Revisiting the famous cult mushroom thread

November 30, 2005 2:23 PM

Just to tell all of you the famous mushroom thread is finally tapering off. (But can it still reach the 1000 post goal?) Have there been more and more pictures and silliness in threads since the mushroom thread? Now that we are able to look back on the mushroom thread, is it the cause or the symptom of this growth in silliness? I've been here not as long as many, but it feels like there has been a definite and noticable increase in the silly factor. I am not saying this is wrong, just sort of curious what caused it.
posted by TwelveTwo to MetaFilter-related at 2:23 PM (88 comments total)

That thread is the physical embodiment of the imminent death of Metafilter.
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 2:26 PM on November 30, 2005

That thread is the physical embodiment of Metafilter's growth. Silly stuff like that used to happen when Mefi was smaller and less active. Now it happens on a bigger scale. Also, your electricity bill goes up when additional people move into your house, and I can now drink a full can of Coke, even though I'd get really full drinking a Coke when I was little.
posted by Bugbread at 2:29 PM on November 30, 2005

I so fucking hate cult threads
posted by matteo at 2:29 PM on November 30, 2005

I'm sorry for killing Metafilter. :(
posted by TwelveTwo at 2:31 PM on November 30, 2005

Popularity is evil.
posted by Bugbread at 2:31 PM on November 30, 2005

Somehow I read that as this. I retract my apology!!
posted by TwelveTwo at 2:33 PM on November 30, 2005

Which thread was it that ran for years and years and may still be running somewhere, that everyone referred to by its number and that after a while you only launched if MeFi was really quiet, and you had a fast connection and a few minutes to kill while it launched? Do you know the one I mean?
posted by Grangousier at 2:37 PM on November 30, 2005

9622?
posted by knave at 2:39 PM on November 30, 2005

9622
posted by chiababe at 2:40 PM on November 30, 2005

oh hell. :(
posted by chiababe at 2:40 PM on November 30, 2005

Wow. I hadn't even thought of the "mushroom thread" since a day or two after it happened.
posted by Quartermass at 2:45 PM on November 30, 2005

Looks like the work of, what, 8 people? Increase of silliness? WTF?
posted by Quartermass at 2:47 PM on November 30, 2005

9622 could kick mushroom's ass. He and/or she couldn't possibly carry all the weight of inline images in any effective way.
posted by panoptican at 2:52 PM on November 30, 2005

I am not saying this is wrong, just sort of curious what caused it.

the $5 membership created metafilter's own "long september... where the flood of clueless newbies became more or less permanent..."

unfortunately, not even the occasional need to resort to HTML will keep them in check.
</cranky>
posted by quonsar at 2:53 PM on November 30, 2005

*joins quonsar on the grandpa bench, mutters*
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 2:56 PM on November 30, 2005

I was gonna post there, but there wasn't mush room.
posted by fixedgear at 2:57 PM on November 30, 2005

yuk yuk yuk!
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 3:00 PM on November 30, 2005 [1 favorite]

I've actually developed a grudging affection for mihail. she's spunky.
posted by jonmc at 3:11 PM on November 30, 2005

I so fucking hate cult threads

But how do you about threads on cult fucking?
posted by jonmc at 3:12 PM on November 30, 2005

i'm learning html in word
posted by andrew cooke at 3:13 PM on November 30, 2005

The grandpa bench, huh? You know that's where the older members go to pass on, right? I wonder if it smells funky.
posted by mystyk at 3:14 PM on November 30, 2005

shhh you'll wake them up.....
posted by sgt.serenity at 3:20 PM on November 30, 2005

i'm learning html in word

That was awesome. It'd be easier to learn it on a chalkboard, and the cut and pasting would be just as simple.
posted by yerfatma at 3:20 PM on November 30, 2005

It smells like HTML.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 3:21 PM on November 30, 2005

i just found out about that thread right now i always thought it was a joke or something
posted by naxosaxur at 3:22 PM on November 30, 2005

