i really want to play a balance druid "boomkin"... can they pull good dps? will they get nerfed in the future? is it easy to get into raids on one? i need to know the answers to all these questions before i make my decision I REFUSE to play a mage or lock...maybe a hunter or ele shammy?

yes, the best would be a druid or shamin for dps.

Yes, the laser chicken can pull pretty good DPS. No idea if it will get nerfed in the future because, well none of us has a crystal ball. But they are pretty good, have good utility and are uncommon enough to be useful.

Ele shamans too to be honest.

But end of the day play what you enjoy.

First off, feel free to award points if you want to but I'm answering merely because your question caught my eye and because I play both a Balance Druid and an Elemental Shaman. I usually raid on my Boomchicken since she currently has better gear and because of the Hurricane AoE and Tranquility AoE healing in a pinch...oh, and let's not forget the Brez that brings a target back at full health, doesn't leave a debuff, and that nifty Innervate (if applicable) too! Generally yes, this toon is desired in my guild's 25-player raids and yes, it is one of the only raiding guilds on my server but that hardly means it's the best ;-)

However, because she's wearing leather, she's still really squishy compared to my Shammy, who is also a pretty sturdy single or limited target off-healer. Her DPS AoE leaves much to be desired in my opinion though. This toon is also my primary PvP one (just FYI). I'm LOVING my glyph that allows me to cast Lighting Bolt while moving - it rocks and my DPS increased A LOT with that ability. In ZA/ZG runs and Cata Heroics she puts up about 11K - 12K, at times with trash mobs more like 9.5K.

Back to the Balance Druid, yes, once geared the DPS output is decent enough. With just MotW and of course being hit capped, my lowest DPS can be around 11.5K - 13.5K and raiding usually sits somewhere between 14K - 15.5K....damage data has so many factors playing into it so I'm never too worried about it; it just has to be good enough. Also, if I do end up off-healing a bit, that of course will drop that damage output (duh) but what you've then contributed to the raid overall is priceless.

In regard to nerfing the druid, very unlikely....the shammy, hopefully not.

Finally, if you want to top the charts with a ranged DPS toon, go with the hunter. Our top hunter does about 17K on average with raid buffs, etc. and at times closer to 20K. However, there are times when the hunters have to rotate and there can be more players rolling (or bidding) on gear.

Hope this helped even just a little and sorry if it didn't; it's not my intention to waste your time or tell you what to do; just wanted to share my experiences so far! Happy gaming ;-)