Welcome to the Wayback Machine, a new diary series for Motley Moose. The Wayback Machine will revisit diaries of days gone by…a peek into our moosely past. The original diary will be linked to, and reposted in full, but, with a fresh comment thread. If you have requests for the Wayback Machine, use the ‘Contact the Moose’ link at the bottom of the page and let us know your ideas.
The first diary that we shall revisit is the celebratory Millennium Moose diary. It is a brief look at the beginnings of the Moose and has, in itself, some examples of our early diaries. The original diary Millenium Moose: A Message to All Moose and Lurkers was Motley Moose’s 1000th diary, one of many milestones we have passed since we launched.
As someone somewhere once said: “you can’t know where you are going without knowing first where you have been”
So, join us for a look back…
Calling all Moose!
Welcome to the 1000th Motley Diary on The Moose. Please share your favorite memory, diary, comment or image in the comments. Also, if you have any suggestions of things you would like to see on the Moose, now’s the time to let us know. What’s on your Moosey minds?
A special invite to the lurkers amongst you to chime in and let us know what you think of the site. What do you think we can do to to lure the lurkers out of hiding?
It’s a milestone celebration….come join in on the fun!
How did we get here?
When we were very young
The Motley Moose was born from the ashes of the 2008 Democratic primary wars. The site was a joint effort by twenty-five active political bloggers (a healthy mix of long-time Obama supporters, ‘Clintonistas’, centrists and even a couple former Republicans).The idea was to build a Post-Primary Democratic site that could move forward instead of looking back.
We tired of the incessant fighting and trollery on other political blogs
The constant dramz was detracting from constructive discussion.
A tipping point was reached when the noise from trolls and others intent on stirring division made civil discussion near impossible. We set out to build a new place to gather, one with clear lines of moderation and a healthy dose of snark.
Here at the Moose, we value well reasoned discourse and have a fondness for snark and dry wit.
The Moose promotes Progressive Democratic values and believes that fighting for their institution will pave the way to a stronger more united nation.
We chose Purple as our primary site color because, like Obama, we feel that moving beyond the division of ‘Red’ states and ‘Blue’ states is vital to the well being our country.
We have grown far beyond those original 25 bloggers, and they have blended into the Herd as the Moose Community has expanded. Motley Moose has found a niche in the political blog world and is earning a reputation for both well researched diaries and hard hitting snark. The focus on Community has allowed an informative yet fun loving atmosphere to develop and we hope to continue to foster this as we move forward.
Diaries on the way to 1000
The Moose who write diaries for Motley Moose are a varied bunch. As such, the diaries they gift us with run the gamut. While our primary focus is on political and social issues, we also have a healthy dose of Snark filled writing from The Lounge.
Here are a very few of the topics covered by the Herd:
Mooses have always stood in staunch support of Barack Obama, both as the Democratic nominee and as our President. We stood behind him in the midst of his hard-fought battle against Republican nominee John McCain, who ran one of the sleaziest smear campaigns in the history of American politics. We weathered the storm along with our nominee and are proud to call him our President. Many of us eagerly waited a long time for a Democratic victory and are confident that Obama is well suited to run this great nation and well positioned to restore our standing within the international community.
President Barack Obama by ChrisBlask
Putting Away Childish Things by Douglas Watts
We here at Motley Moose support our men and women in uniform. Mooses have written a wide variety of diaries in support of our troops and have sought to highlight and address pressing issues in the military. We look forward to the day when President Obama can safely bring our troops home from overseas.
A Fallen American Soldier by Michelle Marshall
Their Silent Suffering by Sricki
We have a wide array of opinions and perspectives on LGBT issues here on The Moose. We have been privileged to feature diaries from both domestic and international perspectives. Our points of view on individual topics may differ, but as a whole we believe that bigotry and hatred should be exposed, fought, and stamped out. As a community we are dedicated to an attitude of enlightenment on LGBT issues.
How did this Happen? British LGBT Community on the Rise by Brit
Gay Marriage — be careful what you fight for by GrassRootsOrganizer
You’ll be hard-pressed to locate a more diverse group of feminists than we have here at The Moose. From our female and male bloggers alike, the feminist perspective is well represented. We believe in equal rights and equal treatment. Some of our most prolific diarists lend their focus primarily to women’s issues, and the topics addressed range from discussions of gender roles in society to sexism in the media.
All The Things That Women Are Interested In by Canadian Gal
Just Because She Sings and Dances in Her Underwear… by Guest Blogger SChurchwell
One of the features unique to Motley Moose is our Lounge. One of the earliest goals of the Moose was to embrace humor and provide a place for Snark to reign. Diaries labeled The Lounge are ‘serious-free’ zones. Lighthearted and cheeky, or biting and snarky, The Lounge diaries are sure to bring a smile, chuckle or the occasional raised eyebrow.
Al Qaeda Leadership Gather For Secret Meeting. “EFCA is The Great Satan!” by The National Gadfly
Natural Born Citizens : The Lunatic Fringe attacks! by Spacemanspiff
Cussin’ is Patriotic! by Stipes!
While those are but a handful of the 1000 diaries posted thus far, Motley Moose wants to thank every diarist who has written for the Moose. The diaries (and the comments found within) provide an endless source of knowledge and humor that is appreciated by all who visit. We would not be the strong Community that we are without each of you.
Lurkers!!
Hi lurkers, we know you’re out there.
We have an amazing community of regular diarists and commenters, but we know that there are so many of you out there yearning to join the Moose Herd. Sign up! Motley Mooses don’t bite, in fact, new Moose are always greeted enthusiastically. 😉
It’s easy!
Come out Lurkers…even if it is to taunt and naysay from the sidelines like Statler and Waldorf. We love that!
Where do we go from here?
Motley Moose has become ‘home base’ for many long time political bloggers. It has also proven to be a welcoming place for those new to the blogs. We have built a quality member base, a strong Community foundation on which the success of the blog rests. The Moose Herd will grow, but the focus on working together towards common goals will always be at the heart of Motley Moose. It is this sense of Community that will let the Moose continue to to thrive going forward.
We Moose are a fun loving bunch.
MARCO!!
Motley Moose has a very loyal following. 
We will soon be starting MA meetings.
After all….
We believe that one blog, one blogger, can make a difference. The ripple from one tossed pebble can a tsunami make.
Through tears and laughter we have made it to the 1000th diary mark. Hopefully Motley Moose will see 1000’s more in the future. Perhaps one of yours?
Thank you one and all for making the first 6 months a smashing success!
-Motley Moose
~~Motley Moose…Progress Throu
gh Politics~~
Come join the Herd!
75 comments