I just read through this whole mess, the original post and now this one. I must ay, as a teacher of high school students I agree with both sides of the situation. Anyone who knows kids knows if you needlessly provoke them they will defend themselves. Furthermore, as adults we need to remember that "children's" social skills are not developed completely, hence what is supposed to separate them from us "adults". With that in mind people need to realise that not everything that comes out of a kid's mouth, or is typed, can be taken as offensive in the immediate sense. You just have to have perspective on it. If I got all blithered over everylittle persnickety thing one of my students fired back at me when I corrected or educated him or her about something I would have to just return my teaching license. I'm not saying that kids don't act like idiots, they do, but so do adults. Sheesh, some of the teachers that I work with are worse than the kids in my classes.
Unfortunately there is no winner here, all losers. All of us. And although I don't play the blame game, i really think the problems lies in the fact that the original thread was permitted to go so completely off topic without being put in check. And that, in fact, lies at the fault of the admins and Moderators. Don't agree, that's fine it's your opinion...but, to borrow from another classroom analogy, if I allowed the little skirmishes in my classroom to go unchecked they would develop into bigger issues. It happens, it has happened (columbine as an EXTREME example). It should have been ended when the first member wrote in requesting an end to the thread. But, in a perfect world.
Leanne, I am sorry to see you go. Maybe it wasn't right for you to rehash a topic but you did have a valid point. I too have been offended by people for the way they post or the comments they make and have often wondered why threads are permitted to go awry.
Kids (dwarf and silva I think) I sympathise with you becuase you were wronged as well. The adults should have pointed out your misgivings and helped you to lay your issues to rest rather than attack you and let it get out of hand. Albeit that there are some things that should be "known" but how can you be expected to learn unless you try and make mistakes.
Okay, off my soapbox now and awaiting the attacks.
And the surprising thing is that actual age makes little difference. 
(sarcastic smilie)
