I think designating something as official is usually done in an effort by the OP to reign in all of the needless threads posted about a similar topic under one gigantic "official" thread.
I put 'official' before mostly every thread I create... it gives it an air of credibility and stature amidst an array of overused and insipid threads created by the assortment of hapless pre-meds trolling the site.
F off, Patrick... and stop ruining SDN for me and all of my fellow 'official' thread enthusiasts.