I remember when circle jerks were an issue on 4chan many, many years ago. They really only became a problem when they started annoying the mods or didn't follow the board rules, and then they would get shut down.

What a lot of people miss with the circle jerk is that they're a really good way to build up a niche community. When you think about it, @opgaming kind of fits that mold. But is OPG part of the problem? I don't think so. They're using the process to help build up their members, one post at a time.

I suppose the biggest problem with circle jerks is when they start excluding other people. If anyone is welcome to join in and take part, there's really nothing to worry about. It's when they start adopting a "holier than thou" mentality that we really need to start getting concerned.