A PR secret - NO-ONE is being paid to post here!!

[Djinn]

Seriously guys the accusations of paid 'operatives' posting here are so ludicrous and demonstrative that a lot of posters have enormous ego's.

When you look at the regular posting/reading population of DU it is minute. There is absolutely no need to spend money on political forums to flame an opposing candidate because there are hordes of sad arsed people willing to do it for free.

LTTE's in major newspapers or talkback calls to national tabloid TV - YES sometimes those people are actually party hacks but on insignificant message boards?

Please people get a grip

[Boojatta]

1. I agree to pay you $1000 to post here if you'll first pay me $1000 to post here.

[Sugar Smack]

Boo-

if you give me $2000 I'll give you a hamburger on Tuesday...wait.. I may have got the line wrong...

[Boojatta]

11. That's an expensive hamburger.

Maybe you should try cattle futures trading or whatever they call it.

[Sugar Smack]

19. Well, it'd probably better be a pretty good hamburger,

love.;-)

[LostinVA]

2. Of course some are

[Djinn]

17. of course they're not

do you have any PR experience? I worked in it for twen years and can GUARANTEE the audience at DU is WAY WAY WAY too small for anyone to be bothered paying anyone to post.

Why would you bother anyway when there are HORDES willing to do it for nothing?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. And another thing -- who'd be crazy enough to actually pay for

the nasty, inflammatory, thoroughly unpersuasive, alienating garbage that some people seem to think passes for political argument around here?

[Boojatta]

9. Maybe some of the people who donate money to Rudy-911-Giuliani, and the rest?

[BleedingHeartPatriot]

4. Damn. Another get rich quick scheme dispelled. Yay, WGA.

Random connection. MKJ

[karlrschneider]

5. I'm tempted to wonder if the apostrophe companies are paying posters to

put them in "egos" and "LTTES".

[Sugar Smack]

59. Did you say "the apostrophe companies"???

:rofl: :spray: :patriot: As in, "I'll fix you're little red wagon"?

[lurky]

97. Of course!

[blondeatlast]

120. Oh, my--does that get the ex-HS English teacher in me fired up! LOL! nt

[spooky3]

99. LOL, "apostrophe companies"!

So THEY'RE responsible!

[kath]

101. Shouldn't that be "apostrophe company's"?

ACK. In one thread earlier today we had "many of the great inventors and groundbreaking people had learning disability's" and "he is now

a high school graduate with TWO diploma's"

I refrained from commenting on these, but just barely.

People, people, people, the apostrophe is taught in THIRD GRADE English (at least it was 40 yrs ago) - it's really not so hard. Find an elementary school English book and look it up!

{and looking at current thread titles, we have:
"If the Clinton's are now racists" and "Obama repeatedly poaching John Edward's themes" }

:banghead: :banghead: :banghead:

[Sugar Smack]

105. Here would be the post, though:

Seriously guy's the accusation's of paid 'operative's' posting here are so ludicrous and demonstrative that a lot of poster's have enormous ego's.

When you look at the regular posting/reading population of DU it is minute. There is absolutely no need to spend money on political forum's to flame an opposing candidate because there are horde's of sad arse'd people willing to do it for free.

LTTE's in major newspaper's or talkback call's to national tabloid TV - YES sometimes those people are actually party hacks but on insignificant message board's?

Please people get a grip


I have no problem with the poster, just having fun with the post. Hope I'm forgiven. :D

[NoPasaran]

115. Boycott punctuation 1111

dont enable BIG APOSTROPHE 1111

[JeffR]

6. Damn, so I have to give the check back to Wetzelbill and Kurovski?

This is an outrage.

[scarletwoman]

13. Pipe down, you fool! With luck, they won't even notice this thread!

But change your phone number, just in case.

[H2O Man]

48. Perhaps

they paid for it to be posted.

[scarletwoman]

58. Ah. You have a fine grasp of the conspirator's mind.

This is all much more diabolical than I ever expected!

:tinfoilhat:
sw

[H2O Man]

60. This may be

part of an attempt to break the union, so to speak.

