Update [2005-7-10 1:20:7 by zander]: – This welcome wagon is closed. Please unrecommend if you can and go to Part 2.
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Update [2005-7-9 18:34:25 by zander]: – On a whim, I just called the phone number listed at mamatang.ca and spoke with Tracy Tang, the photographer responsible for the Tinhat series to offer my thanks for the great pics. Kudos to Tracy for being cool about the use of her images here, and to her friends who unwittingly took part by letting her photograph them at a party…
zander scores again.
if we have created a creative monster here. . .of course I will be sure to blame Diane. . .
Fabulous diary set up! I know I can always count on you, except when you don’t want to commit. . LOL
Keep up the awesome stuff, girl!
I feel like I’m in junior high, but I was curious if any well known posters were perged.
It’s a cull, not a purge – they go around with baseball bats and lumberjackets bashing the living daylights out of anything vaguely cuddly.
Run furball, run….
(newcomer alert!!! I realize there are a lot of raw nerves, and don’t mean to tweak any of them…. I’m just trying to make the best of a bad situation here. Goofy images are my shtick…)
Isn’t that one from The King and I? “We are Siamese, if you please…”
Certainly the feline version has a distinctly Oriental shape.
shtick, already
Buuuuzzzzzzzzz! Alex, that would be What is Lady and The Tramp. . .not the King and I. . . .
Zander, the images are priceless — the one in your diary too!
And, welcome to refugees!
Did you follow the link? There is a great series of Tinhat pictures at mamatang.ca. It was hard to choose one.
Or we could use the title of an old 23 Skidoo album: “The Culling is Coming.”
I haven’t kept track, but I think I’ll adopt your view of juvenile antics going on – it’s preferable to my sense of being in a neo-Stalinistic state…. purge just sounds so horrible, you know?
that is an order!
BTW I prefer my Faraday wig to a foil hat, but I must say they do look rather fetchng
actually I prefer a tripple H enema to make it clear…and pun intended here…;o)
Sorry, what did you say – I had my wig on…?
OH PLEEEEEEZZZZZZ PUT IT BACK ON, hON..IT BECOMES YOU SO….:O)
if you could only get into my minds picture of this scenario. God my ribs hurt from laughing so hard….
I was born alone, into a strange world that was very confusing to me. I’ve lived here a long time, most often feeling it was me against the rest of “them.” I seemed not to be in compliance with acceptable thoughts and teachings of this world.
Nothing much has changed, except I have found a whole lot of folks at BooMan Trib that are an awful lot like me in this respect.
Metaphorical history aside. . .
I am a very young 64
Life long thinker
Considered too liberal by moderate and conservative notions
Politics is only one part of my life (no, really just one part)
I was at another blog for over a year before Booman came along and offered this great place that I call home
I love it here at BMT and I hope the newer members will find it as welcoming a place as I have.
More than you ever wanted to know about me you can find in my diaries by clicking on my screen name below.
I live in SE Idaho, 2 cats, one dog
Retired for 2 years now
An erstwhile writer and perveyor of metaphysical truths
The resident Weirdo on BMT
My name is Shirl
My sign is Libra (with Leo rising)
My blog is: Matters of Spirit (www.mattersofspirit.blogspot.com)
What can I say? I’m just one fun gal . . .LOL
(why does this feel like a dating service bio?)
Glad to Welcome you all here for any and all reasons that you have chosen to join us. Be sure to visit the Froggy Bottom Cafe/Lounge and mingle with the rest of us if you have time. It is a fun place to chat and learn and just hang out. Thanks Diane for creating it, and thanks Booman for letting us have the run of the place.
So Who might you be?
You forgot to mention the big party we’re having at your place.
First annual Booman Blow Out Ribbit Fest. . .
Shirl’s place in the wild outback of Idaho.
Coming from the East, drive straight to Idaho and turn right. Go almost to Montana and turn right again. Five miles up the road beyond civilization (an Idaho joke), you will find Sow Hollow on the left hand side of the road.
If you come from the West, drive striaght to Idaho and turn left then the same as the instructions above. Be careful coming from the West, it is not as far as from the East. If you Hit Denver, you have gone too far! In more ways than one.
Bring your tents and utensils, kitties doggies and other pets welcome. Diane will be cooking over the campfire for us. We will all chip in by bringing food we like to eat.
Bring your own drinks, but I have plenty of Coffee on hand. . .unless you want that specialty stuff, then you’re on your own.
Sorry, no high speed internet available here, but I have a bunch of hand crank phones we can hook up to.
Bring gitfiddles (guitars) and the like and we will sing and dance around the fire pit!!
I have one bathroom. Solar showers can be hung from numerous trees. You figure it out. Rent-a-potties anyone?
Y’all come, now! Hear?
Oh, and Catnip, Zander and other Western Canadians. . .
You are from Canada after all, so you know instinctively where Idaho is. . .Go South froggies, go South.
Important Notice: Do not fall for any of the stories out there that Idaho does not really exist. It am, so therefore it does!
The Myth of Idaho
I’ve been to Idaho. I can vouch for the fact that it exists. Trust me, people. Trust me.
WOW! And you lived to tell about it!!!!
You are even more amazing than I already knew you to be.
Such beauty! Used to live in Wyoming and explored frequently. I Adore Yellowstone too even with its life ending volcano, maybe that explains the strange energy that attracts so many to the place over and over again.
So, I’m kinda out of it. What’s the deal with this purge? Something to do with dKos?
Yeah. kos decided he didn’t like some people not living in the “reality-based community”. So he banned anyone who posted diaries on certain topics (the possibility of Bush/Blair complicity in the London bombings, and possibly others), and anyone who recommended those diaries.
