This place has really changed in a short amount of time

be time to take a number around here.

I suppose we will have to form a nationwide group of moderated and unmoderated internet forums that will focus on different states and districts on getting the right people in office and hounding our current reps and senators....

AND I MEAN HOUND THOSE BAS%$#DS!

I figure this will look like a vacation when we have to deal with state party chairs etc...

T

I just joined a few weeks ago, but have been frequenting this site since its inception, and I too have noticed a change in the atmosphere here. What happened, IMO, is the movement is growing and a lot of new people have come on board. Just look at the stats that were posted the other day, the growth of traffic on this site is amazing.

Many of these people are not only new to the DailyPaul, but new to politics, current events, economics, etc., and more importantly the philosophy of liberty. To those who have been following these things and espousing this philosophy for a longer period of time, some of the questions posed here may seem stupid, some of the threads may seem foolish, but with any site and movement whose growth is exponential and new members are joining daily you will have this.

The philosophy that Ron Paul and most of us are promoting, while elegantly simple on the surface, has a lot of nuances that to many are at first hard to grasp. It is a different way of thinking than what has been ingrained in our brains our entire lives. Thinking back to my "awakening", it was not easy at first to grasp, there was a period of deprogramming and study involved where my entire world view was flipped on its head. There were also a lot of questions that may have seemed stupid when asked. I am grateful that in this crucial time for my own growth, those answers were given freely

This is why it is important to not call people "trolls", or to say "what does this have to do with getting Dr. Paul elected", but to welcome them and teach them, make them better assets to the campaign and better citizens in general by helping open the door for them. Education about any topic posted here has everything to do with getting Dr. Paul elected. Without that, even if we win, we still lose in the long run for lack of unity and understanding.

That said, there are no doubt many who are also operatives, anti-Paulians, etc, trying to sew discord among us. At the end of the day this is still politics. Anyone yelling troll all the time is always suspect in my book, as well as anyone insulting others, or posting negative item after negative item. At the very least, there are some who are certainly not practicing the message.

However, one should always be given the benefit of the doubt. Patience, tolerance and restraint must be employed, lest we will destroy ourselves.

It is easy to be cynical because of what we are up against, but to anyone who has been with Paul since the beginning or before (I learned of him in late 2004), ask yourself if you really honestly thought we would get this far. We have reason for celebration, win or lose, because what many of us have dreamed of for years is actually happening. People are waking up (especially the youth), the Constitution is back in the national discourse, and future elections will never be the same because of it. We have already won, so long as we can remain united under the banner of liberty. We must be positive moving forward, help each other learn and grow, and most importantly, lose all the negativity that has been going around.

My $.02

Ram

"Do not look back and grieve over the past for it is gone,and do not be troubled about the future ,for it has not yet come,live in the present,and make it so beautiful it will be worth remembering."

"Observe the masses,and do the opposite."

You ask in your post "What Happened?" I think growth happened. We now have more people on-line than before; we have new people who are just getting into the process.

Right now at 9:34 PM on Christmas Day evening we have over 500 people on-line. Wow. During the day, we are now getting over 1,000 regularly. We were running -- when I would look, about 700 -- then we jumped up to over 1,000 during the day-time regularly. That was great growth.

Growth is a true test of our effort to save the Constitution for this website. Most polls place us at 4-6-8-10%; if we want to win the White House we need to do a great deal better than that. Even if we are a bit off with the polls -- we still have a long ways to go. So Daily Paul progress in terms of growth is a good gage of how we are growing as a nationwide effort.

Daily Paul should be listed on the National Campaign website.

For the Ron Paul supporter, I would say there is a "learning curve" that is different for each person, but shares some overlapping. Some of us are brought into the effort by different issues, but the more we read the more we learn about other issues, which many seem to be centered around civil liberty; we grow. Some want to Home School, some want the right to have a gun, some want our troops home, some want freedom of worship, some want freedom to take vitamins (FDA outlawing them and other unbelievable tactics), etc. Many of us make the jump to 9-11, CFR, One World Government (New World Order), Fed Reserve, etc; many Ron Paul supporters do not make that jump. Each supporter has to be respected and feel welcomed. Some threads talk about feeling upset because if they post an opinion or ask a question that some do not like, then they are called trolls or sliced via the written word.

