well, steve - i reckon his name is probably Ian (and i'm sure it isn't Turnip to be fair) apart from when he is opening another thread in an assumed name.   but you are right. i'm away off for a bit now and it is because of Ian - not the other good people on here, like yourself.

i don't think we have ever managed to have a reasonable discussion on here about eg 'different directions on the left and how best to pursue more progressive politics' -it's not a lot to ask but it's been impossible. ian has bored and insulted his way through everything and has proven to have more energy than the rest of us. i've tried various tactics - including ignoring him as we all have - but we can't get rid of him and the mods clearly have no wish to. i wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that adverts have started to appear within the threads? in itself another reason to go - but where to?

sorry - i'm not doing a very good job of staying off this thread eh?