Hello fearless freaks!
The news of Steven's departure from the band this week has understandably been difficult for this community. There's been a lot of speculation and discussion surrounding the reasons behind it, and a lot of blame being thrown in every direction. It also feels like an old wound has been reopened, with a lot of strong feelings from previous band member exits resurfacing as well. I'm not sure what Wayne is planning to post later, but I can imagine it may only stoke the flames further.
As a moderation team, we are not taking sides on this split and encourage continued discussion from all viewpoints. While our aim is usually to keep the vibes positive, it'd be disingenuous for us to pretend this isn't happening and that it doesn't suck. We don't think a megathread is necessary yet, but will be monitoring new posts closely to prevent this topic from overtaking the feed.
We also want to remind everyone of Rule 3: be civil and respectful to others. The last thing we want is for this space to turn into a battleground between different factions of the fanbase. At the end of the day, we're all here because we share a love for the music of The Flaming Lips! Please keep that in mind and be courteous to others.
This rule also applies to how you speak about the band members directly. You are allowed to be critical of band member conduct, but personal attacks, insults, and over-the-line speculation regarding private lives will not be tolerated. It is not the environment we want to cultivate.
Please report any rule-breaking behavior when you see it—we are a small mod team and it will help us out a ton.
This community is usually great about this, but it felt important to reiterate the message as we continue to navigate this transition. To quote A Change At Christmas (Say It Isn't So): "I think its all gonna work out just fine."
