Franks ULF Forum

[patrick smith]

Stu, I frankly don't recall him ever making those points. In fact, I think he was engaged in actions that prove those points. Really, John comes much closer to the heart of the matter. Frank ranged from amusing to offensive--though always far right, but when the tables were turned (i.e., the liberal elements finally gained the upper hand), he torched the place. If he can't handle the idea that there are people that hold opposing opinions and that they will advance those opinions as vociferously as he does, then that's his problem. Not mine. The ULF needed to be dismantled, but not simply because no one supported Frank.

 

John, if you are really interested in all the facts about that incident, email me.

 

My vote is to forget all about the ULF.

[prime lens]

Started as an impulse in Frank's perenially restless, hyperactive, peripatetic, and mischievous mind, the ULF was a fun and unique place.

 

I thought it was an interesting and refreshing experiment that ultimately became a learning experience for everyone involved, especially Frank. He apparently found out that it isn't as easy to run an online forum as he thought it would be, and that one must always be cognizant of unanticipated consequences in today's hyper-connected, ultra-intense world.

 

I opine that Frank's decision to post a partisan political banner was an inflammatory act that provided the ultimate and immediate impetus for the end.

 

It's true that the photo section never became active enough. There are lots of places to post photos online, but few in which to go at political subjects with unabashed fervor. Unfortunately, the dialogue did break down into the same old salvos being fired repeatedly by members of the same camps. Perhaps if it were not the year of a hotly-contested elction during "war"-time, the participants could have kept slightly cooler heads.

 

I miss the ULF as a place where discussions that were truly inappropriate for a venue such as this one cold have free reign. If the shadow of partisan management had not loomed so large, perhaps it would have lasted longer.

[Spearhead]

<i>a place where discussions that were truly inappropriate for a venue such as this one cold have free reign. </i><p>

 

You've never heard of usenet?

[patrick smith]

The forum was at its best when it was a political forum with liberals and conservatives. When Frank decided that he was "fresh out of friends" and adopted a partisan stance for the official stance of the site, things devolved quickly. It was fun while it lasted, but there is no reason to obsess over the demise. Post mortem examinations such as these are fun, but they won't right the wrongs that ended the ULF. I, for one, intend to write that chapter in my internet life off completely. I was young and feckless.