electoral partisan politics go caucus99% gives me a much better perspective of whats going on. I get different points of view here which run the gamut on both the horse races, issues and ideology. When you are bombarded with partisan establishment talking points. lies, memes and better then, not to mention fear of other I tend to balk. I don't want to be herded or fenced in.

I do not feel the need to self censor which works two ways as then I can read without rancor what others in this community think and why. It helps me connect the dots globally as the news, information, discussions chit chat and point of view here is not just about the US. Thanks joe this is not dreaded it's very welcome. Your meta has helped me to hone in on what I value here, why and how to take it onward as JtC said.

...I joined a long time ago. At least I think I am. We still haven't convened out first meeting.

This isn't the discussion about Greek cheese I was expecting.

I am one of the refuges, and am thankful you have taken us in. The discussions I've read have been interesting and informative.

A really great election site is https://www.reddit.com/r/sandersforpresident That is mostly all they do there. It is all about organizing, phone banking, etc.

So I enjoy the peaceful, thoughtful, discussions here. c99 is educational and we really need that too! (there was a diary about educating ourselves and the public here recently)

Thank you thank you admins and moderators!

http://caucus99percent.com/user/171/comments

Go to your "my account" - my comments

Could I ask what the admins would consider a fair donation for a subscription? I want to pay my way, but the only online subscription I have is at Daily Kos, and I am not sure what amount would be appropriate. I want to belong somewhere, and I feel I am getting a little too vocal in expressing my contrarian (to them) opinions there. It's only a matter of time before I cross the line, because I can just no longer contain myself. I realize now I was never a party Democrat, I am just a good old bleeding heart liberal and proud of it. So I would kind of like to rent enough space here for a sleeping bag and a clean change of clothes so I can keep up with the real truth instead of print or TV sources. Would maybe an annual dKos subscription rate be fair?

Thanks for passing along your thoughts, Joe. I, too, saw the diary in question and was, um, a bit taken aback. All I asked myself was, "Would Bernie agree to something like this?" And the answer to my mind was clearly "No way in hell!" I just backed away and moved on to other essays.

I tell you ... the site admins and moderators around here sure are to be commended. Holy cow ... this past three weeks must have seemed like the Huns descending on Rome! Only, of course, the Huns in this case are actually pretty much pussycats. Trust me, we are sooooo glad to be here. If we ever get out of hand and start breaking up the furniture, I trust you will firmly but gently steer us away from our barbaric tendencies and toward our better selves ...

These Meta 1&2 and the Welcome Mat diaries are a great idea and clarified a lot for me. I've just gotten here and was wandering and wondering what was going on and how to best interact with the community. I'd visited a few times before joining, but still didn't have a good grasp of its mission, though I appreciated the content. The Meta 2 diary today was super helpful. Not to be asking for yet more, because I know y'all have gotten a lot of unsolicited advice for improvements, damn, well here it goes: Do you mind posting links to these three diaries on the front page after your notice "Attention New Members" and also after the welcome sentence on the FAQ page? With the hint that new members may want to read these first.

And along the lines of bringing something useful to the community myself (packing my camel with goodies to trade, per Mimi's analogy), I plan to try my hand writing diaries on environmental issues. Cross your fingers, painting is more my thing, not writing!

I hope that education becomes an important part of c99. The truth, I believe, is that we have all become victims of the Western media and common, unenlightened attitudes of fellow Liberals. I rejected American Capitalism 50 years ago in an American History (indoctrination)class in my high school. I did not replace it with any other common political/economic philosophy, although I am open to learning all that I can. I would classify my quest as one of education and occasional activism where it was clear the it was the correct path, especially anti-war.

I have spent some time in China and Russia lately talking to people and then reading all that I can about their politics and economics. It has been eye-opening. We really don't have the answer to much in the US, and our answers are very hypocritical. In order to move forward, we need open dialog, and sharing of information, especially first-hand, and most of all we need open minds.

So what does this have to do with Meta on c99? Everything! I would see this endeavor, c99, as a quest to find answers. I am convinced that politics today in the US is a rathole. If you work with a knowledge base that is deeply flawed, and then accept a very few hypotheses then you will follow others down the many ratholes that currently exist.

What I'm saying is that when you appear here I would like to see you drop your baggage. Criticism of candidates is fair if you are pointing out the absurdity of business as it is currently carried out, or the hypocrisy of the candidate her/him/self. But that's almost too easy. I have never seen two more flawed candidates, ever, although Shrub is certainly a card carrying member of that set.

The best diaries on GOS were well researched and their primary goal was to educate. Also the best diaries were those that taught us about ourselves, and I think that the great example is OPOL. I think that generating quality essays is going to make or break this site. The GOS himself had little to do with the success of the orange devil. It was the hard work of smart, passionate writers, and it was the time, namely Shrub, 911 and the Iraq war. Are we at a similar singularity point? I think so, perhaps even more so. GOS drove away many of the best writers, you all know exactly what I am talking about. We need to cherish the best writers, especially the most passionate ones. This environment should be open and nurturing.

So how do we deal with those that have an (intolerant) axe to grind? Hmmm, I'm not sure, but the first step is to create an awareness of what we want.

Ty for clarification. For this site. Look forward to contributing. Read it every day now.

I'm just glad to be somewhere I can express myself without the usual metabullshit that comes with having a differing opinion. I actually enjoy differing opinions, who said I was god and know everything, amirte? Healthy discussions of differing opinions is the crucible of reason, logic and understanding. I will strive to be a better writer, and your input is very much appreciated, even if we might disagree.

Thanks for this site!