[scarletwoman]

73. It's not a union, it's a syndicate.

Oh dear, I've said too much already...

[H2O Man]

77. Oh, dear.

Now we know what really happens when someone is tomb stoned.

[Kurovski]

62. We're going to pay you both DOUBLE. (nt)

[scarletwoman]

71. Nooooooo!!!! Please don't nail my head to the floor again! (nt)

[Kurovski]

83. Ah, so you've not only gotten pay,

but payback as well.

I never signed off on that. Never! Not that one!

[scarletwoman]

87. Well, to be honest, the last time WB only screwed my pelvis to a cake stand.

He's a hard man. Vicious but fair.

[Kurovski]

89. See, anything cake-related is considered "sweet".

That's how we can sleep at night.

[Sugar Smack]

86. I'm kind of shrieking, here.

:rofl: :loveya: <---& I don't any more pass these fuckers out promiscuously.

[scarletwoman]

95. I do hope you're not frightening any innocent critters.

I wouldn't want that on my conscience.

:loveya: <--- I know you're not promiscuous, otherwise you'd make arrows like this: ===>

:evilgrin:

[Sugar Smack]

110. BWAAAH! Just my poor cat.

She's kind of clinging to the ceiling.:rofl: LOL!

[Fresh_Start]

7. I'm not a conspiracist

but there is no way to know that.
I certainly saw ppl who acted as paid rabble rousers on other boards in 2004 and 2006.

[Djinn]

21. sigh

yes there is - it's called LOGIC, it's called 10 years working in PR and on political campaigns. It's called value for money.

DU has (if it's lucky) a couiple of thousand individual viewers a day - that is simply NOT enough to make it worth it.

Plenty of people will foam at the mouth without being paid to do so

[Fresh_Start]

32. I understand your argument

but there's contrary evidence

Campaigns regularly review the internet and we've seen campaigners posting on the internet.
So while you think they are not going to waste the time, they are wasting the time.
15% of the ppl are getting their political information from the internet.
Where would Ron Paul be without the internet?

Not to mention ppl work on the internet for a couple of dollars an hour. Its not a high cost process.

[Atman]

34. DJINN was paid by a PR firm to deny that he's paid by a PR firm.

:hi:

.

[Fresh_Start]

35. I thought I was having a theoretical argument

that its not possible to prove his ascertion.

I'm not convinced that there are paid posters. But there's literally no way to know for certain.

[Atman]

40. You had it right...they are paid to monitor and interact with "the blogosphere."

Not simply DU. DU may not carry the weight or make the headlines like Daily KOS or some of the better-known blogs, but DU is still a playa even if only on a minor-league level. It's the cheapest advertising around and it reaches motivated, targeting decision-makers, any marketer's dream. I'd rather pay nothing to reach a thousand such people than pay $10,000 to reach a general audience with the hope that 2% of them even hear my message.

.

[Fresh_Start]

42. yes, and the original post didn't recognize that one person

could hit hundreds of sites daily.
Its not like there are travel costs or inaccessibility issues
I go to 4-5 sites regularly (though I rarely post elsewhere) because I want to see opposing points of view

[Djinn]

43. she actually

and for the last few years I've taken a huge pay cut and now work for organised labor so you definitely don't need to worry about me - my boss can barely afford to pay for the work I do, let alone pay for me for my internet trawling :)

[Djinn]

45. I don't think you do

I have never stated that paid campaign staff are not contributing to debate in the media without revealing their connection. As mentioned I have been paid to do this myself in the past.

HOWEVER they are not being paid to post at DU it is NOT anywhere close to being significant.

[Fresh_Start]

61. I really do and you're making an assumption

even if its an educated assumption, its an assumption.
And assumptions are not facts

[Stephanie]

66. Oh geez! Nice distinction!

Operatives are being paid to post, but not HERE, because DU doesn't rate? And you have been paid to do so in the PAST, but not NOW? So you admit that (1) some posters on message boards are paid operatives, and (2) you have been one of them.

But, offering, no evidence whatsoever, you declare that it could not happen here at DU. How on earth did you ever earn a paycheck??? You're not very good at it.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

8. I'm still waiting to get my checks from Kremlin and Fidel.

Oh, wait...that was what they said back in the '60s.

