I have no problem if a user starts a new thread on a topic where there is an old thread. A thread is a conversation. If a prior conversation on a topic (for example, minor-league changes) petered out a year ago, and something new happens, or somebody has a new insight... it doesn't matter much whether they track down a thread that's been dormant for a year, or create a new one. It's a new conversation. However, either of those options is better than sticking that news or insight into a thread where it's off-topic.
Obviously, it can be arbitrary sometimes, because our conversations don't sit nicely in separate silos. Things that start out as separate topics are often related. Conversations evolve, expand, branch. I mostly notice it when somebody says "I know this doesn't belong here, but I didn't find a better place." That's when the poster should have created a better place - a new thread.
