blue neen]

5. I think a lot of people go on Facebook now.

I still like good ol' DU! :)

[Tobin S.]

9. I guess that would make some sense

The rise in the popularity of the social networking sites seems to contrast to the downward spiral of the DU lounge. :)

[texanwitch]

13. I really don't like Facebook.

I would really miss the Lounge if anything happened.

[Capn Sunshine]

59. I don't either- for one thing, it's completely public

And most use their actual names. Imagine if Skinner notified us every time one of your buddies grew a pony in Farmville.

[TZ]

90. Its not completely public

You can control who sees your page..even if they are friends with you. Only my friends can see what I post. And many people do use psudonyms too. In fact, its less public than DU. You can google DU posts. You can't do that with FB.

[LeftyFingerPop]

6. Well, what is actually hilarious about this here phenomenon is...

that when someone posts a "juicy" post. you can sit back and watch the view count jump like a rocket about 5 at a time. So, people are lurking, they just ain't posting.

:hi:

[Tobin S.]

7. We must be scary

I mean, I know you in particular have terrified many here. :D

[LeftyFingerPop]

11. LOL! Perhaps.

I personally prefer the slower and less snarky lounge. The fact of the matter is, those that are staging some kind of boycott of DU really do still lurk and occasionally post.

My theory is this...there is really no other website like DU, especially for news and to get a barometer of current opinion. Until someone makes such a website, people are going to keep lurking here, even those that get pissed off and state they will never post here again.

[Name removed]

52. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[texanwitch]

8. I don't miss the fighting that went on but I do miss the people.

I miss the nighthawks group that was fun.

The Lounge will always be changing, that is will keeps it alive.

[Tobin S.]

10. Yeah, there aren't as many flame wars as there used to be

I don't know if that's because certain people don't post here now or if it's just a reflection of there being fewer people here to begin with.

[LeftyFingerPop]

12. There are probably just as many people in the lounge that post now...

vs. a few years ago. They are just not as prolific. JMO.

[texanwitch]

14. I post more now.

I notice a lot of new names, that is good.

I rather have more people posting less, a bigger pool of people.

Some people are just shy about posting, I was.

It is hard to join a group of people who have known each other for awhile.

Being a new is hard.

[LeftyFingerPop]

17. I know, it is like there was a big backfill of new people.

And my personal opinion is that people are comfortable posting here. :hi:

[texanwitch]

20. I was afraid to post for awhile,

You never knew who you would piss off.

I couldn't have been the only one.

I feel like the Lounge is more friendly now.

Maybe that is just me, but I have been around since late 2004.

[Tobin S.]

15. If that's the case it's actually been good for me in a way

A smaller percentage of my threads sink postlessly into obscurity now than before because they stay on the front page longer. I'd say only 90% now where before it was 95%. :)

[cwydro]

21. Personally, I don't miss the flame wars

or the pile ons.

If that is what makes the Lounge fun for people, well, too bad.

[Tobin S.]

23. That's not what made the lounge fun back then and

the lounge is still fun for me now, even if the jokes don't come as quickly. We still have flame wars from time to time. There's one brewing now. I think we'll always have arguments here and there.

[texanwitch]

25. What you said.

I got a really nasty PM once during a major flame war.

I didn't post for awhile after that.

Now is better.

[CreekDog]

53. I only enjoyed the Radio Lady flamewars

those were hilarious.

[texanwitch]

55. Radio Lady, I remember well.

Some flamewars were fun, some were not.

Never forget Kudzu, that was fun.

[CreekDog]

115. you should join twitter, she's there

her and Scott Baio overreact in similar ways.

[taterguy]

16. Because the Lounge stopped being fun for a lot of people

Honestly, I don't know that back story behind all the drama and I don't care.

Some people's buttons got pushed the wrong way and a lot people left or were asked to leave.

Which is kind of a drag.

[LeftyFingerPop]

18. You pissed everyone off, and they don't want to hurt your feelings by telling you.

[Gormy Cuss]

108. Horseshit.

No one cares about hurting taterguy's feelings, not even taterguy.

[Tobin S.]

19. That's true, but it seems like there would be new people coming in too

I've actually done a search to see if there is some kind of boycott going on. I didn't find anything on the web.