And I thought I had fricken PMS
ROTFL!
Tracy, you are officially my hero of the month. I’m going to be snickering about that line for hours.
ah soooooooo…
first it was the sanctimonious women’s studies set???
AND NOW????
nobody expects
:::looking around:::
the spanish inquisition
kos Purge (warning >600 comments)
and follow up
I think it might be a good idea to change the title of the diary please….If you don’t mind…We don’t care where they came from or why, this will turn into a discussion of the subject (purge)….will you trust me on this one.
This should be a welcome wagon for all members new or old,
So tell us about you Zander….you have never done more than a line or two…
Or, I could be wrong, in which case disregard this message…
oh Diane, just how I could go on above and beyond the actual topic here!!!!!!!! purging bush is a great idea for another diary, if you ask me…LMAOROF
Very, very true… thanks for making me think about that…
Um, about me? Well, I used to be shy… and then I showed up here… and kind of accidentally got a job as bartender in the lounge.
And… um… my virtual bar is always well stocked, but my fridge is empty at the moment. Er… I’ll be back in a little bit…
I don’t know what to think right now. Some of the same posters who said some completely rude things to others during the pie wars were at it again. I never gave a shit what anybody said to me cuz I’m a mean bitch, but not everybody is that way and it was rough to watch what was said to some people. Now after reading this and all these posters giving those who were banned the “real whatfor by God”, and Kos this and Kos that. What a bunch of Kos Suckers! I was a cheerleader once too but at least football was just a season. I didn’t have to endlessly cheer and cheer and smile and pose day after day whether it was raining or shining or we were winners or losers! And that is all I’m saying about this craptacular episode in “My Life With Blogs”.
In BooMan’s ‘Reality and Non-Reality’ diary on the front page, there was a comment that really struck me.
NLinStPaul said “Why not just be agnostic about it?”.
That has been on my mind all day. Agnosticism pertaining to god can be seen as humility in response to the incredible wonders of the world. Agnosticism in a less technically accurate way can also be seen as humility and acceptance of the incredible diversity of human beings and their world views. Without taking the term too seriously, I think BT does an astounding job of being agnostic and accepting of people.
Sorry if this seems totally off-topic – for some reason your comment made me think of it.
I hope you and your family stay safe and comfortable tonight Militarytracy – don’t let that barometric pressure get to you… 😉
I was doing moment of vent so that I could move on to welcoming new posters and enjoying my new friends at the new party created. I enjoy the diversity so much here and sometimes that one small voice speaks volumes. I read hours after the London ordeal on European Tribune one poster stating that they were being awfully quiet about Kings Crossing. That was before anybody really knew many details. Funny how that one person just happened to notice that. Didn’t mean anything to me then, I just filed it, but now I sadly know why they were being quiet.
I am a refugee of the pie wars.
I am (apparently) a hormonal women’s studies type who doesn’t know how to take a joke.
I have never actually taken a women’s studies course, except for being a wife (off and on) and mother (constantly) for 24 years.
I lived for a long time in a fog of depression, inactivity and non-existent self-esteem.
Periodically the fog lifts and I have this unquenching desire to change the world…or at least my little corner of it.
Lately those times of clarity have been longer lived and I take that as a good sign.
I am an incurable writer of Letters to the Editor.
I have an almost desperate need to be heard, but I lack the confidence to carry this out in any other way than in writing.
I kicked around a bit when I was younger but ended up marrying the first guy who asked and I had 4 kids before I was thirty.
I have been quite poor for most of my life until very recently.
I have been a gas station attendant, a maid for a ski resort, a cook at a nursing home, a laborer for a plant nursery, a church secretary and a care giver for the mentally retarded.
I see myself as a writer (thanks, Shirl) and a champion for those with mental disabilities.
My views are quite liberal and I have spawned 4 liberal and politically active children.
I struggle with my self-image but have somehow (blindly) managed to raise children who love and accept themselves and who possess a kindness, courage and tenacity far beyond their years.
I love BMT and wouldn’t think of going elsewhere.
I am 45. Capricorn. More agnostic than I used to be. Constantly searching. Constantly restless.
“I see myself as a writer (thanks, Shirl) and a champion for those with mental disabilities.”
Interesting how we tend to agree upon how we see you!
“More agnostic than I used to be. Constantly searching. Constantly restless.”
And the more you tell us about you, the more you seem just like me and others here! Nice family group we belong to, eh?
Brava Laura, you are pointed in a direction, after all. . . <BIG SMILES>
(((Hugs)))
I take it as a good sign that I am pointed in any direction not leading to my bed or the refrigerator.
ROFLMAO So true, so true!
my major goal in life……everything I’m working towards!
I’m ecstatic that I have fulfilled someone’s goal in life! Now…on to my own.
If I could just figure out what they are…
You reminded me of a great line from the play “The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe.” So here it is:
“All my life I’ve always wanted to be somebody. But I see now I should have been more specific.”
And while I’m at it – here’s another one that fits for the agnostics here today:
“You can’t expect insights, even the big ones, to suddenly make you understand everything. But I figure: Hey, its a step if they leave you confused in a deeper way.”
I just LOVE that play. Anything that makes me think and laugh at the same time is a winner in my book.
