I've learned that if you can somehow toss in the word sex in the title of your post, the activity afforded that thread automatically increases 10 fold.
The name Hillary takes it off the charts.
I fear the day when both sex and Hillary are used at the same time in the title of a thread.
I'd really avoid a thread using both of those words in it's title. Yuck!
You mean, bait and switch?
For me, I normally read the blurb before I decide to jump in, as titles can be pretty misleading.
I've really enjoyed the Opus threads today. Have noticed a definite decrease in Viking Kitty threads the past day or two. This is both good, and bad, as the VK threads can be really funny at times, but it also means the trolls have been directed elsewhere.
Regarding the historical tenor of the site, I figure folks have to take it all in stride. BBSs were the same way back in the day. An echo would have highs and lows of civility depending upon what was in the daily news. I found the same thing to be true on some of the unmoderated mailing lists I used to be a member of waaaaaaaaay back before this WWW thing took off, and the internet was all gopher, archie, veronica, and ftp.
People don't seem to change all that much. We'll be all hot and bothered about something and there will be much yelling, and gnashing of teeth, then things will calm down a bit. Some folks will leave, some will stay, and newbies will join in and invariably ask stupid questions :-)
I'm kind of glad I didn't spend much time on the Schievo(sp?) threads, as from what little I saw, it brought out some of the worst in people. I think that is because it is so easy to personalize the situation. Every one can imagine tragedy striking a loved one or even themselves. That makes the emotional atmosphere even more charged than it normally would be. This upsets folks who think that because civility seems to be at a low point, that it is going to stay that way forever, but it won't. I think this is true mainly because it is difficult to maintain the energy that it takes to be so emotionally charged all the time. People need time to regroup and recharge their batteries.
I'd also like to point out here that I've seen some really great posts recently about a number of topics. Several threads about the Pope were, for the most part, a joy to read. They were also sad, in many ways, but I some of the rememberances were pretty uplifting.
So, to any who read this post, cheer up. This site will change from day to day. Some days you'll like it. Some days you won't. Take it all in stride and overall, you'll benefit from it. Where else will you find a thread about William Wallace's sword, followed by a thread about dark matter?
ROTFLMBO! Guaranteed to blow the top off the "Views" counter.