The purpose of the said Daily Paul is to promote the campaign; promoting the campaign is open. Personally, when I see a post that is not what I am not interested in, I just skip it. People grow in different ways; I think as a community, various topics are good because we all learn a little differently. I have read some posts, which were off topic, but yet, some of them have inspired me to do more. Besides, you can only say "go door to door" so many times; you need new posts and threads to keep people coming back -- and participating.

The site is owned by Michael; we are all his guests; it is really up to him to settle what is or what is not. I am glad for the efforts of all, and do appreciate each effort to save the Constitution.

I do wish people would not use foul words in their writing and would be more civil in their writings, and if you disagree with someone, be respectful. My concern is when we flame someone who we do not agree with entirely, they may walk away and not return. I have seen this so many times in volunteer efforts over the years. The overall cause of saving the Constitution must be placed before our own egos -- if we want to succeed. If we want to lift the nation, we need to lift each other. IF -- we want to solve the challenges of our nation; we need to reach common mutual respect and common ground between ourselves. When we flame a brother supporter who has his own way of campaigning; we become no better than Bush and Cheney. Sometimes the right way, or the right idea, is actually several ways, and several different ideas. Civil discourse should be the hallmark of Ron Paul supporters, if we want the Cause to grow; otherwise we will offend people away. Thank you again for all of the countless hours each of you spends on our effort to save the Constitution.

I'm waiting for Mayberry and Company to swing by and tag this post with their "Troll" stamp.
If I have any complaint, it is that those kinds of attacks are allowed to continue unchecked.

I could swear I've had this feeling before... where was it... people getting blasted as trolls for bringing up valid questions... honest debate being squashed... what's next, banning certain discussion?

OH, now i remember it was at REDSTATE.

--------------------------------------------------------
We don't know how to mind our own business
'Cause the whole worlds got to be just like us
Now we are fighting a war over there
No matter who's the winner
We can't pay the cost
--Steppenwolf 19

From reading the posts in this thread it appears that some of you may think that, and please correct me if I am wrong. That if someone has a genuine interest and wants to learn more about Mr. Paul and his positions, then they should NOT be posting here asking questions about it? Is this correct?

.
I don't see much change in the overall Daily Paul. People come in, leave some good ides, some good videos, make comments about this and that. Some of us have been around since June. Others joined an hour ago.

The only problem with this post is that it doesn't really help the Ron Paul campaign. That's the reason Daily Paul was created - to help Ron Paul get elected.

we went viral! Ain't it great? More people keep showing up each and every consecutive day! I can hardly believe the growth of the Users and Visitor's numbers over the last couple of weeks!

Hell. Even the trolls have showed up en mass...posting worthless diatribes about others and asking innocuous rhetorical questions that serve no constructive purpose except to Paul detractors.

You know, those lurkers who'd like nothing better than the opportunity to paint the illusion of unrest and dissatisfaction in the Paul camp. But hey! In my opinion, this is great news as it only shows how afraid they are that their precious status quo may be in Jeopardy.

Fear of the loss of ownership and control of the Republican Party is causing many a testicle to rise into an auspiciously high and uncomfortable position. The puckering tightness felt in the nether region of the Democrats is a result of the constant internal dialog over their continued continuity or lack thereof.

Of course they attempt loose the dawgz and lay havoc to the infirm amongst the supporters at Daily Paul only to have them return famished as their hunting goes awry and no opinions are turned. Tisk...Tisk...to their efforts. St. Crispin's day is about us and we cheer in unison for our leader as well as our brethren.

We are winning and nothing can overshadow that. Not even mass dissatisfaction on the Daily Paul. (which is of course a myth and an impossibility.)

Go Ron Paul!.....GO!

And it will be back on track.