I’m also been involved with disability issues since I was in fifth grade. (I’m WAAAY older than that now). Many people in this area were atracted to it because of some personal connection. I had none – just always knew that was my “calling.” The pay sucks, but the rewards are great. Nice to meet you!
well, I will not give my stats; however, I purged myself from a place I was not comfortable in being. I am not going to forget it either! I choose what to and where I go and say and if I am not agreeable with something someone said, I most likely will hold my tongue. This is gradually getting harder to control on my behalf. I love being a free thinker. I love being a person who educates myself on things and I follow up with my suspisions on things. So allowing myself to think and then become comfortable enough to speak, is a release of my penned up frustrations.
I love the frog pond cause I can ribbit and ribbit any old time I feel good about ribbiting and know I am understood on my text. If not understood, then just ask me and I will try hard to explain my ribbiting…..:o)
Hope you will understand my personality very soon, for I really love to have fun and enjoy the crowd and possibly contribute to the conversation somewhat in the process.
Hi everyone!!
I missed the purge b/c was offline for 2 days, but wandered over from dKos. can anyone point me to some so-called tinfoil diaries or discussions about London? i’m wondering what was being speculated
The diaries that started the whole thing over at dKos have been deleted!
purge principles not the events -i scrolled through the posts here but are there some diaries on it to check out? (i also missed the pie fight – guess i lead a boring life)
Well, the diaries that I have seen have been about the scourge of the purge or the righteousness of the purge and everything in between with veiled references to “purgability”.
From what I can gather, on the day of the London bombings a spate of conspiracy theory diaries went up and somehow several of them scored the recommended list – I think one of the theories was that the US and UK conspired to bomb to distract from DSM and other issues. Another speculated as to whether or not Israel was instrumental in either failing to warn of the bombings or of something semi-inflammatory.
In the midst of all this, one diary which I actually read was really quite insultory of the front page folks at dKos, singling out Plutonium Page for creating a front page post on the London bombings and generally scolding (a mild word) for the lack of front page poster’s attention to the bombings that occur in Iraq. In that diary a reference was made to the fact that white people get front page attention and others do not. That’s how I remember it, but you know how distorted a story gets as it gets passed around… That diary was also recommended.
My theory on the last diary only, since it was the only one I read – I think a lot of users mistook the tone of the diary and thought it was pointing out that people are dying and getting blown up every day in Iraq and that that deserves our attention as well. That’s the only explanation I can find as to why it would make the recommended list.
So the “purge” came when Kos singled out not only the tinfoil hat conspiracy diaries but also the users who recommended them. Then all hell broke loose.
I still love it over there but I’ll hang out over here, too!
Kos was concerned his reputation would suffer if he allowed conspriracy theorists to diary. DKos has become such a force in the media, he wanted nothing diminishing that, lest it would impede his goal of getting Dems elected. The Dems elected part I completely agree with. The purging part, no. If he wants to “purge”, I’d start with the profanity ridden sexist garbage!
Well there are a few:
This is rosee’s take on things:
Click Here
This is Madman’s take:
Click Here
And this Is the BooMan’s take on the front page:
Click here
There are others around, if you explore, I am sure you will find them.
n/t
This is what I feel like when I think of what Bush and his henchmen have done to my country.
No one should have the power to make anyone feel that way!
It will take a while to get that image out of my head.
oh WOW!!!!!!!!!!! what a shock to my system….pain!!!!!! and I thought I had a bone to pic with eve when I die and go to heaven!!!! Good one. A picture is worth a thousand words.
I’m on dKos all the time – commenting, occasionally posting diaries etc. and yet I missed virtually everything that caused all of the upheaval.
I’ve had my account here for a while but haven’t been active SO…
The first thing you get in google when you type in her renarf is this.
I lucked out (katiebird is a common Internet name) and you’d have to weed through a bunch of other people to get my comments (my booman stuff floated higher).
Unfortunately not…try yours out and see for yourself.
A matter I have commented on many times, also google your phone number, it gives up your address….
You can change google to not at the bootom of the page after you click on your phone number..
i have been told (or perhaps i read) that a blog or website owner can request that google not “crawl” a site and that request will be honored. i don’t know what’s true about a place like the wayback machine over at archive.org. does anyone know whether this is true or not?
My 15 minutes of fame. With Google everybody gets one now. There was nothing very interesting, just Kos stuff came up first……then there was this other thing that caught my eye. Some blog that was entitled Tim Blair and someone had posted That Militarytracy chick is a psycho. So I had to go check it out of course. It was like the Little Green Footballs of Britain. A person below the “psycho” fella had posted that Kos poster were bedwetters or something and I was a Kos poster then and I quit wetting the bed when I was six, I know I was a little slow damn it but I’m getting really tired of not getting any credit for FINALLY GETTING IT. Just ask my mom, she was so happy that day, I quit!!! I suppose I am a little impressed with myself today, I scared a wingnut all the way across the pond BAHWAHAHAHAHAHA! (I love typing that, makes my horse laugh seem tolerable).
Clearly I wasn’t thinking ahead when I chose my username which, rather unimaginatively, is also my NAME. DOH! And it’s not like it’s “JenniferRF” or anything like that – at least I would have a modicum of plausible deniability in that Jennifer is somewhat more common than Rena. But no. I stuck with my name.
((sigh))
I’m not paranoid or anything – but I DO call on the Feds a great deal – high level Feds, to be more precise. Heaven forfend I wind up maneuvering in the ranks of the appointees and require some kind of security check!!
If you’re user ID isn’t commonly used then Google will return your comments from any blog you frequent.
Great to see you here! 🙂
I’m back and forth too, but spend a lot more time lately here on the Lilypads. I think it’s the color, green is more calming than orange IMHO. And I’m still having trouble adjusting to the new look — it still looks a little like Early American Blogger to me.
