What are “flames” and “flame wars”?
Aflame is an electronic insult often directed at the author of a controversial or offensive statement made in Usenet, a portion of the Internet reserved for communication among people with similar interests. Flames can be sent either through e-mail to the author or posted in a Usenet newsgroup. A flame war results when the author of the original article, or a supporter, responds to flamers and flamers retort, creating a cycle of arguing that consumes bandwidth. Most newsgroups have moderators who try to prevent flame wars and block out extraneous material.
