Very good point Ham.

I see it as evolution but in two directions.

One is that  this site has grown exponentially in the number of posters and hits. Where there used to be a smaller community of folks who mostly knew each other there is now a much larger group from all over the world and with very different personalities and degrees of civility.  This direction is just a part of growth, in my opinion.

The other direction I see happening here and elsewhere in the US is the constant infusion of politics and political views into almost every post.  There are folks here that feel it necessary to copy and paste a statement I posted a couple years ago on the boiler room as a byline in every one of his posts.

This second direction unfortunately seems to be the direction our country is heading also - complete, total and uncompromising polarization of views that extend into and infect everything including ag machinery and crop discussions.  In this sad state of affairs maybe New Ag Talk is just reflecting a trend in our nation.

Ham, thank you for making us think about this subject.

Overall in my opinion though there is nothing wrong here a little more civility and manners wouldn't cure.

As always, jmho.

Jim at Dawn