I knew a ton of Kossacks were over here without really having suffered from Purgegate or Piegate… I signed up for my account here way back when and get over here from time to time but don’t post all that much. I’ll try to change that.
please do comment and do diaries too. I always enjoyed reading your work. Thanks for coming and interacting with us tonight.
about myself – in the NY metro area live in NJ, work in NY; don’t have internet at home as a strategy to get myself to go to work every day
works, btw (yes, i’m at work and it’s saturday evening)
I know what you mean…..I work 24/7 for the most part. I am a nurse that is on call alllllllll the time. twice a month, if lucky, I get a short w/e off.
This happenes to be one of them after being up till after 2 am last night, I felt I deserved a day off….:o( to do absolultely nothing but what I wanted to do. I have learned to reward myself for things I think I have done a good job on/at. It has made a world of difference in me and my feeling good mentally and physically about me.
You might get up to go to work because of the pc but I can tall you I am glad I do not have to do that if I do not have to get up and go to work.
yes, and for me it’s also lots of shoulds. i’m trying to incorporate more time off – good idea giving yourself rewards
Brenda – people like you are the only reason the world is still tolerable.
I wish you every happiness, progress and….more time!
Sven, I am working on it on a daily basis……….:o)
Well, I am not that new; if anything I am a pie wars refugee than a reality based refugee. But that isn’t really accurate. I did come here about that time, and it was because someone mentioned over at DKos that this as a more welcoming place for feminist types. But I don’t consider this a substitute for DKos, but rather a completely different place, which I like much better. Maybe it is just semantics, since I’m here and not there. 🙂
So, about me: I am a fairly mainstream Democrat, though feminist issues are more important to me than to the Democratic party as a whole. I live in a red state (Colorado) but a blue county (Boulder). I have an excellent U.S. Rep (Udall) an OK Senator (Salazar) and a horrible Senator (Allard). I go much more involved in volunteering this last election because I wanted Bush out of there so bad. It didn’t work, obviously, and we Dem Coloradans didn’t even succeed in getting Colorado to vote Kerry. But we did get the state house and state senate for the first time since 1960, so it was enough good feedback to keep me going, if mere fear didn’t.
Personally, I am a patent attorney, married with two kids, a dog, and a house in the suburbs. Geeze, that even sounds boring to me. 🙂 But I like my life, when I am not in anguish about what this country is doing to itself and the world. 🙁 I am mostly in favor of leaving Iraq right now, as I am not convinced we can get it stabilized. I’d like to be wrong about that, but I have had a depressing habit of being right about the Iraq war since before it started.
I love reading, and my latest passion is Terry Pratchett. He makes me laugh and I really need it!
From red old El Paso County! Living in the even redder state of Alabama because we are stationed here right now. Still vote in Colorado though. Here’s to Colorado getting Bluer. I can feel man!!! I can feel it in my little toe!!!
I hope your little toe is on to something!
welcome and glad you are here. pull up a lilypad and join in the fun.
We currently have both a Froggy Bottom Cafe and this Introduce Yourself diary on the recommended list. We need a permanent link for these. Place it right above the reco list so it gets the attention it deserves, but where it isn’t taking up the scarce and valuable slots in the reco list. Please please please please pretty please.
I think you might want to also worry about the precious slots taken up by the one pic. diaries we so often see there, or the other humorous type diaries.
What is value of a diary anyway????
Does it only have to be political to have any value.
I agree that a new slot would be nice, but until then???
I enjoy the community building diaries as much as the next person. But when I am short on time, I just take a quick browse of the recommended list before going on to other sites. It is a little frustrating to see what are essentially open threads taking up those slots.
I’m sorry we’re a bit at odds over this. Because, it turns out I count on getting to the Froggy Bottom Cafe quickly through the Recommended list. And I was really thrown off those days we experimented with the hotlist idea. Once I got it in the hotlist, I was fine. But, until then, I was rattled.
I guess we each use these tools in our own way.
You’ll notice that my suggestion was to place the link right above the recommended list, so it would be in a familiar place and not get lost amongst the tabs at the top of the page. This was actually shirlstar’s suggestion, but it seems like such a simple, logical, and elegant solution, I thought I would promote it, too.
The diaries that end up on the recommended list are the diaries that are recommended by enough of us here at the Booman Tribune. One of the features of this blog is the social interactions and affection between us. Many people here like to hang out together — and this is the place to do it.
The Welcome Wagon makes periodical appearances as a place for newcomers to introduce themselves and meet some of the rest of us who might happen by.
The Froggy Bottom Cafe/Lounge, is a more open establishment. Some think of it as an Open Thread, but it’s more informal and less structured than that. Political discussions and rants are certainly welcome. But we love travel photos and general conversation about how are day is going as well.
On days when diaries of “more substance” are popular, the Cafe diaries and Welcome Wagons have been pushed off the list. But it is a sign of the popularity of those diaries that generally the most recent one (except for the period earlier in the week when we experimented with the hotlist option) is on the Recommended list.
I’m thinking that if the general population of this site recommends any diary, then it is appropriate for that diary to be on the list. And I’m happy to see it there. I will henceforth defend my belief in Recommendation Freedom whenever it seems appropriate.
so I decided to register. I post on dKos and heard about but never saw the infamous purge threads. I just thought I would get registered here in case something I say eventually gets me purged over there. I have to say I don’t like what Kos did. I can almost understand it if people were suggesting that aliens bombed the London tube because the subway was getting too close to the secret underground alien base that they use to control Tony Blair’s robot brain. The idea of the CIA doing it though is unfortunately at least a possibility and purging people for discussing that was wrong.
I’m an unemployed computer programmer. I worked in the defense industry. Eventually I got fed up and rather than go all “Falling Down” I left. Now I’m trying to prepare for grad school and get the hell out of that whole field.
(great name BTW) Welcome! and kudos to you for having the nerve to bail on an unsatisfying life and go out on that limb. As I frequently annoy my friends and family by saying… ‘the universe can’t provide something better until you’ve created the space for it.’
It is very nice to welcome an Event Horizon here. Hope you will find us good company. Feel free to look around the place, and really if you want to get to know folks, the Froggy Bottom Cafe is a very good place to do that. Just a friendly place to chat, post pics, ask questions and hang out.
Welcome and really glad to have you here.
I had a friend that tried to leave the tech field and go back to grad school, but he got sucked back in. Hope your path goes better. What new field are you looking at?
I guess I’ll re-introduce myself:
I’m not a “veteran” of any wars or purges; whether it was through luck, karma, or just being involved in Real Life, I missed all of the brouhahas. I came here when BooMan first announced the founding of the site (hence my fortunate 2-digit UID), but was never really active over here till after PieWars, when a lot of voices I respected and enjoyed made their way over here.
I’m still over at dKos, but mostly in the fluff threads; I will wander into a serious thread now and then and post a few jewels of wisdom (or whatever the crap I write is called).
Okay, enough prologue:
Have a great evening!
Nice to meet you CS. I’m hoping to get into nanotech or biotech. It’s late and I need to go to bed so I’ll leave it at that. I can write more tomorrow. Thank you all for the ratings. I guess somebody liked the idea of a robot Tony Blair.
As Diane has pointedly um.. pointed out – I still cling to some idea of shyness, long after that theory has proven itself to be ridiculous. Soooo, about me….
Um… er….
Hi there!
Zander, dear, you are not getting away with this.
Now answer these question:
Are you male or female
Where do you live
How old are you
What have you done in your life, maybe some snippets of this..
Do you have a claim to fame
Who are you?????????
What are your goals
In short tell us about you!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well, I was holding that beer about 10 minutes before I posted the picture… that’s pretty personal almost-live photo-blogging….
I thought it was from an advertisement.
is that pic an event horizion in honor of our new guest?
and can i ever learn to spell?
I wish, but it seems that supersoling has called me on it downthread… and Diane… <deep breath>… I guess I’d better get to that intro…
(taps fingers and looks restless)
Will she do it? Will she??
I did it!!! kinda’… um.. it took a while to manage as much as I did downthread. I stressed a little…<LAM – laughing at myself>
Well come over to the lounge, pull up a pillow and join me. We’ve got some good Merlot, and just about anything else you’d want. And good distracting company.
You know what makes me feel uncomfortable here?
Constant bitching about DKos members and Kos here at BMT.
Insults here thrown at DKos members are no more fun to read than the vice-versa.
I agree with you.
But when folks first make the jump over here, they are often hurt and confused and really just need to get somethings out of their system. So we maybe a little more allowing than normal. We try to gently tell them we don’t like rehashing dkos problems over here. And We don’t like folks speaking ill of other blogs.
I feel strongly, if you have a problem with a specific person. . .take it to them and deal with it straight on. If you have a problem with another blog, take it there and deal with it there.
We are sympathetic to some of the harshness that people moving from other places may have experienced, but we also want them to know that was there and this is a whole other place. We welcome everyone here, and we respect you. We don’t trash others or other blogs on this site. We aren’t fond of anyone doing that.
So, welcome newbies, and relax, let off steam if you need to but please try not to mention other posters by name or other blogs. No personal attacks, we don’t operate that way over here.
Thanks
Really?
link
And 5 people rated this comment a “4” including you.
I agree with Shirl that some of the refugees are feeling hurt and want to talk about it. I’m not sure I would characterize it as “bashing” but maybe commiserating.
There will come a time when it gets old and community standards will take care of it.
Well, there you go. You caught me in another one of my glaring inconsistencies. Mea culpa
Everyone has their own personal views on ratings. I personally give everyone a 4 that posts on a welcome wagon diary regardless of what they say. So you can take that as “stupid” and that the rating is therefore meaningless, or you can take it as an overly genrous spirit of welcome. In the welcome wagon it means “welcome” glad you are here, not I agree wholeheartedly with what you are saying. In diaries if I feel moved to rate a comment, I will never rate it less than a 4. . .a personal choice and reasoning.
Actually, I thought the comments were pretty snarky, and that would mean funny to me. I am not the thought police or the word police and people still can voice their opinions. If it seems overly mean and vindictive I do step in and offer my feelings on the subject. And yes that does seem to be contradictory to what I wrote previously. It is the frequency of the occurrence that I pay attention to. And frankly. . .I am just one of the frogs in this pond so even when I step in to suggest that comments may be out of line who the hell am I that anyone should listen to?
Some of the people I most admire at the place across the street others dislike very much. So there you have it. We disagree. If you want to defend kos here, please feel free to do so. I don’t see a plethora of remarks intent on tearing him down. I could be wrong about that as I can’t and don’t read every comment in every diary here. And if for sure wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been wrong, here or there.
I personally have nothing against either kos or dkos and no axe to grind, no dog in the fight. I moved here long before any of the other events occurred. I still visit over there on occasion. I spend most of my time here.
Anything else you would like to take me to task for, please feel that I am open and willing to discuss.
I can’t speak for anyone else, but I’ll explain my 4. Militarytracy is as we speak preparing for a hurricane and just earlier today noted that in her area water is sold out, candles, batteries, etc… people are upset, her family is stressed…
I think it’s important for people to be able to vent among friends, so while I don’t agree with her comment, I do respect her right to have a bad day in the path of a hurricane without being jumped all over, you know?
