This phenomenon of name calling and insults and generalizations is the bad side of free speech, but free speech none the less....I don't think the board moderators can really do anything about it...
Of course they can do something about it, as I mentioned a little earlier in a post I wrote while you were writing this one. And it's effective.
BTW, "free speech" refers to the
government not being allowed to censor people, restrict their speech etc. Private discussion boards like this one, have no such rule. If the owner(s) and moderators want to make personal attacks forbidden, they can. And if board members don't like it, they can leave, and/or start their own board and try to keep a membership.
I would be happy if the mods would simply take a week or two; lets say in September and do two things;
First clean up the political forum board. This thread, for example, would be moved to another forum. It doesn't belong in politics. I know why you posted it here--it has the most views but not everything is political. Especially this.
Move the thread, issue a warning to the person who started the OP and if it's done again; drop a 3 day ban or whatever.
Politics is supposed to be partisan to the best of my knowledge. I don't shy away from the heated political discussion. What bothers me is the needless politicizing of apolitical events. Planes getting shot down in Ukraine is certainly not political.