Every site seems to have a life cycle. I find that I prefer the early stages, before things settle down in to the predictable debating club between stable poles

Every site seems to have a life cycle. I find that I prefer the early stages, before things settle down in to the predictable debating club between stable poles of opinion that define the acceptable range of discourse there. That stage can last a long time, but it doesn't last forever. This doesn't work for everyone (which is probably why it still works at all), but, at least for technical discussion, mailing lists are where I have the bulk of my quality online interaction. I've found fewer good public lists for wider intellectual discussion, but they're out there, too. The difference is that they tend to range from somewhat to very topically silo'ed. Well, and they're email, so the cool kids don't want to play. (Again, I think that's partly why it works.)