Man, I missed that comment, but would’ve given it a 4 my ownself had I seen it. It was a great little rant, and shows that this community is open to accept someones right to express just about any point of view. Especially if that commenter is known to be under a lot of stress. Just like those who have drifted, or been kicked ;O) over here from other corners of the blog world.
It was my moment of rant to move onto better things. It did really bother me to see some of the same posters who had attacked others during the pie wars doing it all over again and I can’t believe how rudely done it was. It was the same old thing I saw before and it did piss me off. I am definitely not perfect for sure, I have never gained anything worthwhile in my life by berating people and I was witnessing berating then and now…..not even expressing beliefs – it was berating and beating up on people. It wasn’t even arguing, it was ganging up on and abusing. Sometimes a bully needs to be stood up to and for whatever reason God dinged me with that character flaw. I hate watching bullies wail the crap out of anybody and my whole life I have always said or done something and sometimes it doesn’t look pretty. I do agree with Dr. Phil though on his bully philosophy….they have to be stood up to and exposed. I felt I was exposing the bullying descriptively (maybe too descriptively) and the hero worship that seems to drive and feed the bullying on Kos. I’m a Democrat so that I don’t have to hero worship – so that I am free to see and experience the gifts and talents of the world and not be blinded and bridled by my own fears and anxieties…and I have my Democrats who are my heroes but they are people first and I don’t need them to be anything more than that and that doesn’t give them license to do whatever they may once I have found myself admiring them.
Look, you guys, I personally do not care why you all came here. I do not care about the wording for the most part. I have learned a long time ago that different ppl have different ways of saying things. I have to adapt to this on a daily basis in my work. I try hard to do that which is right for the time and then go on. We have to learn to get along and do it in the most productive manner possible. I will not go back to the days of old where I felt raped by others on my opinion. I simply will not! This is a great community to have. Lets not abuse it and tear it apart. For whatever reason these newbes come here, it is their reason. lets just welcome them here and get on with making life as tolerable as possible. Thanks for your time and ear….hugs around for everyone….and I really mean this..
In your comment you state the following:
You know what makes me feel uncomfortable here? Constant bitching about DKos members and Kos here at BMT.
Your statement above is exaggeration. I am here on Booman Tribune on a daily basis, usually before and after work. I haven’t noticed any complaining about DKos in the last week or so at all. And frankly, what I see in this thread isn’t complaining so much as humor.
I find your use of the word “bitch” offensive. Complaining is certainly not limited to a single gender on this planet so why genderize the word? The word complaining is far more succinct and much less offensive.
And if you so desire, please feel free to view my complaint about your word choice as coming from an overly sensitive women’s studies type who finds sexism under every rock.
After all, that’s certainly been done before :::wink:::
I’d have viewed it as humor if I hadn’t read all the BITCHING about DKos and DKos members before in other threads. Oh, and “bitching” is used frequently in non-genderized terms.
link
Click to see who posted it.
so you are not concerned at all that i find your language sexist and offensive?
Come on you guys, Newsie was just voicing an opinion, Bay you were too, go on over to the cafe and talk it out. Really it is a small quibble you two are having…
Newsie I think you made an observation that has some basis in accuracy, and I am afraid that some were over zealous in their defense of the site and our attitude here and may have seemed to jump on you.
I don’t think it was intended in that vein.
We are always evolving, we have no set stance except to try to be kind and understanding to each other.
I think you both have every right to make the comments each of you have made….
Bay prarie do you really want to take a stand on the word “bitch”, which I think is relatively minor, perhaps a case of picking battles….I personally allow some leeway and there are many much more offensive words to be hashed over…
It is of course your choice…..Perhaps you could agree to disagree!!!
In any case you may have already settled this before I post my comment….Love you both…hugs…..
yes but there is a word you do not find minor. you discussed it with sven the other evening. this is the same to me. just different words.
Correct Bay, I did indeed have a problem and I mentioned the words that I find offensive and that was specifically the C word which I feel is vile. But yet I have to see at least two words I abhor every day on this site and others, I previously have commented on the fact that I don’t like it and everyone felt they had a right to use the words.
So I have to accept that, and give them the right to do that, I can still hold the feelings but I do not need to express it whenever it appears. If you draw the line in a different place, so be it,
So if you feel you have to call out ‘every’ gender perjorative you will have a big job as they are used in most every diary, and feel free by all means, but now it seems that you are signaling out Newsie for this stance.
What more can I say, I jumped in here to try to sooth the waters, an uncomfortable place to venture.
It seems to be all about perception tonight, I perceive it one way and you and others perceive it differently.
Why not let it rest there.
Words once writ on the internet or spoken cannot be taken back, but new words can always take their place in our minds.
BTW I said the above with the most loving of intentions and I hold you all in great regard.
Thank you.
Sorry, if you thought my language was offensive or sexist. It IS a fact that it’s frequently used in non-genderized terms.
But I am happy that you missed all of the “complaining” or whatever you want to call it.
It IS there, and Booman and others have noticed it.
Are you not concerned at all that the bashing of Dkos and Dkos members makes me feel uncomfortable? I post and read at both places, and I don’t really think it’s at all becoming to open up a diary thinking it’s going to be a thoughtful discussion about one thing and see it turn in the replies into yet another “see, aren’t we better than DKos” conversation.
and I share your frustration.
Newsie, is there any way I could convince you to come over to the Lounge and have a drink? It’s much harder to have these kinds of tense debates among friends…..
so it isn’t sexist if you say it isn’t?
