"Most discussions on the web these days, it seems to me, are basically "write only". There's seldom any sign that many of the participants have any interest whatsoever in reading what other people have said - or indeed the article that they're commenting on, quite often. In such an environment, threading is a waste of time. Just put a flat comment board there and let people spew out their stream of consciousness, which nobody will ever read." It sounds like you don't like online discussions, why should your opinions on their design be taken seriously?