chwdrhed, when Matt brought this same topic up some months ago, I voiced the same opinion as yours. Private means private. I also suggested this could well be a "pay" service, or that there be a surcharge for access to such boards. If it isn't worth the effort for iHub given the limited market, I believe Yahoo offers such services for those who want their own "club". The iHub User Agreement should be adequate for stock threads--those who cannot abide should be booted after appropriate warning(s).
JMO,
AK