No, I don't think the OP has the right to close threads. I asked for that once myself, and I was informed that the thread, once started, belongs to the forum, not to me...even if it was my original idea. ;-)

That means this thread could theoretically go on FOREVER! Or at least until the forum ceases to exist.

That means there's no escape other than:

1. forbearance
2. one's own death
3. the end of Mudcat Cafe
5. the cessation of the Internet itself
6. a permanent power failure
7. worldwide nuclear war
8. an act of God shutting down this thread (joke!)