Analysis: the mods have been mods for year. As the mods have anything but laissez-faire in their use of the ban hammer and their other authorities, it's reasonable to assume their style of moderation has led to the current predicament. Further, as the mods (rightly or wrongly) have a certain level of esteem on the board, this has allowed cliques to ossify and led to a certain amount of bitchiness.
Examples of dramatic failures of moderation:
link. In this thread, the OP is dismayed that not everyone shares his opinion, and as the moderator in question shared his opinion, the thread is locked. This is a good example of both how cliques among the boards mods led to a quieting of discussion that was completely within the rules.