My response does not, however, address the larger issue of the sorts of intemperate, ad hominem attacks one see frequently on certain discussion groups. Have not the slightest reservation at declining to post such unacceptable material. Let me share one further thought. His actions were applauded. I support such action.
Time is the most inelastic commodity.
We occasionally had ill-mannered people show up and disrupt the sessions. Normally I could communicate with them behind the scenes and convince them that we were a quieter group and didn't appreciate the intensity they brought. In some cases we simply left them to the chat room, so they had little or no audience. Live chat is quite different from a list, though, so I'm not sure exactly how to proceed. I would suggest that a leader or some group even, write these disruptive folks and explain that it is a scholarly group and not really interested in that level of emotion.