[madinmaryland]

67. Not to make light of your post, but what exactly did you google?

If I tried to google "why are folks boycotting the DU lounge" I would have gotten 25,560,700 really scary results!

:scared:

:hi:

[Tobin S.]

85. Haha. I googled "democratic underground boycott"

I got some stuff about Arizona and BP, but nothing about ex-members organizing a boycott of the place.

[RainDog]

29. agreed

I didn't know all the back story either but found I was assumed to be part of this or that group and treated thusly.

I check in here occasionally but find it's pretty boring. That's just me. Others obviously have a diff. opinion.

for me, the lounge has sort of become the Thomas Kinkade Memorial Lounge, or the Proctology and/or Gastroenterology Waiting Room Lounge. The vibe makes me want to take a nap. Not much of interest.

For those who like that sort of thing, it's great. For others, not so much. I've moved on for the most part. Too many people who had a sense of play and a joie de vivre are gone.

[JVS]

64. It became less fun because I stopped posting so much.

[Dr. Strange]

93. You, EstimatedProphet, Starbucks Anarchist, DS1, matcom, MrCoffee, flvegan, Rabrrrrrr

No wait, not Rabrrrrrr. He's a troll.

[Robeson]

80. Indeed. A lot is due to the Great Purge.

[joneschick]

22. I'm still here regularly--

I just don't have much to say and y'all are so clever :hi:

[madinmaryland]

69. Welcome to DU! and teh Lounge

:hi:

[Name removed]

24. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Tobin S.]

26. Why aren't new people coming in?

[TZ]

27. FB really does attract a lot of people

There are oodles and oodles of political pages/ groups there. Hell, I have a bunch of people who have friended me because they liked posts I made in various progressive/democratic forums....Its far more than just a big old chatroom. Far more dynamic than here, I think.

[Minimus]

63. I agree... FB is great. I now know many DUers

on a more personal level than I ever did on DU and like you have made new friends from posting on other pages in FB.

[RainDog]

32. maybe because they read the threads

and think they're boring.

[Tobin S.]

34. Well, post an interesting one.

[RainDog]

35. not interested

people I know and like and joke around with aren't here anymore... which was the point you made earlier, too.

[CreekDog]

54. Burping and farting can be funny

if they are part of the storyline.

[madinmaryland]

70. **snort** Now raindog and creekdog are posting to "each" other! I knew you

two were sockpuppets!!

:rofl:

:hi:

Now I am really fricking confused as to who is who!

Dammit!

[RainDog]

76. I am the yappy little dog humping creek dog's leg

I hope that clears everything up, girlie girl. :)

[MrMickeysMom]

137. absolutely...

But, I guess the point is, we don't share :-)

[RainDog]

37. and you're not allowed to joke around around sex

while other bodily functions are, apparently, high humor here.

...but not to some of us.

[Tobin S.]

38. Those have been banned, too

I don't think any subject should be banned and taking the sex threads off the latest page should have been good enough.

[Joey Kidd]

58. WTF ?

We can fucking joke about fucking God damn Sex and fart as much as we want !1!! I know your type.

[madinmaryland]

71. My masturbation post a couple of days ago didn't deleted.

:wtf:

[rurallib]

138. hard to get by GD.

It was over a year before someone mentioned the lounge and I wandered in.

[LaurenG]

28. Lots of people were dumped and others found more

fun on places like facebook and they all got together away from here.

The funniest things that ever happened in the lounge involved a bunch of people who are now mia for one reason or another. Matcom and his sidekick or His sidekick and Matcom had the best photoshops of each other I have ever seen. Those were some good times.

[Tobin S.]

30. I know why matcom is gone and he wasn't banned

I think there were about ten people that got banned at once because they couldn't post without arguing with each other. I don't know if that equates to a 7 hour lag on the front page.

But I think you might be right about Facebook. A few posters above have mentioned it as well. I almost had big trouble there so I'm not active over there.

[LaurenG]

33. Matcom was one funny guy

I really miss the days of out right hysterical threads that used to be posted here. I haven't had trouble at facebook yet and I hope you can go back there one day.

[wickerwoman]

31. Back in the good ole days...

;-)

what I remember from when I joined 2002ish is there were a lot of threads that were quite inclusive- easy for anyone to understand and answer and genuinely interested in what new people thought. There were three or four loungers who would welcome new people and strike up conversations with them and a daily thread where anyone could chime in with answers to some get-to-know-you-type questions.

Then there was a really long period where every other thread was a in-joke between a small group of people which newcomers couldn't understand (or someone jumped down their throat if they tried to answer, not getting the joke.) And a lot of people left or lost interest because it's just not fun to read long lists of other peoples' in-jokes or to see every other thread jacked by semi-private conversations.

I'd argue the lounge still hasn't really recovered from this period. A lot of threads are still inward-oriented or targeted at a very small group rather than inviting in a lot of participants.

Just my 2 cents. YMMV.

[texanwitch]

36. When I joined in 2004 it was hard to join in.

I try to post threads of interest to everyone, to draw out new people.

I remember what it was like to be new, to post and no one would answer.

[madinmaryland]

41. I had the same problem also.

Unless you were in with the group, then you didn't get any responses.

[CreekDog]

46. The in jokes were accessible to anybody who paid attention to the Lounge for a week

they required no phone calls or personal relationships to follow and join in on.

they just required a bit of attention and snarky follow-up.

the main purpose the in jokes served was to get people to know each other here and that they did.

[TZ]

86. Yep. I was still a relative newcomber and was welcomed

warmly by the so called in crowd. Once I started posting more in the Lounge I had the jokes to explained to me. No one was ever hostile to me simply because I was a newcomber. That is simply complete bullshit.

[madinmaryland]

91. Not when you're a noob. I still get you and raindog confused!!

[CreekDog]

114. When i was noob i posted that Loungers were attention whores

who only posted to get a reaction.

my post was a case in point.

[wickerwoman]

47. I always enjoy your posts texanwitch

and try to answer when I see them. :hi:

I'm here weird hours though and often don't have time to delve past the first page.

[texanwitch]

56. Howdy wickerwoman.

Thank you.

My hours are strange now also.

[Capn Sunshine]

61. me too

there were a lot of ultra hyper people posting here for awhile, and they all burned out. I blame the meds.

[Kali]

39. slower? yes

boring or uninteresting? not at all, I crack up regularly, enjoy reading various peoples' writings (including yours), looking at pix and funnies (if there aren't too many in a thread - dial up) and occasionally posting something myself.

I miss a few of the very funny clowns that left or got banned but others have stepped up and more will follow eventually.

People that don't like the lounge any more should try to help make it better by posting good stuff or quit complaining and go where they claim it is superior.

Community naturally requires participation and if all one does is complain...well it seems to have gotten us things like republicans and boosh and so forth. Be active, post something funny or provocative or interesting. Complaining CAN be entertaining (think Rabrrrrrr) but whining about the same shit gets really old. Talk about boring!

[madinmaryland]

42. I think Tobin is one of the best story tellers that I have read (not just here).

He is a classic and I love reading what he writes!

[wickerwoman]

45. Exactly what I'm talking about...

this "love it or fuck off" spirit isn't exactly welcoming to outsiders.

I post as much as I can but my threads tend to get a few responses, like texanwitch (whose stuff I love BTW and always try to respond to). And then the threads sink, or they get thread-jacked by someone's private conversation or flamewar.

It doesn't help that I live in a different timezone and can only post at a time that's in the middle of the night for 99% of DUers. Usually when I get back to the thread it's been buried by twenty posts each one with a single youtube link and no responses.

Anyway, it's not about my threads. Tobin asked what I assume was a sincere question about why the lounge is so slow. And I answered why, to the best of my knowledge, many people are no longer that interested in coming here or posting.

With all due respect, "screw them, they can stop whining and go somewhere else, we'll find newer, better people" is hardly likely to bring them back and it's pretty much exactly the unwelcoming attitude I was talking about upthread.

The fact is that the lounge is demonstrably slower now than it has been in years. You can blame that on "whiners" or you can ask yourself honestly why it is that many people have lost their motivation to post here.