[SoCalDem]

56. Fidel sent you a box of rubles in 1995.. they must have gotten lost in the mail

[HughMoran]

10. OK

now what?

[sam sarrha]

12. trolls gladly work for free

[Boojatta]

18. On the other hand, you get what you pay for.

Maybe trolls who work for wages are high-quality operatives with glorious morals and sophisticated techniques. You know, like those pros who operated Abu Ghraib prison.

[sam sarrha]

24. we wouldnt have an F'n chance if they sic'd their Psy Corp's on us...

:hide:

[rwheeler31]

14. What ? People do not share info for free.

[Junkdrawer]

15. DU USED to be insignificant....

Ahh...those were the days...

[Atman]

20. So insignifacant that Rush reads us daily...he's even quoted me!

One of my proudest moments, when he took a sarcastic post and read it as fact on-air. Skinner may not get invited on Real Time like Markos does, because it's not Skinner's Underground, it's not a site tied to one person the way KOS is. But DU is definitely read in wonk-dom.

.

[Sugar Smack]

25. I have GOT to hear this!!!!

:bounce: Tell me what the dumbshit said. PLEEEEEASE.

[Atman]

27. After 2006 I posted that it wouldn't surprise me if...

...the GOP used their Diebold machines to deliberately make sure they LOST just so they could blame the impending economic implosion and continued war on the Democrats. I thought the tone was obviously tongue-in-cheek enough that even a moran would see that it was sarcasm, which is why Rush couldn't...he's sub-moran, and read my whole post on air! Freeps still get a hard-on over it.

Sadly, as we head toward the 2008 election, with Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid having done NOTHING and the occupation of Iraq only escalating and the economy in meltdown, it doesn't seem like it was so tongue-in-cheek anymore.

.

[Sugar Smack]

30. OMG!

Well, that said, I LOVE YOU.:rofl: :loveya:

[Stephanie]

68. I am convinced >

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2726783

[Sugar Smack]

79. Oh, STEPHANIE, my eyes!!

:cry:

[Atman]

16. It's all in the way you're phrasing it...of course no one is paid specifically to post HERE

But you're completely delusional if you think there are not operatives in all the campaigns whose job it is to post on boards in general. Of course no one is paid to sit and post on DU. But they are paid to sit and post on DU, KOS, BartCop, etc, write LTTEs, and generally do whatever is necessary to get the message out. Absolutely.

.

[H2O Man]

23. True. n/t

[Djinn]

26. dude I have ten years PR experience

and I have to tell you that the estimation of those paid to do those things is WAY overstated.

Yes it happens (have been paid to do it myself) but LTTEs to a major daily are read by up to MILLIONS of people.

DU gets a couple of thousand (and I'm being generous)

It's the reason that your newspaper has ads for GM, Microsoft and McDonalds and DU has ads for dodgy mail order bride services registered in the caymans.

Yes SOME supposedly independent commentary is actually paid spin but it'd be less than 0.01% of that which you're suspiscious of and NONE of it is on DU

[Atman]

31. OVERSTATED is not the same as NON-EXISTENT

And dude, I see your ten years and raise you twenty.

You claimed it never happens. I'm telling you it DOES, and that the way you phrased your op is misleading. Again, no gets paid just to sit and post on DU. But they DO get paid to post online in general and to write letters to news orgs, and I don't doubt that some of those posts wind up on DU. I don't doubt it for a minute.

.

[Djinn]

49. can I ask what your experience is

because I'm sorry but I can't see how anyone with 20 years PR experience could possibly hold that any more than the most insignificant percentage of online contributions is there as a result of someone paid employment.

Sorry just don't buy it

Oh and what exactly is misleading about stating "no-one is paid to post here"?

