I've been a member of many forums over the years. Most of them no longer exist, largely down to mistakes by the "management" - mods and admin. Sometimes they fail because of insufficient intervention leading to unpleasant and offputting infighting; mostly they fail because of too much intervention.
ASIF has evolved since its start. Nowadays the most active threads are concerned with rapidly-developing situations: hurricanes, floods, wildfires. This is regrettable, when we're supposed to be discussing events that can only be seen over decades, not hours. But very human. My bookmark to the forum is "Recent Unread Topics", leading me straight to the most active threads. I'm as much a news junkie as everyone <slaps wrist>.
This forum is a diamond. The subtitle "Interesting Discussions" applied when I joined seven years ago, and still applies today. ASIF is my first calling-point when I start an online session, and usually my last before I shut down. Somehow, Neven has managed to get the balance just right - King Log rather than King Stork:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Frogs_Who_Desired_a_KingInstead of jumping straight in with a putdown, Neven tends to leave the offender alone until it's quite clear that normal warnings by other members aren't going to work. Then, and only then, he steps in and usually manages to calm things down.
Blumenkraft, I feel, wouldn't take this approach. He administers fast slapdowns, often unfairly, and using quite a lot of obscenity (including a recent one to myself, so I'm admitting a bias here). He likes arguments, and likes to keep them going as long as he can. A forum where he had authority would be very different from the one we have now. He says
readiness to find a heated argument even where none need exist.
Guilty as charged i guess. But as a moderator, i would be aware of the responsibility and not act like i was a random forum member. A moderator needs to be neutral.
"A moderator needs to be neutral". Blum cannot be neutral. He's headstrong and passionate. This is an asset in a forum member - ASIF would be a poorer and more lonely place without him and others like him - but it's usually unwise to give authority to people like that. I have never seen anyone becoming MORE moderate when given authority. Usually they become a lot more immoderate.