This is me. I'll verify this post when I can get in through the front door.

From my experience, as a member since July of 2000 as well as from reading through threads from before I joined, I have to say that the idea that the Mudcat was less contentious way back when is not really the case. The Mudcat was going through some very terrible times when I first joined. From my experience, I've seen that we have times that are very contentious interspersed with times that are more peaceful.

Each time we go through a contentious period, some people leave, the Mudcat goes through some kind of growth or change (for instance, the innovation of having an "above the line" separated from the "BS" threads), and then things calm down for a while. My take on it is that these contentious times are like growing pains. Whenever we get through some, the Mudcat comes out somehow different. But not always necessarily better or worse. Just different. For me the most difficult changes in the Mudcat happen when someone I care about passes on.

I wish you could have met Rick, Azizi. I think you would have liked him.