so...can i ask for some support in GD?

[FirstLight]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/100210975

seriously wrote an OP about how to have to conversation with those who are trashing the movement's tactics...and it amazes me how many HERE are acting the very same way...lots of contempt for a movement that is supposed to be helping ALL of us. It's funny...people WANT change...but are unwilling to give up their comfort and such to achieve it...

hmm...sounds like spiritual awakening too...many want to consider themselves of a higher mind, but are unwilling to do the messy work to get there...


anyway, your help and thoughts are always appreciated

[Lionessa]

1. There's nothing spiritual about OWS, please don't try to turn it into that.

[OneGrassRoot]

2. I respectfully disagree...

I think every single aspect of our lives can be spiritual. In fact, to me, spirituality is about what we do with our daily human lives, putting principles and values into action.

Not everyone may approach OWS or other movements (political or otherwise) in a spiritual manner, but it certainly can be done, imho.

I try to.

[Matariki]

4. Lionessa, this group is specifically for the purpose of discussing spiritual issues

I don't know if perhaps DU3 makes group posts more visible to everyone, but this group is a sort of refuge for folks wanting to discuss spiritual issues, including how spirituality impacts *our* politics.

Perhaps this group isn't for you?

[bigmonkey]

5. This is kind of a strange response, here within this group.

As OGR said, discussion of a spiritual perspective on things is the reason the group exists.

[Lucinda]

6. I think it is a good idea, your thoughts may reach someone who needs them, however

we all know how things can go there, so I would just post with the best of intentions (which i am sure you always do) and stay centered

[lildreamer316]

7. Ahem.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/12407420

[Lucinda]

8. I do understand your point, and I also think it was handled beautifully upthread

I wonder if it's not a blessing is disguise to have our posts show in the latest?

People will find us who might not have, and disruptions can be easily and gracefully handled. I do understand the need to protect a safe haven too. Just putting my thoughts out there.

[lildreamer316]

9. Either way.

I just didn't want to cause unnecessary rancor and work for juries, but it doesn't really matter, as long as it's handled.

[FirstLight]

10. personally, i forgot that the group posts show on the Latest page

it is disconcerting to me... the only 2 threads i have posted here had an immediate negative response, from names i don;t know. I am feeling very of kilter and like our group is no longer a safe place.

this needs to be fixed IMO

[Matariki]

11. Yeah, I agree.

I don't want the things that I post in this group spilling over into the Main forums. I'm sure that everyone here is aware of how a significant number of folks on DU view religion & spirituality - much less alternative and minority religions and spirituality. That's their prerogative of course, but I really don't want to get into constant confrontations with people who are unable to be respectful of other folks spiritual practices.

[MorningGlow]

12. I agree

IMO, forums can be featured on the Latest page without too much harm, but so many groups are like ours--safe havens for like-minded people--that when potential disruptors see them in a spotlight (in the Latest list), they can't resist invading and spouting some vitriol.

Don't get me wrong--I do believe that fellow seekers should be able to find their way here, but I think that's accomplished through fate/being led and when we invite people in (when we see them in other discussion threads).

[Lucinda]

13. I am not sure that there is a fix for this in the works. People can filter out to some extent,

what they are showed on the latest page, but I don't know of a way to opt out as a group.

I'll make a post asking if a group will have the option to opt out of being listed, and if one exists we can decide if we want to use it?

[rosesaylavee]

14. Yes, please do so Lucinda...

What a thoroughly awful thing to happen to this group. If we can't have that, I doubt that many will return here. And from what I remember ,this was one of the the most active groups prior to this on the entire board. Maybe it's just a glitch.

When you find out, please start a new thread and let us know?

Thanks!

rosesaylavee

[I Have A Dream]

15. Yes, the only group that had more posts was the Keith Olberman group.

I personally don't have the energy to deal with conflict like this on a regular basis. I also hate that there's a Facebook 'like' button on our threads; I can only imagine how people (even long-time DUers) will post our threads on Facebook and mock them.

I've got to say that I no longer feel safe posting in this group. It's very sad.

[OneGrassRoot]

17. I didn't even realize that...

I mean, I did; I just didn't think of it being used that way.



Edit to add that maybe it's time for a new generation of ASAHers to connect and make their way here. Those who don't have the battle scars and have more energy for these specific types of conflicts.

[Uranus Needs Men]

16. Why do you have such a need for safety?

Embrace the Universal! Being clannish only serves to increase the insular view of the world. We are all One

[FirstLight]

18. because much of our stories are deeply personal

safety is not about being challenged, safety is just that...being safe. some of us have personal reasons for wanting our anonymity and privacy preserved.

not about being clannish, many of us here share lots of different views, all different views of the ONE

but the spiritual journey is highly personal, and sometimes here we need to share things that we would not tell the rest of the world, about abuses, memories, etc...

[Uranus Needs Men]

20. I totally agree with you about privacy

However, in regards to new faces or names, I think it's always better to embrace than to be suspicious right off the bat. I know that this used to be a closed forum but I think spirituality is about inclusiveness rather than exclusion.

[BanzaiBonnie]

19. This is not about being clannish

Sometimes, people have stalkers or... There are all sorts of reasons for needing safety. Some of us may have experienced being burned as witches in the past. Can you imagine how that might make one feel a need for caution?

BTW, welcome to DU. You sure found this group quickly. I am glad you have found that you can feel safe anywhere.

[Uranus Needs Men]

21. Not burned as a witch in this lifetime, right?

Funny you say that...I actually have felt that I was accused of being a witch in another life because I have always shied away from Paganism and the like. Two men asked me if I was a witch (literal one, not a biotch, LOL).

[Saokymo]

22. It's not the new faces...

...but the old assholes in the rest of the forum. There's a vocal anti-religion/spirituality group among DU. They can be very... aggressive towards those of opposing view points. Seeing our posts on the latest's page would very likely attract more than a few disruptors to our happy little space.

[I Have A Dream]

23. This group is one of the few places where we can speak freely without being ridiculed.

This is true at DU, and, for some people who post in this group, it's the only place where they can speak freely, period.

I personally have no problem with anyone knowing what I believe. I do have a problem with what we post being considered to be the entertainment of the day in a way that is snarky and belittling. Many people at DU have their own little derogatory terms for this group and for those of us who feel comfortable here. "Woo Woo" is considered to be a completely acceptable term for us at DU; to have it be thrown in our faces here is not acceptable.

This group has always embraced new people who have posted here in good faith; we have never been clannish. However, it is a safe haven, and I'm not willing to have it be anything else. In DU2, the 'Religion and Theology' forum was where battles raged, and they were not permitted to occur in our group. I intend to keep the battles out of this group. If that doesn't happen, I won't be posting here. Some people enjoy debate and confrontation. Others don't. I'm willing to discuss things with anyone. However, I will not be put in a situation where I am forced to defend everything I say.

[FirstLight]

24. + a Brazillion!

thanks for that...it's the defending stuff thatr hurts so very much, we are mostly here for support and healing, and contention or feeling violated is not a comfortable thing. ditto about leaving if we can't have our space...

[Mist]

25. Personally, it takes time and energy to deal with interruptions and rudeness. We come to this group

to be able to discuss our issues without that kind of interruption. When we post here we're really not in the mood to deal with sophmoric bs or hostility.