What I don't understand is why some threads (like one a couple of days ago) that are trying to resolve some etiquette issues get closed for no other reason than to shut down an argument, but other threads are allowed to stay open long after they degenerated into nothing more than random inline images and nonsense posts that exist for no other reason than to artificially boost a post count.
posted by dios at 3:32 PM on November 30, 2005

quonsar quoted: "the $5 membership created metafilter's own "long september... where the flood of clueless newbies became more or less permanent..."
Mathowie has created the endless November 2004 which is still ongoing. It might be noted that not all of the newbies are clueless college freshmen.
Sorry the oldbies have lost what they seem to consider their private club and lack the ability to adjust to a more public facility.
stavrosthewonderchicken should be aware of General DeGaulle's advice never to get invoved in a land war in Asia - because there are more of "them" than there are of "you".
posted by Cranberry at 3:39 PM on November 30, 2005

*welcomes kids/n00bs to her lawn, puts out the bowls of popcorn, takes a couple of cups of cider over to the grandpa bench*
posted by Lynsey at 3:44 PM on November 30, 2005

do people besides 12-year-old boys actually care about post counts? everybody knows it's reg dates that matter.
posted by keswick at 3:45 PM on November 30, 2005

because there are more of "them" than there are of "you".

there is no them and there is no me, there's only us, maaaan.

*smokes joint, plays bongos*
posted by jonmc at 3:47 PM on November 30, 2005

One year ago, I attempted my first comment and completely borked it .so to make up. my hometown 1924 scroll down.
posted by hortense at 3:48 PM on November 30, 2005

We have seen the enemy, and he is us.
posted by crunchland at 3:56 PM on November 30, 2005

dios writ: What I don't understand is why some threads...

The deep, dark secret is that they are not only allowed, but carefully and scientifically formulated to annoy the bugfucking shit out of you.

The good news is that we're still fine tuning the formula, so you're safe for now.

The bad news is that eventually find a thread formula that will cause your head to brisantly detonate like a watermelon stuffed full of RDX.

The really bad news is that hundreds of innocent bystanders will be drenched in the misty remnants of your head.
posted by loquacious at 4:11 PM on November 30, 2005

why some threads (like one a couple of days ago) that are trying to resolve some etiquette issues get closed for no other reason than to shut down an argument, but other threads are allowed to stay open long after they degenerated into nothing more than random inline images and nonsense posts

one word: holidays.

It's a little more complicated than that, but not really. I assume you're just talking about MetaTalk. Some threads are closed when the issue is resolved. Some are closed when they dissolve into sniping and some stay open when they dissolve into sniping to keep a new thread from being opened that also dissolves into sniping. The jon_kill thread opened and closed before I even saw it the other day, but it did seem like his question had been answered.

[is there still room on the grandpa bench?]
posted by jessamyn at 4:11 PM on November 30, 2005

is there still room on the grandpa bench?

Sure, if you don't mind sitting on my lap.
posted by loquacious at 4:15 PM on November 30, 2005

*Brings another couple of cups of cider out for Jessamyn & self, joins q and stavros on the bench.*
posted by Lynsey at 4:16 PM on November 30, 2005

Hey, seen any good movies lately?

what's that? three weeks? geez, dude, how are you getting groceries?

safeway.com? oh. i guess that's pretty cool. well, look,

sure, uh-huh, but .. u-

ok, well, apparently there's this new Harry Potter thing if you're into it.

uh. no. i don't think they have wireless at the movies.

well. no. i guess it's not as cool as sitting at home talking about stuff that happened on a website.

alright. well. ok. well, i guess i'm gonna go.

yeah, you do that.

ok. peace.
posted by fishfucker at 4:18 PM on November 30, 2005

fishfucker is rob511's #4.
posted by dios at 4:22 PM on November 30, 2005

The good news is that we're still fine tuning the formula, so you're safe for now.

You might want to get back to that.

*picks third nostril, glows in dark*
posted by jonmc at 4:25 PM on November 30, 2005

The really bad news is that hundreds of innocent bystanders will be drenched in the misty remnants of your head.
But I don't want to be exposed to... hm.
posted by Wolfdog at 4:31 PM on November 30, 2005

fishfucker is rob511's #4

Thank fucking god. That mantle chafes like a pair of turpentine-soaked burlap y-fronts.

