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Personally, because we all can't agree on everything, there will be conflict. The maturity of those who choose to voice their disagreements cause either discussions or arguments.
More people means more conflict. That's the nature of people. There is nothing the moderators can do besides remove posts which are vulgar or overly abusive... which has been done many times.
The direct "verbal" abuse of another team should not be acceptable, but should be expected. After all, when the wheels hit the carpet, it is a competition. No professional or amature sport goes without Fans of Team X despising Team Y. For example, college football. Every year there are arguments and even fist fights over the Michigan vs Michigan State game. This is football. The fights aren't between players, they are between fans. Many of the fans aren't alumni of either school, they are just fans who get emotional. While I've never seen a fight break out over FIRST robots, there have been many hurt feelings and crude comments.
FIRST is a sport. It has rules, it has objectives, it has entertainment value, and it has fans. The fans in FIRST are more often the team members and families (akin to the college students and their families at the football game). Most everyone naturally has a "Better than you" attitude, and trys to flaunt it. When opposition is in their way, they attack it.
It's our nature to be conflicting. I'm sure Andy Baker and Dean Kamen disagree on some things, but they would both be mature enough to talk it out rather than come to blows, or harsh words. Students, however, generally do not have the same maturity level as these two well-known and respected individuals. Adolesence itself creates uncertainty of one's own performance, then they "must" bring someone else below them to be on top.
I'm not saying it's right, I'm not saying it's wrong. I'm saying that more people will always mean more conflict. Many more mature role-models within the community is likely the only way to lessen the severity of the conflicts.
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