Well, Deinodon, basically in the old days there was a lot more swearing, and people tended to flame each other quite a lot. This was tolerated in the days of "self moderation" and is also the origin of the mute function. Over time, this was seen as insufficient. The worst transgressors found themselves sanctioned in various ways (temporary silencings being most common). Unfortunately, one or two users became so outraged at being silenced that they misbehaved even worse, either during or after being silenced - to the extent that a few people got banned outright.
There was also a great deal of heated debated about whether increased forum moderation was, or was not, a good thing, with the noble SYnapse standing as the voice of the now-voiceless, and people like me telling him to shut it.
Eventually SYnapse and a few of his followers marched through the gates of webDip and off into the wilderness, with dreams of founding their own republic. Little word has been heard of them.
(Other old people: is that a reasonable summary?)