club and I the fact is that you are wrong. It's not a matter of opinion. The board and the club are separate. There is no requirement to post club affiliation on the board, it is what people choose to do. And club membership is only a requirement of a contest, etc. if the INDIVIDUAL who is making the original posts CHOOSES to make it a requirement. That is not a function of the board or the club, but the desires of an individual, who is free to sell to whomever they want, or open contests to whomever they want.

This is not a club bulletin board. Your perception does not make it so.

And, I have never felt excluded by any clique. I have met only a tiny number of people from the board, I spent years on the board before I was a member of the club, but I always felt welcomed and accepted and I got help from so many posters. In my experience, most of the people I have seen complain about cliques over the years have been people who like to create or jump into controversies. Now, I have seen people unnecessarily jumped on, and I have seen people defend people because they are friends even though their friend did not behave well on the board. Sure. But that is how people act. It's loyalty. And anyone can earn that sort of loyalty by the way they interact on the board, through e-mail and even meeting in person. Just like any other situation in life. And, of course, the political posts can get ugly. That's why I rarely read them anymore. No one is ever convinced to change their minds by them anyway.

And, by the way, you seem like a fine person. I have no reason to pick on you. I just disagree with your position, which you are free to have and to express. This is mine.

JMHO

Michael Siskin