I'm not cut out for leadership. I'd just end up leading us all into some dingy bar where we'd get trashed on Mickey's stingers, end up smoking stepped-on ice in the tiny one person bathroom and taking home some threadbare nightstocker betties with big, crusty hair.

Though, at least one of us would probably unknowingly go home with a wannabettie, and have a night of drunken, debauched sex anyway. At least that would be worth writing home to mom about.
posted by loquacious at 4:38 PM on November 30, 2005

there goes my gun

there goes my gun

there goes my gun

there goes my gun
posted by eyeballkid at 4:38 PM on November 30, 2005

is there still room on the grandpa bench?

Yeah, but you have to bring your sister. We codgers "heart" nose rings.
posted by mmahaffie at 4:43 PM on November 30, 2005

Being a 17xxx myself, I do not consider such to be codgers. Teenbies? Maybe. Between 17xxx and 10xxx = Middle-agedbies? Now there is a mellifluous term.
posted by Cranberry at 4:52 PM on November 30, 2005

What PinkStainlessTail said. Metafilter needs real moderators. Not the owner popping in whenever he can, and his cheery Mary Poppins assistant.
posted by fire&wings at 4:54 PM on November 30, 2005

Real moderators? Is there such a thing? Are there people who devote their lives to moderating internet chat boards?

If there are, I don't want them to come here.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 5:05 PM on November 30, 2005 [1 favorite]

It aint broke. Don't fix it.

And if you're fixin' to fix it, you already have the power to do so. Post good stuff.
posted by loquacious at 5:14 PM on November 30, 2005

I'm all for silliness as long as it's spontaneous. A thread like this that drags it into the sunlight and asks "cmon everybody let's hit 1000!" takes the fun out of it for me, making it feel like some kind of fund drive.
posted by scarabic at 5:14 PM on November 30, 2005

Every member of metafilter read the above post ^

And we're done.
posted by fire&wings at 5:15 PM on November 30, 2005

All things in moderation (most of the time, anyway) makes Metafilter healthy, wealthy (for Matt, anyway) and wise (relatively speaking, anyway).
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:21 PM on November 30, 2005

Also : hey you kids! Get the hell off our bench!
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:21 PM on November 30, 2005

what did you call me?
posted by jessamyn at 5:23 PM on November 30, 2005

Heh.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:29 PM on November 30, 2005

jessamyn? You can fly?
posted by brundlefly at 5:29 PM on November 30, 2005

I've got your spoonful of sugar right here....
posted by jessamyn at 5:43 PM on November 30, 2005

Real moderators? Is there such a thing?

On most other boards of this size, yes. And I don't know where you were going with the idea that people dedicate their lives to it ("lol people with unbalanced lives suck"?), but they'll read the site at their usual pace and be able to change it.

It usually means a more formal audit trail (read: per-comment moderator comments rather than per-story), and a private moderator forum for them to talk about you behind their back.

Because usually the freaks don't reveal themselves in a single post and the mods will need to be able to tell each other to keep a watch on that one.

This may sound vicious but it all depends on the people chosen.

And this isn't a request to be a moderator, just the usual plug to ditch coldfusion and go with phpilfer because it's really good.
posted by holloway at 5:44 PM on November 30, 2005

You fucked yourself and you don't know where to go
Split wide open like a sturgeon for the roe.
Blood red splashed on pure white snow; oh no!

You fucked yourself and you're looking for the goat
Drowned if you sink, condemned if you float,
You placed the blame but missed the boat.

