[ex-snook]

As a member of the class of '98, I've seen a few take-over attempts. Their MO has been to purge others who disagree with them. Looks like when they can't do that, the latest rage is to mount a kamikaze attack.

[Billthedrill]

Roger on the takeover attempts. Two in particular come to mind - one some years ago by a group of vociferous Christian fundamentalists (remember Lenny the "heater heater" guy?) in which I was called an agent of Satan and another, more recent one, by some Southron enthusiasts for whom "Yankee" was a mortal insult. It isn't that Christians and Southrons aren't welcome and still populate the board; what is not permissible is the bullying and intimidation that these cliques ended up employing.

The M.O. was pretty much what we saw over the last several weeks - disagree with one of them and you'd get a mass ping to rally the troops, after which the heretic was assaulted from all sides in numbers impossible to reply to. Having been on the receiving end of that a few times I can tell you how infuriating it can be and how difficult it is to keep one's cool when it happens.

Terri's death has cast a dash of cold water on this particular boilover, not before it created a number of unnecessary casualties. It may be that some of us old-timers have come to depend on the Moderators too much to maintain board decorum. Here I plead guilty. There are worse things than being sneered at as a "forum cop," such as losing the forum, for one. It may be that in exchange for the undeniable slack some of us get cut, a little more exertion in the interest of politesse is in order. I find the role distasteful, but the alternative is worse.