Having read through some of the feedback, I’m saddened to hear about others’ negative experiences and reactions to the political forum.
One of the things that I think is great about CC is that knowing so little about other posters allows people to be much more open-minded about other people’s comments than they might be if they came across them in real life. I think that’s true with respect to the wide range of ages of posters (source), but also regional differences, political differences, religious differences, economic differences, etc. People’s ideas are judged purely on the merit of their ideas and not because of whatever affiliations or preconceptions we have about them.
Thus, if people are developing negative feelings toward others or towards CC because of views expressed in the PF, then I think it’s reasonable for it to close or to have vastly different parameters. There are so few spaces where people from a variety of backgrounds can interact in a generally respectful manner, and I’d hate for CC to lose that.