[BeachBaby]

48. I rarely post here anymore, except for birthday, beer and baseball threads.

They're the only three topics I feel safe posting about, without somehow offending someone. Seriously.

[Dr. Strange]

140. What the fuck is that supposed to mean?

Who made you nurse nightingale? We're perfectly capable of looking out for our own feelings without getting offended. Jeez, get off you high-heeled horse.

[Kali]

72. can I get (or make) a clarification?

did you think my post was a "love it or fuck off" post? I can read your comment either way - sorry for being unclear either in my understanding or in my post. I was not posting "love it or fuck off" by any means, I was saying "add to it or fix it or fuck off"

and I didn't mean "we will find better people" either - it is a simple truth that other posters started posting when the big group got banned, and it will be true when others here now leave. As for some coming back - I guess that is really up to them and the owners/admins just as it was when they left or got banned.

there is still whining about the bannings from last year and it pops up pretty regularly, sometimes it is intentional - seems to happen every few weeks - somebody will post a "I miss so and so" post and it kicks up again. even that isn't so bad except they almost always start ripping into old fights and jabbing at people that are still here.

DU as a whole has slowed down, it isn't just the lounge. Part of it is the various applications of old and new rules, part is from departures of members either by choice or "force," but part has to be that we have less of a common enemy in our face anymore with the idiot son gone.

I was trying to say to people to post and contribute and make the lounge what you want it to be, not to just fuck off if you don't like it. Hey, I'm no diplomat, not a very good writer, and have kind of shitty social skills, so it doesn't surprise me if I didn't get my point across the way it seemed to in my head - happens all the time! Hope this helps.

I have no grudge with anybody, never did.

[Phentex]

89. that's how I feel although I DO want to say

to some they need to get over themselves. Talk about boring as hell: whining about the good ole days EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE STILL POSTING HERE! Not directed at you, Kali.

The lounge is big enough for everybody.

[RainDog]

92. tobin asked for people's opinion and got it

then you criticize someone for an honest opinion - me (but not just me,) I assume, since I said it's boring because people who used to make the lounge fun are gone. People who had a sense of play are not here because others have driven them off in some cases, or driven off friends.

what part of that do I need to get over? If someone posts a question in the lounge and someone answers, how is that whining?

You're attacking people whose opinion you don't like.

talk about boring as hell. hell yeah.

[Phentex]

94. I'm not attacking...I am amused by the whiners

who say it's not fun, it's boring blah blah blah but FEEL THE NEED come back and post...even an opinion. Sure sounds like a whine to me. Move on or stay. Nobody cares.

[TZ]

95. I always love the STFU posts!

Having everyone have the same opinion and thinking the exact same way is so much fun!! Yay for cultish behavior! :sarcasm:
I suppose it never occured to you that some of the "whiners" have friends here even if they aren't nearly as cool as you...

[Name removed]

96. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[cwydro]

97. Nice.

[TZ]

98. .

Yeah who knew RD would be offended by being called whiny and uncool and being told to stfu for offering AN OPINION.:eyes:

[Phentex]

99. the cool people knew it

:hippie:

[TZ]

100. REAL people don't give a fig if someone considers them cool

Thats what has always bothered me about here..The fake ass people who talk about being "cool".

[LaurenG]

113. A good deal of this page now says "ignored" so I can't tell what's being said.

It's good to have these discussions every so often this way you'll know who needs to feel superior and thus put on iggy. Some people have a hard time with give and take especially if it's not all about them or if there is no way to make it all about them. Put the angry, defensive people on ignore, it's much more pleasant.

[CreekDog]

105. When you say "nobody cares" you are speaking for those that don't care

which is hardly everybody.

[wickerwoman]

132. I said "the good ole days" ironically

hence the ;-)

Sorry if that wasn't clearly communicated.

And yes I still post here now and then. I like DU and I like the Lounge. I also think they could be made better. Don't you? Why is it whining to remember the Lounge fondly and to try to articulate why it no longer seems to have the atmosphere and energy that it used to?

"Move on or stay. Nobody cares." - Yes, that's the way to attract a lively, open, inclusive atmosphere.

[LaurenG]

50. Lol

Why so defensive. :rofl: I didn't think anyone was trying to insult you in fact I don't even know who you are but whatever.

[Kali]

74. defensive?

I didn't think anybody was trying to insult me. Well maybe you are a little but really, I didn't think Tobin or anybody in this thread was trying to insult me personally. Sometimes the whining gets over into the realm insulting others here personally and in general, and I do "object" to that.

[TZ]

87. What about the whiners that are still here?

I find the idea that only certain people were welcome in certain threads that wickerwoman "claims" to be the case total BULLSHIT.
I see a few posts here about how happy some people are about the absence of others basically to be a BIG turn off for me. There are a bunch of people here who have made their happiness and satisfaction with others loss quite well known. Its driven off a lot of the friendly funny people who used to post here.

[Kali]

102. what about the whiners that are still here?

not sure what you are asking - I thought that is what I was talking about. Let me ask you something.

Do you go to someone's house and sit around complaining about their food or furniture and talk about how much better it is at some third party's house?

It's kind of rude. It makes some of the people who live or like to hang at the first house feel bad (or yes even defensive). It certainly serves no constructive or entertaining purpose. I just don't understand it.

I don't want to speak for others (hell I can barely seem to get my own feelings/points across) but what I see is some expression of relief from the rancor, not especially happy about absences - in fact I see several posts about missing individuals, but not the fighting. Again YOU are expressing dissatisfaction with this place, YOU frequently compare DU to Facebook in unfavorable light. Can you blame people for thinking or expressing the thought "well, if it sucks here so bad why are you here?"

[Bunny]

103. .

Again YOU are expressing dissatisfaction with this place, YOU frequently compare DU to Facebook in unfavorable light. Can you blame people for thinking or expressing the thought "well, if it sucks here so bad why are you here?"

:applause:

[wickerwoman]

122. A few clarifications,

(sorry for getting back so late- like I said weird hours).

1.) With all due respect, why is it "your house"? I've been here since 2002. I used to post 20-30 times a day in the lounge. I post much less now, partly because of real life commitments and partly because, yes, when I come here I am made to feel like a guest, as you put it, and not someone whose contributions have ever been noticed or valued.

And I tried to be as constructive as possible in my posts. As I said before, Tobin asked the question and I gave my honest answer. Why am I here? I like DU. I've always liked DU. I want it to be a better place. I've been posting here forever and I miss the inclusive spirit that used to be common in the lounge. It used to be a bit of a free for all and now it's a "some animals are more equal than others" kind of place. Big turn-off.

I'm sorry if expressing that means to you (and several other people on this thread) that I need to bugger off and leave you alone. That's, again, a pretty good example of exactly that attitude that has turned me (and probably a lot of other people) off of the place.

Please don't shoot the messenger.

[LeftyFingerPop]

123. She is not saying it is her house.

She is saying that it is Skinners house, which it is, along with the other admins. Since it is his house, he makes the decisions and steers the ship.

[wickerwoman]

126. I was responding to:

"Let me ask you something.

Do you go to someone's house and sit around complaining about their food or furniture and talk about how much better it is at some third party's house?

It's kind of rude."

In this metaphor the "someone" is clearly the lounge regulars and not Skinner. If Skinner is offended at my suggestion that the lounge feels less inclusive than it used to, he's welcome to weigh in. Frankly, I'd be surprised if he considered it rude to offer constructive criticism of the Lounge.

I'm not talking about rule-making. I'm answering a question about why fewer people seem to post here. Some of the regulars have been banned and, yes, although you don't want to admit it and many here would rather accuse people of being whiners rather than spending ten seconds being honest and introspective, there are a fair number of people who just don't post here any more because the atmosphere turned them off.

You can take that for whatever its worth. YMMV. Call me a whiner and ignore me. And then it can continue to be a mystery why the lounge is slower than it has been in eight or nine years.

[LeftyFingerPop]

129. I would never call you a whiner for expressing an opinion, nor would I ignore you...

I do not ignore anyone except those people the mods force me to ignore. Your opinion is as valuable as anyone's.

So, we may disagree, but that's OK. :)

[Kali]

134. not MY house!

I think we are actually more in agreement than our cross talking appears.

