For those of you who have been around for awhile know that I keep pretty quiet on this board. I only respond when Rita or Mark are not around or I feel there is a need to intervene. Therefore, let me be the final word on this topic.

This board must be open to all ages, from the littlest one to the oldest one. We have kiddos who can barely type who enjoy learning to read on this site. We hear from parents who prefer how we let people express themselves in mature ways rather than using profanity. We also hear from people who prefer intellectual discussions. There was a time when we thought about separating out age groups so that people could have "mature" discussions rather than just reading "LOL" or other me too posts. However, we decided that keeping everyone together adds depth to the overall conversation. Older people have learned to reach out to the younger ones and the younger ones feel the need to improve their posts.

Over the years we have sent instant messages to a few people asking them to not just post one or two words. I would ask that moderators keep this type of request private so that a person does not feel attacked. Instead, we just ask. If they only feel like typing a word or two then we will not censor it (unless it is profanity or an ad). However, as people get older we are finding they tend to type better and their thoughts get more clear. The post count is not a race.

Finally, keep these two ideas prominent: (1) We must welcome everyone, and (2) remember to be kind to each other.