MP isn't bashed.
Couldn't disagree with that any more than I do. Maybe not by EVERYONE, but there are a certain number of people here that if he gave them a medium coffee from Dunkin Donuts, milk no sugar, their first response would be "why medium, you cheap fuck? And I like Starbucks, with sugar next time".
Look in the other thread; Derek retweets something that is subject to some opinion as to whether it was "negative" or not (I think not, but it's up for discussion) and not three posts down someone says "Well, it's to be expected; he's been hanging out with MP and so it's logical that he would pick up Mike's bad habits." What kind of nonsense is that?
Maybe some people would react like that, but the way I see this forum is that if someone out-and-out told MP to go F himself and insulted him, that person would be warned, and eventually banned. The mods and bosk1 ensure that. Just because someone may (if there were no restraints) say that to MP, doesn't mean it is actually permitted here. It's not (to my knowledge).
Let's just be clear -- there are some people who sadly will always be on an MP witch hunt. But forum rules exist to not allow that sort of senseless BS. Granted, there's a fine line between criticism and bashing, and there are comments that straddle the line. But how do you know those people who cross it aren't warned and ultimately, stop? Last I checked, only the person warned and the mods/admin can see that history.
MP also has VERY thin skin. Any comment of criticism seems to always piss him off, even if it is meant in a constructive way because someone cares.
It's very messy. But if MP believes this forum bashes him, or if anyone else does, I think that's a very shallow view of this place, which is a mistake. It's structured so that pointless bashing isn't permitted, whereas criticism is. That's a distinction MP, and some of his apologists (not saying you, Stadler) should keep in mind.
It's also not an easy job walking that fine line as a mod/admin. You don't want to crack down too hard on people, but you also want to make sure the ideals of the forum are upheld. It's a lot harder than people think (trust me on that one), and most of the time, the admin/mods get shit on no matter what they do.
MP's statements tend to bring criticism. But if he wants a truly honest look at how what he says resonates, he need not look anywhere else but here. He just needs to thicken up his skin a bit, because it isn't going to be all flowers and rainbows all the time.