You have to know a bit about what's been going on in 
scruz.general to understand the following.  There has been
a 4 year long running flame war around Dean Stark (JR Dean)
in scruz.general.  The attackers are know as "peevers" after
alt.peeves.  I'm known to be a werewolf.  I recently suggested
that Dean write a book on the subject of internet harrassment.
I suggested a soap opera and Piltdown Place as a suitable title.
This is my start on the book.  I think you might find some of
the story line interesting.
=============================================================

It's the summer of 2005.  We are in the library of the palatial
summer retreat of Jeffl, the fabulously wealthy abacus and
slide rule baron.  The servants have left for the weekend
and he is alone.  He reaches for the hidden lever that opens
the door to the secret computer room, and stops realizing
that he is about to commit a capital offense.  No matter, for
this is a special occassion; the 10th aniversary of the worlds
longest running and most famous flame war.

While the rest of the planet had criminalized computing and
destroyed all working computers after the "Crash of Year 2000"
in the "Smash of 2001", Jeffl has secretly constructed a working
Clone Class computer running the banned software Windoze 99.
Assembled from illicit underground wafer fab and board
dealers, this machine is an authentic reproduction of the
ones destroyed in the "Smash of 2001" and may well be the
last of its kind.

For those not familiar with the events, on Jan 1, 2000, all
the computers in the world went insane.  The problem was
anticipated, but not the severity.  Everything from digital
watches to mainframe computers gave wrong answers.  At first,
the programmers furiously attempted to repair the damage,
but after a year, very little progress was made.  Fortunes
were made and lost on no better basis than errors in date
arithmetic.  The jails were emptied of criminals because
their computed terms went negative.  The IRS gave away the
entire treasury in miscalculated refunds.  It was horrible.

After a year of no progress, the users (victims) took matters
into their hands.  Behind the cry of "SIMPLIFY!" came the
ax wielding mobs of computer smashers.  The "Smash of 2001"
was on.  Everything from alarm clocks to mainframes were
destroyed by the mobs.  Computers in any form were banned
and added to the controlled substance list.  Programmers were
rounded up and sent to re-education camps.  Any revival of
computing was barred by the simple expedient of banning all
acronyms, without which computing cannot survive.

Things settled down after the lynching of President Gates.
Although technology was forced to take a giant step backwards,
human labour suddenly became a desireable and even a valuable
commodity.  After order was restored, Don Fong, the newly 
elected Secretary of Progress, decided that limited computing
would be allowed.  The abacus and the slide rule were deemed
acceptable.  Jeffl had anticipated such a move and arose as
the major manufacture of mechanical computing engines after
the competitors were mysteriously attacked by what appeared to
be wild dogs.

Sitting comfortably before the machine in a highly illegal
ergonomic computer chair, Jeffl notes to his satisfaction
that Windoze 99 and Internet Explorer 99 patch level 62,
has finally finished booting.  It was wise to have the
machine startup several hours earlier.  Wolfa whines as
she goes to sleep in a corner.  It's going to be a long night.

A smile appears as he starts up the newsreader and selects
scruz.general.  It's the 10th anniversary of the worlds
longest running flame war and all the regulars will be online.

But, a sigh is heard as he recollects the fate of those lost
in the "Smash of 2001".  Gary Johnson and John Pierce were
judged compulsive programmers and immolated over a flaming mound
of C++ manuals.  Heather Madrone was successfully re-educated
by her kids and now heads a back-to-nature cult as a natural
deity representative.  Tim May held off the police at gunpoint
until his homemade nuclear device accidentally vaporized most
of Corralitos.  Steve Premo passed his bar just in time to
join his fellow attorneys in the Siberian camps.  Don Fong
is of course now Secretary of Progress (and won't do anything
because we can prove that he engages in clandestine programming).
It was sad to lose them all.

Let the flame war begin!

JR Dean>  Someone just phoned me pretending to be a encyclopedia
sales person.  He was most obnoxious and wouldn't go away.
This kind of harrassment and stalking must end.  Which one of
you peevers did it this time?

Geoff M>  What's your problem Dean?  You sure have a thin
skin.  Any kind of a problem and you blame us.  You're useless.

Johnmann1> ... fucking, worthless, scum bag, disgusting, mass of
recycled manure reeking to hell and down to the miasmic quagmire...

Anon>  Is this thread still going after 10 years?  Nobody cares.

Steiny> I have a solution.  While speaking at a forum for
displaced programmers, I ran into the esteemed Director of
Simplification, who introduced me to his 2nd assistant, who
knows Secretary Fong's personal advisor on reactionary ...

Jeff L>  It must be a conspiracy.
That reminds me of a totally unrelated funny story...

Vinnie J>  Hey Dean.  If I wanted to bug you, I would have
done more than just ring your bell.  Maybe I would have ridden
my hog through your house.  I'm really a nice person, but
if you don't believe it, I'll smash your face in.

Erik M. F.>  Dean, you probably phoned yourself just to 
get attention.

Harrison P.>  Did you hear that Dean was denounced as a
practicing programmer by his ex-ladyfriend and got off
by pleading that he never wrote any code that actually worked?

Johnmann1> ...slobbering, puking, swine of mixed simian ancestory.  
Just because public swearing is outlawed doesn't mean I can't...

JR Dean>  That's a lie.  It's all a lie.  That was finished
long ago.  The Simplification Police raided my place only
to find some old green-bar paper that I was using for scratch
paper.  There was no bust.  Just ask the sherriff.

Glen A>  Did any of this really happen?

Kenji D>  Much Charlie Chan movies.  I learn English soon.

Mel P>  Maybe if we all get together again, we could settle...

Steiny>  ... who's neighbors brother-in-law's gardner, knows...

Johnmann1> ...putrified mass of unrecognizable decomposing, filthy,
used plastic products, resembling phallic symbols, while performing...

And so it goes.  Nothing has changed in the last 10 years.
The planets move, the world turns, and the scruz.general
flame war continues.  It seem inevitable that computing will
eventually rise from the ashes.  When it happens, mankind will
be better prepared to control the monster and not let it run
him instead.  Then, the decendents of the peevers will be
ready to pick up where their ancestors left off.