You do not seem to be one of the whiners I was referring to. Your comments have been constructive and from what I read I mostly agree!

My question about going to someone's house was specifically asked to TZ, because of some of her posts in this very thread. She and I have had some of this discussion before and while I like and agree with her on many issues and think she is a good sport and a fun poster in general, I see the numerous posts that boil down to DU sux/FB greater than DU that get posted HERE AT DU as rude. It is as if the people that do that are sitting in SKINNER's living room bitching about the hospitality and also saying somebody else's place is so much better.

Not MY house! I'm just one of the people that likes to hang at skinner's place and enjoy the company of other people that like it too. Now we might notice the roach in the bean dip, and we might talk about it or suggest to him that he clean the kitchen, but we don't eat the dip, complain and vomit on the floor and tell him the place sucks WHILE REACHING FOR ANOTHER BEER.

[wickerwoman]

135. Thanks for clarifying,

rereading the thread, that makes sense.

Sorry for bumbling in, but again, it's hard to follow the back story when you can't be around as often as you'd like.

Take care!

:hi:

[Kali]

136. cool

thanks! I'm usually clueless too, but somehow got caught up in it a little last year so know some of the picture. Not all for sure.

[wickerwoman]

124. That's not really my point,

sorry if it wasn't clear.

It's not that people are "unwelcome" exactly... it's that I see fewer people expressing a interest in newbies, fewer threads that anyone can hop into, and as you say, much better than I did, a lot of turn offs (like being called a "whiner" for answering what I assumed was a honest question honestly.)

Plus, although the pile-ons may be fun for the participants, it's not that fun for people not in on the backstory especially when it looks really nasty and there's no explanation. Maybe, in the spirit of constructive criticism, people might want to be more aware of the fact that probably 90% of the people reading the thread are only reading *that* thread and aren't that motivated to dig up a week or two's worth of backstory much of which has been scrubbed. All I get to see is bunch of people insulting someone who appears to me to be asking for help or sympathy.

Anyway, I think a healthy lounge needs a mix of committed regulars and stoppers-by. If you drive off the stoppers-by because they can't understand anything or you make them feel excluded by proclaiming its "your house" and you make the rules about what can and can't be said, all you get is the same people making the same jokes to each other month after month after month.

[LeftyFingerPop]

125. Well, I'll say this...

There was a time when people used to get absolutely crushed and mangled in here if they said something unpopular. Seriously, it was a sight to behold. And if you did not have the fortitude to stick to your guns, it turned into PM wars.

You don't see pile-on's like that anymore. You may see several individuals getting pissed at a poster, but you don't see literally 30 or 40 people coming out of the woodwork to belittle a person.

Trust me, if you think it is bad now, you either have not seen, or you do not remember what it was like.

[wickerwoman]

128. I know it's better now than it used to be.

Again, I've been posting here for eight years.

My point in my original post was that crappy period turned a lot of people off who haven't come back and there are still steps that could be taken to get us back to where we were before.

But I guess it's "rude" to point that out since it's not "my house" and I'm just "whining" and should go someplace else if I think its better.

[LeftyFingerPop]

130. I should not have spoken for Kali...

and she will state her case later I'm sure, but I'm pretty sure she was referring to "Skinner's" house.

[wickerwoman]

131. Fair enough,

we'll let her weigh in. :hi:

[LeftyFingerPop]

133. Sounds good...have a pleasant evening...

:hi:

[Gormy Cuss]

110. I don't think that new clowns have filled the gap yet.

There was a lot of really crazy energy here up until last summer. Along with the humor that brought with it some pretty serious and ugly disputes too.
Some clowns survived the Great Purge of 2009 but the overall zany energy just isn't here anymore. Like jobycom, I just don't find as many lounge threads that make me want to jump in and play these days.
The Lounge used to be a bar lounge but now it's more like a dorm lounge the morning after a kegger.

[Kali]

111. the lounge version of Manic-Depressive disorder?

now on meds :P

[Gormy Cuss]

112. More like hungover

after binge drinking.

[CreekDog]

40. Yes, sex threads are against the rules

and bodily function threads too.

and regarding the latter...

nevermind.

[BeachBaby]

43. Sex threads? Here?

That must have happened before my time.

