# Ever kill a thread? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 2, 2006, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047 "2006-08-02T18:44:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/1 "2006-08-02T18:44:49Z")
What was it like? Was it on purpose or did you just give it a lethal post? I’ve killed a few. I’ve never been really happy about any of them, but in retrospect I could see that a particular thread or another needed killing. ---
**Author:** ![Clockwork\_And\_Candy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b782af/32.png) [@Clockwork\_And\_Candy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clockwork_And_Candy)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/2 "2006-08-02T18:45:54Z")
No, but not for lack of trying. ---
**Author:** ![Mindfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mindfield/32/19759_2.png) [@Mindfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mindfield)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/3 "2006-08-02T18:49:16Z")
I bludgeoned a few pretty badly, but the damn things just would. not. DIE. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/4 "2006-08-02T18:54:59Z")
What’s so bad about thread killing? Is it a concept that only applies in certain forums? I mean, if I make the last post in a GQ thread, I’m happy: It means my answer was definitive and satisfactory and no one had anything to add. In GD, it means I had the last word–I made an answer that no one could rebut. I can see where it would be a problem in a thread like this one; I asked a question, and if no one answers, it was either stupid or uninteresting. But in general, is “thread killing” such a bad thing? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/5 "2006-08-02T19:21:45Z")
Once, in Reno. You know the rest. ---
**Author:** ![MostlyClueless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@MostlyClueless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MostlyClueless)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/6 "2006-08-02T19:22:59Z")
I tried to kill [my own thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=381516&page=2) right here, but some folks didn’t catch it. I think. ---
**Author:** ![Fugazi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f08c70/32.png) [@Fugazi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fugazi)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/7 "2006-08-02T20:30:35Z")
[QUOTE=silenus] Once, in Reno. You know the rest. [/QUOTE] Damn you. Saw the thread title. Saw there were only 5 posts and thought I might just have a chance. Should have known better. ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/8 "2006-08-03T01:15:56Z")
I tried to kill a thread but it just became all tangled and started to unravel. So the answer to the question is 'fraid not. ---
**Author:** ![fisha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@fisha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fisha)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/9 "2006-08-03T02:22:36Z")
[QUOTE=racer72] I tried to kill a thread but it just became all tangled and started to unravel. So the answer to the question is 'fraid not. [/QUOTE] Ahem. (_frayed_) ---
**Author:** ![MoodIndigo1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@MoodIndigo1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoodIndigo1)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/10 "2006-08-03T02:32:48Z")
I try not to, but the damn things get squished so easily. ---
**Author:** ![RickQ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/35a633/32.png) [@RickQ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickQ)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/11 "2006-08-03T02:49:14Z")
Yes, I’ve killed threads. And I enjoyed it. ---
**Author:** ![Enter\_the\_Flagon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Enter\_the\_Flagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enter_the_Flagon)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/12 "2006-08-03T02:54:54Z")
(Taking a swig from a glass 'o whiskey. Setting mouse on the bar.) Ah’ve killed more threads ‘n’ any man alive. Y’ cross me, ‘n’ Ah’l kill yer thread, too, mister. ---
**Author:** ![Scotticher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Scotticher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scotticher)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/13 "2006-08-03T03:08:13Z")
Often. Usually it is embarrassing. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/14 "2006-08-03T04:21:15Z")
Yes, I have often posted such a definite statement or answer that no further comment was necessary or even possible. Why? ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/15 "2006-08-03T13:01:12Z")
[QUOTE=dahfisheroo] Ahem. (_frayed_) [/QUOTE] Nope, I stand by my post. If I had used _frayed_, I also would have used _knot._ What I wanted: 'fraid not. What I didn’t want: frayed knot. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/16 "2006-08-03T13:12:42Z")
It’s been a while since I actually counted them (I guess that’s lying since I never have) but the “Last Post: Zeldar” tag appears on quite a few threads. In almost every forum. Sadly, many of them are also the first (= only) posts! A recent thread on this very topic came up with a neat name for threads with no responses: stillborns. What would be a neat trick for this thread would be for everybody to do a search on threads they’ve contributed to that haven’t had a reply in (let’s say) 30 days or more, but where the last reply was more recent than a year ago, and total up those where you were the last to post. I’ll go count mine now and post again soon. Any takers? ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2006, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/17 "2006-08-03T13:33:47Z")
Okay. That didn’t take so long. The search on my username brought back the last 750 posts I have made. And 150 of those have been since 7/3/06 so I didn’t count them. The 750 went back not quite a full year so I let that do it. Out of the 600 posts I have made in the last year, and more than a month old, 55 of them have been the last post in the thread. If that’s not “killing a thread” I need a better definition. Who can beat that number? ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2006, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ever-kill-a-thread/367047/18 "2006-08-04T05:09:42Z")
[QUOTE=Askance] Yes, I have often posted such a **definite** statement or answer that no further comment was necessary or even possible. Why? [/QUOTE] **Definitive** :smack: