Probability on message boards

[GT40FIED]

In my many years on internet message boards, I've noticed many things follow laws of probability. That is to say, as a given discussion continues, the probability that someone will draw an inference to something completely unrelated increases. For instance...as a debate continues on and the longer it becomes, the likelyhood that someone will be compared unfavorably to Hitler will approach 1. Not to say that there are many other ways one can be compared to Hitler...but that's neither here nor there. That's about as constructive as getting into an argument with a black person and becoming so frustrated that you throw out the "N" word. It's inflamatory with no intellectual value. Likewise, the probability of anyone presenting an opinion post-9/11 that does not follow government approved speaking points being labeled as "unpatriotic" or "hating America" inevitably approaches 1. Trust me on that...I know for a fact. I suppose I can chalk that up to zeitgeist...whatever.

It has also come to my attention that as any given post becomes longer and contains bigger words, the probability that it will be overlooked and/or ignored by people who posted in a thread about masturbation multiple times will also approach 1.

I can't be the only one who's noticed stuff like this...so let's hear it. What message board inevitabilities do you notice?