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How do you know the moderators had many people asking for those threads to be removed?


Because I was one of them, and I had personal discussions with many more who had done the same thing.


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Is there a particular reason why people would want those threads removed?


Well, yes, actually. To have continued keeping the threads open would have been to continue giving the perpetrator of the hoax exactly what they wanted: attention and turmoil. We've found that the best way to deal with people like that is to ignore them.