Come on, lighten up. I've seen threads in the past (in other parts of lawnsite)that have deserved deletion much more than anything deleted lately. If someone made a personal attack, great, delete it. Stop there.
There are a few threads in the archives that are trash. Some of the originators or posters in those threads rarely (read never)share any worthwhile information, unlike the people that are being targeted now. Nobody deleted those threads. No action was taken, other than the repeated idle threat to ban the troublemaker(s).
I'm sure this site isn't the first to ask the question of when to edit or delete a thread. What is needed is a clear set of guidelines for the moderators to follow.
It's not like the past few day's threads have been so overwhelming to the server that you need the space, right? I've seen a slowdown. Don't know why the slowdown, but it does coincide with heavy handed editing. Probably just a coincidence, but maybe not.
I didn't mean to offend anyone, but if you are offended that's tough luck. Let your conscience be your guide.