[Atman]

64. I think I explained it quite clearly.

I don't disagree with you about being paid to post HERE. As in, "Mr. Activist, I'll give you five cents for every post you make on Democratic Underground" or "I'll pay you $100 a week to post on Democratic Underground." You're focused too much on DU...you said no one is paid to post on DU, a statement with which I agree...no one is paid to post specifically and exclusively on DU. But that isn't the message you were obviously trying to convey. You were inferring that there are simply no posts on DU that are here as a result of someone getting paid to put them here. I disagree 100%; people are paid to post on DU along with any site they can find like DU. I've said this three times now. Why is it so difficult to grasp?

And yes, you can ask what my experience is: I've owned a publishing and promotions company, I've written press releases for years for a variety of clients. I'd like to link you to one such release regarding the Kerry/Bush election which was picked up by CBS, E-Trade Financial, Denver Post, LA Times, Yahoo News, and half a dozen other major outlets -- it sounds and reads exactly like an objective news story, except for that I wrote every word of it myself and received compensation for it. It was published by every one of those news organizations verbatim, without changing a word of what I wrote. I can't/wont link it because it contains personal information which I'd rather not put online here, but it's easily accessible to those who know where to click.

In addition, I've worked for two advertising agencies as both a designer and copy writer, and I've even been paid to write magazine "articles" which appeared as content though they were actually nothing more than long advertisements for my clients. I know this business. DU is cheap advertising.

.

[walldude]

39. So nobody does it, but you claim you have, just to more people

Ok.. I think I get it. DU is not worth it. :eyes:

[Djinn]

51. sigh

learn to read dude. I said no-one is paid to post HERE.

I was paid to post in places with traffic that made it worth it. IT IS NOT WORTH IT ON DU

Can I make that any simpler for you? :eyes:

[Orangepeel]

22. it's easy enough to get people to voluntarily be assholes (n/t)

[bleever]

28. When I heard the head of the Rendon Group

say that "We do not participate in internet discussion groups" in that "I'm not lying" voice, it confirmed my suspicions.

Anyone else remember The Rendon Group?

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/8798997/the_man_who_sold_the_war

[Jed Dilligan]

29. From a strictly PR perspective you're right

But I am willing to entertain the possibility that campaign press flacks are being paid to monitor the blogosphere, and some end up posting here because they get annoyed or whatever. They aren't being paid to post but they are here because they are paid by campaigns to be here.

[lurky]

33. Stealth marketing.

People are paid to go to the hottest clubs and visibly smoke a certain brand of cigarettes, for instance, talking them up to other customers, all without acknowledging that they work for the brand. The idea is to get the "cool kids" to use the product, with the assumption that other people will follow.

While the readerships of DU and other blogs are relatively small compared to the voting public, DU readers are opinion leaders. They are active in politics, they are likely to get involved in political and issue campaigns, go to events, and they are likely to share their views and ideas with many other people offline. Paying a few dozen people to post on influential blogs is far cheaper than buying TV time, and it reaches a far more targeted audience. Add to this all the hype that Internet organizing has gotten in recent years, and all the campaigns have to be thinking, "We have to have a presence online."

Re the negativity: I suspect that certain major campaigns fear the netroots. Internet activists could force the candidates farther to the left than they want to go, and Internet movements are unpredictable and impossible to control. My hypothesis is that all the poo throwing is intended to discourage and suppress the internet community, to keep the netroots so focused on infighting that they don't have a big impact. Additionally, there may be some test-marketing of attacks going on -- If something seems to stick on the blogs, try rolling it out to the press.

This is all just speculation on my part, but this recurring argument that no campaign would ever pay money to post on DU is clearly specious. There is a long history of people covertly trying to influence opinion leaders.

[Rex]

36. Lies...

Paging Agent Smith.

[tandem5]

37. I don't think its unreasonable to think...

that political forums and blogs like this one seed topics for national discussion. I don't imagine there are concerted efforts to persuade the people who use this site (at an individual level), but I don't think its terribly radical to think that certain interests would try to influence the topic landscape in order to disseminate talking points in an efficient manner.

For instance, there are direct links between this site and bradblog.com and rawstory.com. Larissa Alexandrovna of rawstory posts here often and I just heard her being interviewed on Air America radio and rawstory and the democratic underground have been referenced by talking heads on cable. But even if a pundit isn't always referencing a blog or a forum they are definitely reading these sites.

