I joined DU as Eloriel in 2001, around May or June, when there were about 12,500 members. Now there are nearly 10 times as many, though it's my understanding that that includes everyone who's ever registered at DU -- all those who've gotten themselves tombstoned, everyone who's ever quit in disgust, everyone who's died (and there've been a few and probably some we don't know about), all the trolls and agents provocateurs and political opponents making mockery with impunity, plus however many sock puppets everyone made up along the way (I had my share, tho not nearly as many as others).
DU's thoroughly entrenched misogyny bothered me from the start, of course, but I stayed for the same reason other feminists stay around for as long as we do: the other immense value of the site. Mostly we grit our teeth and live with it, usually after speaking up to the small extent we feel comfortable in doing so (which isn't much -- DU actively suppresses feminist speech tho will deny that, probably citing their Feminist and Women's Issues forums -- more on this subject at another time).
Then one day, a thread I started and in which I and others were recording an important observation about the aftermath of Katrina was deleted. Not just locked, deleted. I'd started it after spending all my time for he better part of a week in Katrina's immediate aftermath watching TV and reading everything about Katrina on DU, and arriving at the realization that the administration had been engaging in an extraordinary and clearly purposeful pattern of neglect that needed to be discussed -- and documented.
Poof! Suddenly the thread was just gone.
Fortunately, I'd suspected it might be "too hot" for DU's cowardly Admin to tolerate, so I saved a copy to my harddrive. The following was EarlG's sorry explanation for his own paranoia or perhaps some pressure from within (say a "big" donor -- they definitely have sway with Admin), or perhaps some real or imagined disapproval from without (like the New York Times):
REPOST: Eloriel's thread. Plus a word on conspiracy theories
It angered me that the thread and my own words and posts had been mischaracterized by EarlG (was that sloppiness or intentional, a clever way to discredit our work? and distance himself from those nasty conspiracy theories?); it angered and outraged me that all that work I and others had done on that thread and the insights provided were being erased; it angered and outraged me that Admin was obviously caving to those who try to control our speech by treating our compilations of questions, facts, analysis, and yes, some speculation, dismissively as "conspiracy theories." As I reread EarlG's thread now, I am saddened and outraged all over again. There was no good reason to delete that thread. And, as a matter of fact, several posts to DU during the recent Katrina 2nd anniversary period confirmed what I was saying in my deleted post back then. (See footnote on Katrina Aftermath at the bottom of this page.)
By the way, note the number of sycophants who show up to praise EarlG's censorship! Disgusting. But you'll find that whenever any Admin post: there are those who will show up just to fawn. It's the only exercise they get.
http://home.earthlink.net/~jlgh54/politics/id17.html
