If small boards such as our BJU/BJB/BJR can achieve/maintain active participation at high levels, their Admins/Mods can do a better job. The staffs will have more latitude in policing, enforcement, an excising severely problematic members (negative nancys, Stever20’s (pot stirrers), novelists (hemingways)and CU Final Fours/gtmo’s/WB77s (sunshine pumpers).  As an additional benefit, a high participatory membership will routinely check and counter wildcard members and trolls, and help to keep the board climate healthy from the doom-n-gloomers.

But the greatest single threat to any board/website is fanbase apathy.  When a board plummets into apathy…any wushock, stever20, dawgiestyle, our numerous anxious negative nancy’s, or other vermin rise to run roughshod, reek havoc, and have a fieldday.  Such boards implode and die.  Our fanbase is knowledgable, diverse, and opinionated – and ALL are needed to maintain and to improve our boards. There is no indication that 10th St or another defunct board can/will make a comeback.

Individually opting out only adds to the problem, not the solution.  Participation is the solution.  We currently have 3 good boards – high level participation can make them great boards.  High member participation rates are both critical and vital for our low membership Bluejay boards.  Someone can find the numbers/stats on websites health, but a lack of hits and lack of participation have been the death knell of numerous sites.