Really its just the seeding of topics that's important because as you pointed out - "there are hordes of sad arsed people" ready to carry on the message for free. There is no guarantee that a certain message will bubble up to a higher distribution, but when it does its a hell of a lot cheaper than a 30 second spot.

Some companies acknowledge using this technique to advertise their products so why can't this work for politics?

[DaDooRonRon]

38. I will have to disagree

Political PR is a nationwide phenomena, and I am sure that that site (along with every other place on earth that can be "nuanced") is no stranger to the paid political announcement.

Please remember that it is the CONTENT here that the paid folks want disseminated - they could care less about the in-house discourse.

A main-stream mention of the fact they Candidate X is getting lots of support on Democratic Underground is invaluable.

That's the end game - no more, no less.

Actually, the premise that paid "operatives' are not on here is the ludicrous part of your argument, not the other way around.

[NoodleyAppendage]

41. Spoken like a true paid staffer. n/t

J

[Djinn]

50. you can PM

and I'll give you my real name which you can then google and see that I'm a union organiser in Australia fuckwit

[Sugar Smack]

65. Please don't call that poster "fuckwit".

I think he was just being facetious. I think he meant no harm. We're-a lot of us- blowing off steam. Peace on your head, eh?

[rucky]

118. That's Australian for "have a nice day"

try it next time you visit.

:hi:

[NoodleyAppendage]

74. It's called humor...look into it sometime. n/t

J

[Atman]

78. I think we've witnessed a Sugar Smackdown.

:hi:

(I posted that one for free.)

.

[Sugar Smack]

81. *eeee*---> You sure I can't slide ya 5 bucks cash money under

the table?:D


LOLOLOL

[Djinn]

106. generally it's supposed to funny

and when someone calls me a paid staffer (for a party I wouldn't even vote for let work for) I respond in kind.

[ileus]

44. you can either paypal me not to or to post here...I'll accept cash for either.

[BleedingHeartPatriot]

47. Not suprised. At least you put it out there.

As you wait for the metaphorical dollars in the metaphorical g-string. MKJ

[NashVegas]

46. I'll Stack My 5 Years in MMO War-Gaming Against Your 10 Years PR Experience

And say you're dead wrong.

There aren't very many who are, probably less than 10.

On top of that, about maybe 30-60 volunteers who are coordinating (although not all together), in my estimation. They may or may not be taking directions from the above -10. Some of them are sock puppets. Many of them are earnest about their candidates, but they don't give a shit their pissing in the pool.

[Djinn]

53. and the relevance of war gaming?

this is a post about whether people are paid to post at DU not the numbers of middle aged male virgins??

[NashVegas]

114. Oh My

You don't know the demo as well as you think you do.

[proud2BlibKansan]

52. How much did they pay you to post that?

:)

[Djinn]

54. tonnes

I admit it the GOP pays this Australian union organiser tonnes of cash to sway the few hundred people who post on DU

[SoCalDem]

55. I'm pretty sure no one has a contract that says:

Become a member of Democratic Underground and get paid to post there..

BUT...

every campaign has younger staffers who are web-savvy, and probably SOME part of their work-day requires them to "do opposition research" on the web..and to peruse the "blogs" and drop in pearls of wisdom, or "set the record straight"..

[H2O Man]

57. Right.

There are no ads being placed in the "Help Wanted" sections to find folks to join DU. But anyone who is familiar with the operations that Patrick Buchanan headed for the Nixon White House has a pretty good idea how the game is played.

[Stephanie]

63. Absolutely.

It is very naive to believe that the major campaigns don't have operatives working the major sites. They all do it. They'd be stupid not to.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1633118

[EFerrari]

67. I agreed to do it if the WB/K campaign signed me up

as a young staffer.

lol

[scarletwoman]

76. I wanted them to sign me up as a young staffer,

but they said I was too old.

[EFerrari]

80. LOL. Politicians will say ANYTHING.

Just don't let them promise you Arpege. :rofl:

[Kurovski]

82. The nerve.

The unmitigated gall.

Did you say you'd cut your rate?

