Why DarkPoetry Is Not Ad-Supported

Unlike other sites that are free to join, DarkPoetry doesn't monitor your activities in order to find information to sell to advertisers. Nor does DarkPoetry rely on advertisements to cover expenses, for reasons outlined below.

How to help? You can donate, upgrade, or help us gain new members who will support this way of community building.

DarkPoetry policy is that the culture of advertising is not generally good for self esteem, the environment, or the responsible use of personal resources. Therefore, DarkPoetry is 100% member supported.

Self Esteem

You are incomplete and imperfect.  That's the core message of nearly all advertising today.  If you do not have the latest iBrick or fashions, you are less valuable as a person than those who does have these things.

DarkPoetry says that just ain't so.

Growing up in such an environment makes people crazy. You can easily fall into a trap,  lusting after one thing after another, and enslave yourself to doing everything you can to keep buying.  You feel high from a burst of flimsy self-worth after each purchase of a lusted after thing, driving a dangerous cycle forward.

But what if you don't have the means to get what you lust after?  Welcome to being a loser. Yes, this is the badge you'll wear, and if you buy into the culture of consumption, you'll feel pretty bad about yourself.

But isn't DarkPoetry being a little hypocritical here?

Some would say that DarkPoetry has it's own consumerism in the fact that there are different membership levels, some which confer a certain status.  DarkPoetry also makes a lot of efforts to encourage members to upgrade, which equates to advertising.

Guity as charged... but- DarkPoetry staff will never treat a gold member as a more valuable person than a postcard member.  There is no favoritism in applying the rules or policies of the site for example, and your worth as a unique individual is never in question. Rather, you'll be judged on your contributions not just as an artist but possibly as a benefactor as well.

DarkPoetry also contributes a large portion of member dues (over 10% most years) to charitable purposes, which we can collectively feel very good about.

Commercialism can be constructive or destructive, and DarkPoetry does everything possible to be constructive to our members self esteem and the world at large.

The Environment

The USA (DP's home) has been a nation of consumption for over a century now, and the purveyors of goods have invented more and more effective means of accelerating the material aspects of life to an unsustainable rate.

The rate at which the limited and finite resources of the world are being exhausted is accelerating drastically.  Estimates are that most of the world's critical mineral and oil resources will be gone by 2030.

DarkPoetry says, "slow down a bit."  We'll do alright without helping sell a few more mountains of totally useless stuff and encouraging a debtor lifestyle for our poets.

Personal Finances

DarkPoetry believes in encouraging members to use their money responsibly since in the long run, your financial stability benefits us too.  Memberships are are completely optional: it is entirely possible to enjoy DarkPoetry without ever upgrading, indeed, most members don't!

Memberships are at-will and DarkPoetry does not ever destroy the creative works of members just because they aren't able to make the payment this month.  If a member lapses to a lower membership level, their works remain on their profile just as they were before.

DarkPoetry remains ad-free because it's good for all of us to keep it that way.  Ads are not just a visual distraction and clutter, but they bring DarkPoetry too far into that other world that we live in all day.  We're supposed to be a Sanctuary from the So-Called Normal World, so please, if you can, help us remain that way!