Allright, what is your intention? Is it to bring along with you the kind of confrontational approach that drives some people away from other blogs? ‘Cause if it is, perhaps you haven’t been listening to the people here who are trying to make an effort to welcome you in spite of your approach. May I suugest that if you find the content of the comments here not to your liking, then maybe you should apply the standards used at kos to your position here and head on back over there.
Btw, love what you do with those little box thingies.
Super, duper, soling, I urge you to reconsider what you have just said to newsie who has long been a valued member of this site. She made an innocuous comment, imo, and it was seized up, by some, now really, how is it different than what others have voiced many times and why now should you all choose to make this an issue and now here we all are discussing use of the word bitch, and whether it is sexist. Are these the biggest battles we have to fight!!!!!
And I think Newsie was quite civil in her comments in response to other comments….all things considered, she merely pointed out the inconstencies and made no overt judgemental statement. All of the above will be of course in my humble opinion.
Nothing to do with bitch and everything to do with approach and what seems to be an effort to call others on their comments and ratings of comments, not to mention a blanket accusation of some percieved preoccupation on our part about dkos.
I won’t reconsider my remarks, but out of respect for you and the site, I humbly withdraw for the night.
i have to agree with soling that that newsie’s effort to call others on their comments and ratings was more judgmental than civil. likewise the use of the word bitch after bayprairie commented on it seemed to be deliberately provocative. newsie has a right to free speech and can use whatever words he or she wants. all i can say is that i got a provocatively hostile vibe from newsie’s posts in this thread.
Wow, this post (http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2005/7/9/175327/9878#71) was judgemental?
Maybe it is you who is judgemental?
For the record, I AM female, and it really is just a statement of fact that “bitching” is used in non-genderized terms.
My only point from the very beginning was it is not fun at all to read some of the stuff that is posted here about DKos and DKos members. Some of the stuff people here don’t like about DKos IS starting to bubble up here.
What would you like us to do to make you feel less hostile? We do not generally encourage bashing here. However, everyone has a right to speak their minds. Many folks here have issues that they feel strongly about and some of them relate to the site across the road and particular individual’s personal experiences there. We do not shut down free speech here. The person who wrote the diary says it was cross-posted at the other site as well. That is a step in the right direction.
People here, who read and post regularly here, know that it is not the norm or the most accepted way to do things. So far people generally follow that guideline.
Do you want Booman to purge these people who come here looking for a different type of atmosphere? Just not exactly clear on what you would like as a solution. If it concerns this site’s overall views and guidelines, then you should contact Booman personally. It is his site and he makes the decisions for the most part, although he is extremely patient and willing to allow for our input.
Give me a solution and how to implement it and we can discuss it as members and decide if and how it would work.
What some here have constituted as humor, I didn’t think was funny at all and menat to insult people who post at dKos. I would maybe have taken some of the stuff as snark, but after seeing some of the same stuff over and over again from the same people, it just doesn’t seem like snark at all.
I don’t want Booman to purge anyone.
I just want people to realize that some of the stuff posted about DKos and DKos members HERE will end up making THIS community exactly into what everyone here professes that they don’t want this community to become. The holier than thou “we’re better than DKos” stuff is just tired.
And the “it’s okay because someone’s under a lot of stress” thing is an excuse. Understandable and explains a person’s behavior, but if one person here is allowed some leeway, why not kos? Or me? Maybe I’m just having a bad day? Yet, I’m the one being called judgemental because of all my comments here. I’m apparently sexist now, too.
Point taken. I apologize that I did not understand fully what your concern was. It was not my intent to be less than gracious to you.
Newsie – I may be too little too late with this response to you – but I missed all of the discussion last night and wanted to try to explain some things from my point of view anyway.
As many have already heard here, I lurked at Kos for over 9 months without saying a word. It didn’t bother me at the time, but I came over here during the pie wars and opened up immediately. Then I began to reflect on why I couldn’t do that over there. A lot of what you call insulting to people at Kos, I find helpful to me in beginning to understand my silence. What I see are perhaps a few comments that do go over the top, but for the most part an attempt to understand what is going on and why. I try to process the difference in the two sites in an attempt to clarify my own position, thinking and feelings. It has all been very helpful to me.
I can see that it would be difficult for others though and I also know that if it goes on too long its inherently unhealthy. But it did die down after the pie fights and I’m sure it will this time as well.
If you’re still around, I’d love to know more about why you responded the way you did. It would help me alot.
I am sorry that my comment disturbed you. I probably should not have gone over and read the diaries. It was hard to witness the same thing happening again by some of the same posters as the pie wars. Not only do I not understand the ganging up on others thing and bashing their heads into the walls over and over and over again that I witnessed and all of the high fiving in between bashing……I HATE IT….and I hate it when anybody gets away with it because it is abuse. In order to fully recover from abuse people have to take their power back and realize that they are just as powerful as the abusers. Everybody on Kos isn’t an abuser and I didn’t mean to imply that in any way. They seem to have more than a couple though who gang up together and I will tell you one thing that I know for sure for sure for sure about BT and that is Booman, and I’m not worshiping Booman but I do admire him. That kind of shit would come to a screeching halt here because it won’t be tolerated. Speak your mind fine. High Five and knock the shit out of people in some kind of group pillage on here and it will be addressed. It isn’t a group characteristic that will find any support on Booman and in that way Booman is different. I am sorry that I offended you. I was taking a moment to remind myself of what it was that I was witnessing, and it was angry but I firmly believe that I needed to be angry at that moment if nothing at least for myself. I have no desire to stay stuck in that moment though and I’m moving on to things that are much more important. Once again though I am truly sorry that my post was offensive to you.