[Joey Kidd]

65. Well,you're a lady...

So the sight of such disgusting behaviors would have gave you the vapors.

ETA:My number of posts must by one of the greatest coincidences in history.

[BeachBaby]

68. Ha!

Well-timed, my friend. Well-timed. :rofl:

Nah....I've seen the sex threads, and had even engaged in some of the silliness - and that's all it was. Silliness. At least, that's all it was to me.

My post was just a ribbing at the CreekPup.

And, welcome to DU! :)

[CreekDog]

77. Not anymore

this place is a convent.

though they run a boarding house for wayward bachelors. :P

[seabeyond]

49. actually, i think a big part is summer. every year there is a big slow down in summer

maybe more so than in past, with some people leaving, but that will shift and new people will come in and old people will come back. but most, i think, is summer.

[petronius]

51. It's because the intelligence level of the average post is so much higher than it used to be,

so it takes a lot longer to digest and adequately consider what was read before popping off a response... :)

[femmocrat]

57. Maybe, but I enjoy the topics much more now.

When I first came here, there were so many inside jokes and "buddies" poking fun at each other, that it was hard to break in sometimes. Kind of like when you walk into a room filled with friends who all know each other and you are the outsider. I was so relieved to find the Morning Crew because everyone was so friendly.

I feel more at ease here now and I really hope any newbies don't feel excluded.

[flvegan]

60. It is, but I can't tell you why I think that is. n/t

[City of Mills]

62. Too many cliques

I KID, I KID!

:hide:

[Robb]

66. Sharp decline in quality of poll options.

:shrug:

[bluesbassman]

73. Easy fix.

Just needs more horsepower.

http://image.automotive.com/f/tech/8906798+pheader/0712phr_01_z+blown_big_block_chevy_engine_build+.jpg

[petronius]

75. Serious answer - it seems that the copycat trend has died down (although not died completely)

For a while it seemed like every single new thread spawned 2 or 3 or a million knockoffs...

[ChoralScholar]

78. Bigtime. I've been in and out, so it's my fault too.

I like hanging out here, because we don't bicker too much about politics. It's just nice general shooting the breeze with people who lean the same direction.

[Robeson]

79. A lot of great DU'ers are no longer here.

[jobycom]

81. In general the posts are more boring. The Great Purge

ran off one side more than the other, so there's less diversity. Cliques are a mixed bag--on the one hand, people don't feel like they belong when they aren't part of a clique, but on the other, if the clique is your group of friends, you feel more like you belong, and have more fun participating, and that keeps the board more active. What are best are cliques that are inclusive, not exclusive, so that people feel they can join in. (Delusional people like me always feel they can join in any clique, though).

I've always been independent (not politically, just socially) and had friends (and enemies) on both sides (actually, all sides because the lines that were drawn weren't very representative) of the Great Clique Wars. Hated to see some of them go, and didn't understand why a couple were allowed to stay, given the reasons others were forced to go. Watched some basically pavement-dive for reasons ranging from runaway egos to justifiable indignation. Sad time. The long term effect has been a more bland Lounge with less conversation. More people needed to just use the Ignore feature, and most of the garbage wouldn't have happened.

It's just different. I used to come here and click on a dozen threads and have a dozen little conversations going across the board. If one got insulting or boring, I just dropped it and kept on with the others. Now I scan the front page of the Lounge and see maybe two that seem worth jumping in. I comment, no one comments back, and I wander to GD or another forum and dive into an "Unrec" debate, or I wander over to Facebook and flirt or argue with old friends over there. There's still a lot of creativity and great people here, but the threads all start to seem the same. It's all either random observations about trivial stuff, or request for Lounge vibes, or "Insult someone else's favorite thing" threads--music, restaurants, whatever. Honestly, the place is meaner now, even though the purpose of the Purge was to make it nicer. People take things more seriously now, and are more biting and cruel when they attack things, I think because a lot of the people who knew how to make and take a joke left.

The Lounge didn't really die with the Purge, but it changed. A lot of the quirky humor left, and the rest is great liberal camaraderie, but too serious at times. I don't miss the stupid fights and the stalking from one thread to another, but I miss the more relaxed atmosphere. Then again, it wasn't the first major change, and won't be the last around here. C'est la vie.

