But, no, this is Mudcat... People who found the BS mixed a problem wre dismissed as wingers, even now the BS split is plainly seen by some as a move caused by moany people who thought Mudcat should be about music.

Jon - our forum evolved. Any poster joining could plainly see what it had evolved into with the owners full support and the BS was fully part of this. It was not a pedantic site encouraging posters silly arguments about what other people chose to post and what was or was not on topic.

To my mind any poster who did not like this was free go elswhere and anyone under these circumstances who posts only to complain about what other posters choose to post (especially when it is just them being able to see the thread titles) - can safely be dismissed.

For events have proved that if you change to accomodate such complaints - the same people will just be encouraged to complain more, others will leave and the site becomes obsessed with order and futile attempts at control and finding way to judge the worth of posters and ways or inhibiting posting rather than find ways to encourage it.   

Some of our 'moderators' now set the example of constantly complaining about what other posters choose to post and mounting witch-hunts with abusive personal attacks and name-calling against individual posters - which this only encourages others to follow this example.

And these people would feel themselves qualified to impose their judgement on others.

For when some of these 'moderators' have now openly admitted the failure of all these measures to impose the peace that they require - do they then take any responsibility for this, step aside and allow some other course to be tried by different individuals? No they blame everyone else, introduce yet more restrictions (and on me in particular) and openly propose that the public are now excluded from posting freely and try their best to turn our forum in to the private members club that they already treat our forum as.

If they want this - why can they not go and start one? I am sure you will be able to help them do this Jon.