Into the Forums

Local topics dominated the forum this week — an interesting reversal of a trend that has favored national topics for the last few months. A thread about the suicide of near-legendary moonshiner “Popcorn” Sutton brought out an interesting mix of views among the MX Boarders, with some expressing sadness at his passing while others are outraged at the dying man’s “cowardly” means of avoiding an almost certain death in prison.

Local bloggers were also asked about their daily amount of blogging time, exposing a wide range of online habits. And rumors and theories about the recent blaze at the Richmond Hill Inn also proved popular.

Worthy and active threads in the news section this week include four heated and ongoing discussions in the National subforum: the privacy rights of those with concealed-handgun permits; President Obama and socialism; the return of the Fairness Doctrine; and the brouhaha over the AIG bonus scandal.

Other active general-interest discussions include: the search for a “definitive” Asheville novel; a fun gimmick thread where posters rate each other on an ideological point scale; an inquiring thread asking “What magazines do you subscribe to?”; and many, many more.

Don’t see a discussion about that burning topic you’d like to talk about? Why not start your own? All registered members of MountainX.com have forum accounts, and if you aren’t a member, joining is easy — just click here.

Steve Shanafelt, forums administrator

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

9 thoughts on “Into the Forums

  1. Bugg was banned?
    Oh, dear.

    Despite chilling out the vibe & keeping conversations focused – it will make discussion less entertaining…

    I guess free speech in the boards only exists to a point.

  2. Piffy!

    It’s too bad, too, since 90% of his posts were witty and entertaining, and quite needed. Too bad he couldnt muster the maturity to reign in that other 10% of late-night drunkeness/offensiveness.

    I’m sure he expects the Forums to wither and die now, since he thinks he IS the Forums.

  3. bobaloo

    I guess free speech in the boards only exists to a point.

    There are rules posted. Follow them or don’t. The government doesn’t enforce free speech on privately owned web sites.
    I don’t mean to be harsh but I despise this argument.

Leave a Reply to Trey ×

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.