Just my thoughts. Probably nonsense, as always.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

83. I don't think you're posting nonsense, my dear jobycom...

Your comments are spot on. I value your presence here, and on facebook.

:hug:

[texanwitch]

84. Spot on about the great clique wars.

A lot of good DU'ers died because of them.

For those of us watching on the outside it was sad to see.

I wish all of them well.

[RadiationTherapy]

101. I experienced the same as you describe; particularly the 3rd paragraph.

On the plus side, I am more productive in my music and writing now that I am not milking my creativity gland all day sparring with very creative DU snark masters.

[jobycom]

82. Sex threads have been banned for forever, btw. So that's not it.

I'll never forget Will posting the thread title "My cat does not like you!" (or something like that), then posting a picture of a wet cat with an angry glare, then beneath it posting "No sex threads. You know what I mean." Classic.

[Phentex]

88. It does not seem slow to me but I don't live here...

so I always feel like I've missed stuff. There can be pages of spam to wade through! :D

The cool people are still here. And even if they aren't posting, some of the cool people are still reading here. If they don't want to post, it's their loss.

[Name removed]

104. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[seabeyond]

106. lol, informative, interesting and i wasted way too much time on that.

hm

[snooper2]

107. maybe the economy is picking up

:P

[mentalsolstice]

109. I can't see dead people

Because of forced ignore (thank you goddess for that feature) and friends who are long gone (here, but not elsewhere), I can scan the lounge page in 2 minutes and then move on. People may ask why do you stay? I scan looking for news on some friends who are still here, otherwise I ignore the rest. I rarely participate anymore, certainly not enough to justify paying for a star or anything like that.

YMMV

[Tuesday Afternoon]

116. the internet has jumped the shark and message boards got thrown under the bus in the process. n/t

[Tobin S.]

117. Do you all want me to alert on this thread and get it locked up?

I see some flames up there and I didn't intend to start anything like that. I appreciate everyone's opinion and I didn't mean to open any old wounds. I'm surprised to see a few names here who haven't posted in the lounge for a while. I didn't think the "big ban" that took place a while back was still having that big of an affect on people here. I see I was wrong about that. But it still doesn't explain the lack of newbies coming in. There are some newer posters here who are fun to read and I'm not looking down on them.

Maybe it's like someone said above and there are less people on the entire site, but I see other areas of the site that still move like they used to.

If you want to leave it open we can do that, too.

[auntAgonist]

119. Leave it open Tobin. There are some enlightening

posts here.

:hug:

aA

[texanwitch]

120. Leave the thread open, people are just speaking their minds.

I noticed a few little flames but nothing so bad.

Maybe what happened should be talked about.

The Lounge is a living and breathing great place to be.

I have had a really good time here and my life would have poorer without it.

Everyone old and new are just finding their places here.

We are still the best place at DU.

[RainDog]

127. you didn't need to close it on my account

I wasn't angry when I posted what I did.

I was just enjoying the moment.

but I apologize to you if you were worried about the thread.

because the truth is, there are at least 7 people who posted here who noted basically the same thing I did - so, I'd say you have your answer for many people.

because the truth is, I've looked into the lounge to joke around and missed the humor. I answered because you asked.

take care

[ismnotwasm]

118. Kind of

I always lurk here. Occationally post. I've started exactly one thread here, several years ago, bragging about my "Jesus Would Slap the Shit Out of You teeshirt, and got scolded about the tee-shirt. (The main one doing the scolding was banned a while after for some weird shit they were doing, I forget what, I forget who for that matter.)

To me, Sexual innuendo threads make up for sex threads--the lounge always pushes the rules which makes it entertaining.

Some of the really funny posters are gone, but so are some of the ones that were just plain asses.

DU always has a kind of cycle of posting, hope it picks up.

[Old Troop]

121. Entropy

[rurallib]

139. finally slowed enough for the elderly like me can follow

[Amerigo Vespucci]

141. Because all that beer must have killed about a trillion brain cells.

That's my guess. I blame the beer.

:eyes:

[S n o w b a l l]

142. That's because we're all zombies now...