You fucked yourself; you chose your fate.
You changed your mind when it's too late.
Self-deceit is your worst mistake.
posted by gramschmidt at 5:45 PM on November 30, 2005

I've got your spoonful of sugar right here....

want me to sweep his chim-chim-chiminey?
posted by jonmc at 6:18 PM on November 30, 2005

I'm all for silliness as long as it's spontaneous. A thread like this that drags it into the sunlight and asks "cmon everybody let's hit 1000!" takes the fun out of it for me, making it feel like some kind of fund drive.
posted by scarabic

Except, of course, that it doesn't hurt anything. Most of us had no idea that the thread was still ongoing until we read this post and even then didn't much care except tangentially.
posted by leftcoastbob at 6:39 PM on November 30, 2005

I care. I care a lot. 500 drunken, ill-tempered, mal-bladdered sots trashing my living room and humping the curtains and couch pillows. Jesus. It smells like an unwashed bar towel in there. It smells like mushroom sex. It's terrible, I tell you.
posted by loquacious at 6:46 PM on November 30, 2005

Which thread was that?

posted by Chuckles at 6:47 PM on November 30, 2005

i don't get it
posted by _sirmissalot_ at 7:15 PM on November 30, 2005

See, monkeys are used to be funny!
posted by yhbc at 7:38 PM on November 30, 2005

What I don't understand is why some threads (like one a couple of days ago) that are trying to resolve some etiquette issues get closed for no other reason than to shut down an argument, but other threads are allowed to stay open...

Metatalk has definitely become more metachatty (for better or worse), and no, it's not explained away by "holidays", though I'm sure that's part of it.

Are there people who devote their lives to moderating internet chat boards?

Well, matt recently made metafilter his full time job, so I'd say that's one example.
posted by justgary at 7:48 PM on November 30, 2005

It is kind of fun watching a MeFi thread scroll like Chowhound as it loads.
posted by Miko at 7:56 PM on November 30, 2005

Except, of course, that it doesn't hurt anything.

I can't agree. A bunch of previously-oblivious rubberneckers (including myself) are now sniffing around that thread going "DUR! I wonder what's going on here???" and ruining the whole "cult" experience for everyone.

There's also part of me that just winces at someone's drippy enthusiasm over something so ordinary as a cult thread. Enjoy. Be. Participate. Don't bust a gleeful nut on MeTa over it while I'm enjoying my unsugared coffee.
posted by scarabic at 8:07 PM on November 30, 2005

Metafilter: hundreds of innocent bystanders will be drenched in the misty remnants of your head.
posted by Otis at 8:16 PM on November 30, 2005

can ah bring a lunch
to the bench? anyone up for sandwiches?
posted by carsonb at 9:11 PM on November 30, 2005

*goes to ebay, trades Mary Poppins jessamyn's umbrella for whip and chair*
posted by Cranberry at 9:33 PM on November 30, 2005

On most other boards of this size, yes. And I don't know where you were going with the idea that people dedicate their lives to it ("lol people with unbalanced lives suck"?), but they'll read the site at their usual pace and be able to change it.

It is really weird that metafilter works as well as it does with almost no supervision. But it does, so why mess with it?

I hate it when people, apropos of nothing, all of a sudden decide that they know what's best for this site and give their opinion wether this or that is what's best for metafilter rather then simply stating that this or that irritates them or doesn't.
posted by delmoi at 9:39 PM on November 30, 2005

um... you all realize that TwelveTwo's sole purpose in posting this is to draw more people to the mushroom thread, right? It's this thread that is "the physical embodiment of the imminent death of Metafilter."
posted by sfenders at 9:39 PM on November 30, 2005

scarabic: "rubbernecking..." "drippy enthusiasm.." "bust a gleeful nut..."

This comment makes me feel icky. Like, in a Cronenberg kind of way.
posted by brundlefly at 9:54 PM on November 30, 2005

Wasn't my sole purpose. I honestly wanted to know if it was a symptom or cause. But as it is symptom, I am simply being influenced by the zeitgeist. Therefore, I am guilty of nothing.
posted by TwelveTwo at 9:58 PM on November 30, 2005

you all realize that TwelveTwo's sole purpose in posting this is to draw more people to the mushroom thread, right?

Yeah. And I totally fell for it.
But really, I'm just interested in discovering exactly how many different captions I can put on that Chuck Norris picture before it becomes unfunny.