[scarletwoman]

91. CUT my rate!?!?!? Are you kidding?

With all my years of experience, you should pay me DOUBLE.

[Kurovski]

96. I think by this time time in the thread it should be QUADRUPLED.

Considering all that...experience, and per our previous agreement.

[bleever]

108. Damn right. Just because we are free

doesn't mean we have to be cheap.

:patriot:

[Kurovski]

117. It's an area of American life where we still can be free.

We are blessed. :patriot:

[scarletwoman]

119. On the other hand, I'm cheap -- but not easy.

O8)

sw

[Atman]

69. Good luck

Hopefully you are able to get this point across better than I've been able to.

.

[H2O Man]

70. You got it across

very well.

[SoCalDem]

72. There are none so blind as those who refuse to see

or something like that :rofl:

[Sugar Smack]

92. Sorry to digress, but where in SWEET HELL do you get those siglines

of yours? They're really enchanting.:rofl: :D :toast: :bounce:

[SoCalDem]

94. I cruise the web..always looking for funny pics

The new one is from a favorite www.b3ta.com

fantastic artists..but verrry verrry dirty little potty mouths :)

Feel free to borrow any of my collection..
http://socaldem.smugmug.com/

[Sugar Smack]

98. Oh my god, you are the best- you & bridgit

open my eyes daily. Thanks for that, friend. :pals: :yourock:

[SoCalDem]

111. You are very welcome

:hi:

[Mutineer]

75. You doth protest too much

So therefore, the opposite must be true.

[JackRiddler]

84. Well, a lot of people SHOULD be paid

who are essentially volunteering their services.

No doubt most people who perform partisan functions are doing so on their own initiative.

But there is no doubt that people do get paid (or assigned as volunteers) - by campaigns, by PR companies - to represent certain points of view on Internet boards. No one gets paid just to hang around one forum, but you can get a lot of ground covered in a work shift, right?

This has been revealed in some cases (Monsanto, for example). It's considered to pay off regardless of audience size because Internet board readers are more likely to be "early adopters" or "multipliers."

Rather than empty accusations, I wish there was simply a disclosure rule. If you are being paid, you have to fess up. (Not that this is enforceable, but it sends the right message.)

[H2O Man]

85. I would gladly

accept coupons or even green stamps.

[Kurovski]

88. You'll just have to settle for admiration and respect.

But if you want to trade that in for some dough, I hear there's an opening in the Election Reform Forum.

[BlackVelvet04]

90. So, it's just me?

It's a great gig.

[Stephanie]

93. So as an Australian, what is your U.S. experience?

And why do you consider yourself such an expert? It seems you don't know much about U.S. campaign strategy.

[Atman]

100. Remember, shit swirls in the opposite direction down there.

:shrug:

.

[Djinn]

107. sorry forgot

in the US logic doesn't apply and they do everything differently.

Have to wonder why half the GOP strategists over the last few years have been ex Liberal Party campaigners...I guess the party that has dominated US politics lately has been listening to an Australian.

But shit, go for it, the more people over inflating their own importance here then the less they're out getting in the way of actual activists

[Breeze54]

102. Internet harassment by Far Right Wing Republican cyber groups is not new and well known.

The Internet Should Work Like Our Democracy

November 24th, 2006

http://www.democratictalkradio.com/06_internet_democracy.html

Internet harassment of Democratic or progressive political activists is a seriously problem that seems to be growing in scale and scope. Many Internet active Democrats have long been aware of organized harassment campaigns from large groups of Far Right Wing Republican cyber terrorists.

These tactics and harassment campaigns have created the terms “freeped” and “freeper” because it looks like many of the extremists involved seem to rally for the attacks with individual of a similar political bent at Free Republic.com. Everyone active at Free Republic.com are not involved in the “freeper” attacks. The terms are now applied to Right Wing extremist who use the harassment tactics but are not necessarily associated with Free Republic.com. The terms have become generic.

“Freepers” attack open message boards and blogs with smear campaigns in which they use profanity and obscenities, racist language, character attacks and false accusations. Every idea that is moderate, liberal or progressive is labeled communist or socialist. Anyone who does not completely follow the line of the Republican Far Right is called a traitor or supporter of terrorism.

