but I wanted to clarify that.

Ah. I had misunderstood. Thank you.

I still don't agree with you deleting but do agree it was entirely within your rights. But I don't feel that anger now.

First, I recognize that I've become someone who reads the board far more than I post. So my voice may not mean as much as it once did. But anyway...

I don't see a fight here. I see people with strong feelings expressing disagreement politely, courteously, and respectfully.

I'm also deeply saddened that posts have been removed. As a failed historian, I believe that the Internet offers a huge opportunity to the field because it allows future historians to discover what (relatively) ordinary people said, thought, and did at critical moments in history as well as in everyday life. Removing posts distorts that history.

On to the substance of the topic. I would strongly oppose any link to the discussion (as originally posted or with posts removed). I haven't seen anything about the TV Tropes mess other than what I've read here. But it seems that people have very strong feelings and no qualms about expressing them. Somebody is likely to feel aggrieved if we say anything. And linking to the discussion would make it too easy for anyone who perceives a grievance to mess with the board. Above all, I don't want anyone to mess with the board. (New posters wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing -- but I'd like to see them fit in with existing culture and/or take the board in a positive direction. Anyone who joined because of a perceived grievance against the board would not be likely to do that.)

I'm a little less concerned about someone acting on behalf of the board to tell a third party the story. However, before we do that, we'd need to resolve several matters. (1) Who would do the talking? (2) What would that person say? (3) What benefit (either to the board or more generally) would be gained by telling the story?

If I misunderstand the situation, my apologies. It was a rough weekend involving power outage and several car trips with very distressed cats. I hope to be fully awake by Wednesday.

I agree with you all on the whole we should just let it go because, so what? Feelings hurt, guy's a jerk. The end.

But also, FTR, I had suggested a donation because I thought he was sockpuppet but I had no way of getting people to look for an obit other than to say, "Were there charities he liked?"

I do wish that Cindy hadn't deleted because that is an important part of our history (clearly).

Also, if you think our kerfuffles are bad, imagine 6000 AP English teachers on a mailing list and you have the current kerfuffles I read on the internet.

I don't mean to get all Hec on anyone, but why is there a cat post in Press?

I was rather wondering that, as well.

This is a bullshit consensus I can get behind.

I'ma nuke it. I'm just used to cleaning up replies, not wandering original posts.

I'ma nuke it.

I consense!

Heh, ita ! is herding cats for the board now...

Between my move and other things, I had not read this thread in 2 months.

Holy fuck I cannot believe what I missed.

Are the deleted posts now restored?

Nope.

Not as far as I know. There are threadsucks of them, though.