"If you want to engage in a serious discussion...and I have engaged in many here...just go ahead and say what you want to say! And if someone else responds with abuse...don't get mad, get amused. That's what I do. It works. It does not alter your ability to continue having a serious discussion on that thread if you want to."

Sorry, Little Hawk, but I can't agree with that. It does alter your ability to have a serious discussion with others because even if you don't get diverted, too many others do, and that pretty well poops the whole thing out. Whenever I have ignored the abuse and tried to get on with the subject of the thread, I usually wind up talking to myself.

So it's not just the Resident Smut-Mouth that's the problem. If everyone DID actually ignore the little weasel and continued with the discussion at hand, then it would be fine. But that's not what happens. Joe Offer and others are right when they say not to respond to the troll(s), but experience demonstrates that that is naively idealistic. You can ignore the troll 'til hell freezes over, but if but everybody else IS responding, that pretty well ends the discussion and you may as well shut the computer down, go out to the fridge, and crack open a beer. Or just say "Screw it!" and hunt for another website that's moderated and won't allow this kind of crap, even if it isn't as enjoyable as Mudcat used to be. At least you can have a conversation with like-minded people.

So, excuse me. I'm going to get myself a beer, then come back to the computer and go googling.

See ya. Sometime. Maybe.