Indeed the end of an era.
There was an actual moment there where it was all on the line, free from groupthink. It was was quite fun; a unique gash in time, to be able to talk as an adult about the state of things. Straight-up feedback was expected and encouraged. I felt lucky, almost as if I happened upon a room full of smart people talking about things I was interested in. I was fortunate enough to be invited in and allowed to sit down, even for a ‘short’ time and participate in discussions that were punching way above my weight.
Yes, it got prickly at times, but I thought most of us could handle ourselves. Franz B, whose existence was the most meta debate of it all, flew under the radar by by providing an obscure alias, subverting the can’t-be-a-stranger rules that are in place here. And it was Franz B that showed us that the moment had passed, the litmus turned red. It’s unfortunate that we can’t seem to self correct and keep it on the topics, not on the personalities.
I hope the archive gets to remain, even if the content gets a little sticky at times, the overall takeaway is pretty interesting.
Aindreas, you have an admirable way with words, sir. Every time you write, there’s something to ponder. Your comments and posts were a big reason to keep coming back. I hope whatever the next iteration of this page becomes, it’s interesting enough that you still hang around and participate.
Cheers.