For instance:



See? It's still funny after 4 uses.
posted by Jon-o at 10:04 PM on November 30, 2005

Thanks for reminding me of the stuck-up douchebags we have here.
posted by puke & cry at 10:22 PM on November 30, 2005

why wasn't that piece of shit deleted anyway? admins?
posted by puke & cry at 11:09 PM on November 30, 2005

Matt failed to notice it at first, and when he finally did read it, he thougt it was funny.
posted by Gator at 11:20 PM on November 30, 2005

thanks gator. I had a feeling the reason was already expressed and I missed it.
posted by puke & cry at 11:21 PM on November 30, 2005

icky. Like, in a Cronenberg kind of way.

Suck down a little more yellowish fluid from the wounded thorax of that giant insect next to you and you'll be fine.
posted by scarabic at 11:43 PM on November 30, 2005

Say, scarabic, did I ever tell you about the guy who taught his asshole to speak?
posted by brundlefly at 11:49 PM on November 30, 2005

I would do some looking and post them here, but I expect the thread will be deleted soon.

be gracious when people snarkily point out a-c in a sure to be deleted FPP.

delete delete delete

So Matt, go ahead and delete the whole damn thing.

(since apparently it isn't going to be deleted after all)



But it sure is funny! hahahah.
posted by puke & cry at 11:52 PM on November 30, 2005

Will you rub some of this bug powder on my lips? Thank you.
posted by loquacious at 12:12 AM on December 1, 2005

Enjoy. Be. Participate. Don't bust a gleeful nut on MeTa over it

What he said. This thread is stupid. But that's par for the course on MeTa these days.

*misses Miguel, who knew how to do stupid MeTa threads right*
posted by languagehat at 5:54 AM on December 1, 2005

bloodninja: Ok baby, we got to hurry, I don’t know how long I can keep it ready for you.

j_gurli3: thats ok. ok i’m a japanese schoolgirl, what r u.

bloodninja: A Rhinoceros. Well, hung like one, thats for sure.

j_gurli3: haha, ok lets go.

j_gurli3: i put my hand through ur hair, and kiss u on the neck.

bloodninja: I stomp the ground, and snort, to alert you that you are in my breeding territory.

j_gurli3: haha, ok, u know that turns me on.

j_gurli3: i start unbuttoning ur shirt.

bloodninja: Rhinoceroses don’t wear shirts.

j_gurli3: No, ur not really a Rhinoceros silly, it’s just part of the game.

bloodninja: Rhinoceroses don’t play games. They fucking charge your ass.

j_gurli3: stop, cmon be serious.

bloodninja: It doesn’t get any more serious than a Rhinoceros about to charge your ass.

bloodninja: I stomp my feet, the dust stirs around my tough skinned feet.

j_gurli3: thats it.

bloodninja: Nostrils flaring, I lower my head. My horn, like some phallic symbol of my potent virility, is the last thing you see as skulls collide and mine remains the victor. You are now a bloody red ragdoll suspended in the air on my mighty horn.

bloodninja: Goddam am I hard now.

jgurli3: [jgurli3 has signed off]
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 7:17 AM on December 1, 2005

Gah! It's 12/1! 531 or 532?
posted by If I Had An Anus at 8:26 AM on December 1, 2005

Tomorrow is -my- day.
posted by TwelveTwo at 2:50 PM on December 1, 2005

Early congratulations on your day TwelveTwo. Happy name day.
I hope this doesn't start a flame about who can own a day.
posted by Cranberry at 4:52 PM on December 1, 2005

Cranberry writes "quonsar quoted: 'the $5 membership created metafilter's own 'long september... where the flood of clueless newbies became more or less permanent...'
"Mathowie has created the endless November 2004 which is still ongoing. It might be noted that not all of the newbies are clueless college freshmen.
"Sorry the oldbies have lost what they seem to consider their private club and lack the ability to adjust to a more public facility.
"stavrosthewonderchicken should be aware of General DeGaulle's advice never to get invoved in a land war in Asia - because there are more of 'them' than there are of 'you'."

I've never heard anyone compare the Septemember that never ended to a land war in Asia before. It's very appropriate.
posted by Mitheral at 7:21 AM on December 19, 2005