I like that I can socialize (being an online forum is not ideal but not bad) with people who I know are coming from the same ideological starting point as me. Like I don’t need to give mountains of background info on “human nature being irredeemably bad is just a propaganda narrative” I can just dive into the topic at hand. That means you can get right to the meat of the discussion.
It is also been a great place online for me to not feel like I have to be on the defensive at all times, I can make a claim based partially on data and partially my gut feeling and not be torn to shreds, i.e. the critique is in good faith. It can be tiring to only engage in discussions where it feels like you are trying to convince the other person the whole time and they always request you “consider the other side” even when the other side is reactionary, riddled with conflicts of interest, provides no evidence, and is totally without merit🤢
It is a decent source of news but primarily a place for me to learn about how other people who have the same mindset as me but different lived experiences and who have read different things can see the same data that I see. Two heads are better than one.
In particular I really feel like my understanding of how gender and sexuality are tied to oppression has exploded from my time on here.
Unlike other social media, this place actually feels social rather than antisocial.
It’s also nice talking to people from all around the world, and to hear how we experience the same events differently. This works because, as said in other comments, it’s a respectful environment.