You good people got anything that soothes lonliness? My whole family is in Maryland, I’m in New York. I haven’t seen them in ten days. Woe is supersoling ;O) My wife and son are coming back on Monday, so that ain’t so bad, but the plans for my daughters have changed now and I won’t see them again for another month. Dangit!
I know what you’re going through. I’ve had to miss out on a couple of family vacations and it’s not fun.
I know we aren’t a real substitute, but we can at least help you pass the time.
Have you been to the Froggy Bottom Lounge yet? It’s Open Mike Night.
Oh……is that where sad mugs like me are supposed to go to cry into their beer? ;O) Maybe I’ll head over there in a minute or so. I’m enjoying watching shirl’s lesson in diplomacy at the moment though. Thanks Katiebird
This place is sure interesting as well as funny tonight and you supersol are contributing to the amusing part quite well. Your comments are priceless tonight…
thank you dear….big hugs….now let’s see what shirl does next, shall we…
And then there is Zander, she finally came out of the computer closet and actuall, gasp, told something about herself, 3 cheers for Zander,,,,3 cheers for the site Boomantrib…
I am so fun to watch at this age, aren’t I?
(Shirl doffs her feathered Elizabethan hat and takes a deep bow. . . she would curtsey, but no one would believe it. . .I mean, 6 feet tall and built like a middle line backer for the Denver Broncos. . .nope, nobody is going to buy a curtsey from this broad)
Michael, you are just adorable beyond words. Lucky wife and family you have. You can keep me company any time you want big guy. Just watch out for Diane, and give me a warning, she has this big notebook that she keeps on me listing all my inconsistencies. . .it must be getting pretty thick and heavy by now. . . .LOL
(((hugs)))
Oh, and I’m buying the drinks tonight so choose the best!
I happen to be a cheap date, so I’ll take a nice cold……Miesterbrau light. Hows that for taste?
Actually, it’s 1 am here on the east coast and I have to work tomorrow but I sure have enjoyed being here with you and all the awesome people here. I wish I’d have come around a little earlier. Seeing the pictures of the kids and the music and the Dracula play (bravo) has closed the distance between me and my own kids tonight. Thanks
Michael
Geez, I actually almost forgot. Here’s wishing Military tracy and her family a safe night and the hope that this storm passes quickly.
Peace
You crack me up!
One more thing.
I’d really like to know a little about Zander. When I first got here, she/he was the first good Bootribber to welcome me, and well…….I’m just real curious. :O)
OK, ya got me. When I first showed up here, I mumbled something about being shy and intending to lurk – I honestly have no idea what has happened since then.
I’m a 30 year old Canadian chick, single, no pets, no kids. I fake being a hip, urban professional really well – but at heart, I’m a nomad, a loner and a bibliophile. I’ve been a lot of places and I’ve done a lot of things – but I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up… and I think I like it that way.
So you SAY.
<head on desk, snorting, laughing>
Help? Anyone???
I’m choking with laughter myself. I’ll try to help after I catch my breath (but I’ll warn you, she’s on a roll tonight — it’s probably hopeless)
Perhaps you are an urban ultra hippy chic, dear zander, just my observations…..
A likely story! And please, Zander. . .DON’T EVER GROW UP! There is really no future in it, and look. . .I have managed to excape it all this many years, so can you!!!
If I was going to grow up, which I’m not, I would want to be you.
Well then, thank you so much. This is really, really cool. Nice to meet you……..again.
BTW, the only thing I know about growing up is that I never intend to grow up. Why waste a perfectly good kid ;O)
Words (nouns especially) are not the things themselves. Words are symbols for things which are always contextual. If I write the word ‘vittu’ (very common open public usage in Finland) it means nothing to anyone here. Diane would have a fit though, if I translated it.
Native Americans, when teaching their children, say, “This is what we call a horse”. They do not say ‘this is a horse’. It allows that a name is only a shortcut to meaning.
In a forum with such a wide diversity of cultural background, it is inevitable that certain words – ‘bitching’, for instance – will have lost their connative origins for some, while remaining offensive to others. That is how language evolves. That is why language is a living thing.
The solution IMHO, is to use a special brand of punning. The Mothers of Invention (and I am still a member of that band) is a clever reference to both a swear word and the origins of creativity.
‘Botching’ might be a (poor) substitute for bitchin’ – where the user can still find a specificity without offending others – who know what it means, but who react ONLY to the exact imprint. That is, a one letter change takes out the sting. Like the people who NEVER sing dirty songs, but can whistle the melody.
I’m a complete Kant
then again, once I saw in a magazine that of T shirts for sale andn it said on it LIFE IS A BEACH. so here might be a good one to refer to instead.
I had that sticker in my office 15 years ago!
I’m not a exKossack, but it sure looks like he purged many good people and they are more than welcome at my new message board too.
for me to be a newbie here. I am a newbie at work (I got a job!) where I deal with small children at a school. They are fun and little huggy bears.
I am a refugee from the Bush economics – down sized, my job out sourced and off shored. So I retired early finding out how difficult it is with health insurance and dental insurance (I am 64 and I have most of my teeth so far – but it looks to be an iffy thing in the future.) I am a great fan of blogs. I think they can revolutionize the way we access the world. I think they offer a home to a lot of people, like myself, who find they can stay at home and yet mix and mingle with some very talented folk. I am not a purgee, but a refugee from a less kinder and gentler blog.
Over the top lads! On to the next diary…