These “freepers” attack the idea that the United States is or should be a democracy with venom. They often falsely claim to be independents or Libertarians while pursuing a completely Republican Right political agenda. They often attempt to infiltrate Democratic or progressive groups by claiming to be Democrats or progressives to stir up conflict or give credence to stereotypes of their opponents they wish to promote. Fundamentally, these “freeper” tactics are fascist in nature or worse.

Sometimes, their tactics appear to cross the line into criminal behaviors. Emails with viruses are sent. Websites are hacked and vandalized. Faked emails are sent with insulting or obscene content that seem to be coming from prominent Democratic or progressive Internet activists but are really being sent from “freepers.”

Some individuals who have been active in the past at sites like Free Republic.com have been connected to acts like the mailing of anthrax hoax letters. There is some Internet speculation that the deadly, real anthrax attacks shortly after 9-11 might have come from people who share political values with the “freepers” or who might be “freepers.” Unfortunately, the Bush Administration has still not solved the Anthrax Attack case.

Democratic Talk Radio has been victimized by “freeper” attacks of all sorts. In one week, we received over 10,000 pieces of hate mail. Our message board at Democratic Talk Radio.com has been filled with thousands of obscene messages until open posting was closed. “Freepers” have infiltrated our message board for Democratic activists to sow conflict. We have received anthrax hoax letters, emailed death threats, etc.

Recently, we are finding that thousands of pieces of spam are being sent that claims falsely to be coming from various fake names @democraticTalkRadio.com when no emails are ever sent from addresses using @democratictalkradio.com. Our mailbox is being flooded with undelivered spam being returned so real email does not always get to us.

Critics are complaining to AOL about receiving our Democratic Voices columns which are normally received by many local Democratic activists, union leaders, journalists, progressive websites and bloggers. AOL has disrupted our email access in acts of blatant political censorship and harassment based on politically motivated complaints.

AOL seems to think that their Terms of Service trumps the US Constitutional guarantees of Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Assembly. Anyone who does not want to receive our Democratic Voices opinion column can individually request to be removed by replying to our emails. You can block any sender from sending you email. The politically motivated Terms of Service complaints are crude attempts to keep our opinion columns from being received by the opinion leaders who currently receive them by individuals who disagree with their content.

Political emails are not commercial spam. AOL and other Internet providers are violating Constitutional rights when they attempt to block them from being sent when the emails do not contain profanity, obscenities or threats.

The Internet should work like our American Democracy. We should not try to restrict the rights of others to freely express their views. Political harassment, corporate control, censorship and dirty tricks have no place in our national tradition.

Written By Stephen Crockett and Al Lawrence (hosts of DemocraticTalkRadio.com ).
Mail: P.O. Box 283, Earleville, Maryland 21919. Phone: [phone]
Feel free to publish at no charge without prior permission in your newspaper, newsletter, website or blog.

[dweller]

103. cha-CHING! baby...

i just may get my pony afterall.


dp

[Individualist]

104. ...because you say so!

:eyes:

[Jamastiene]

109. What I wonder is: Who paid you to say that?

:P

[NuttyFluffers]

112. you can't be that naive. there's paid posters in video games and movie fan sites.

if it exists there, in some of the most remote, dankest halls of nerd-dom, it most definitely appears in the most remote, dankest halls of political forums. and DU ain't nowhere near that remote or dank (though this can be debated). perhaps you're just out of touch with what really goes on between the tubes on the internets? y'know, it's the far more probably possibility...

[Perry Logan]

113. Obama would probably pay his followers NOT to post most of the shit they've posted here.

[Echo In Light]

116. There are def many here supporting the moderate/corporatist agenda

They're usually the ones to deem genuine liberal philosophy/ideas as "crazy" or unrealistic at best, and can get down to some serious personal attacks when confronting any "conspiratorial" challange to their deeply ingrained belief system. As a side note, I've found that some of these posters are easy to spot by their sports logo avatars.

[Ravy]

121. I get paid to post here.

At least, for those posts I do when I am supposed to be working.