It's never seemed like much of a clique to me. Groups tend to form (and then unform) because of specific interests, but that's hardly exclusionary. I think a number of folks who feel strongly about the power of "group healing", exchange e-mails, but that was only because a few others felt uncomfortable with the concept. For most, I don't think it was a big issue either way.

I constantly exchange personal messages on technical music things with about five or six people. Nothing "closed" about it, just a lot of stuff (more than needed on the main forum) about 13th chords and Riley Puckett's fingerpick.

Strikes me that a "clique" doesn't welcome interested newcomers. Surely that's never been the case here. It's come up a few times because because folks surface and appear to be everywhere for a few days...naturally the folks they know best on the forum chip in with "you bet" and "that goes for me too" etc. It looks like a clique, but if you wait a bit, the demographics change....constantly. The most visible "cliques" are when folks get totally frustrated at the anonymous flaming, but that goes away (temporarily) as well.

Many of my friends are involved in computer-nurd or stock-trading discussion groups. THEY'VE got cliques!

Rick