Joshua Zelinsky wrote:
Personally, I find continuing to help in a general sense a bit odd. If I were banned, I doubt I'd have the altruism...
Personally, I think several things are clear:
1. Banned is banned.
2. In a sufficiently large internet (such as, for instance, the one we're using), it is not possible to tell the difference between a reformed troll and a troll who is cleverly trolling in a new way.
3. If a banned user wants to reform and return to the project, there's one sure-fire way to do it: under a brand-new username, with *zero* acknowledgement of the former identity.
4. If a banned user wants to reform and return to the project but insists on making reference to the former identity (whether coy or explicit), it ain't gonna work.
5. Given (1), (2), and (3) above, if we spend *any* time discussing *any* of this on behalf of a banned user, *we are being trolled*. (Or we might as well be.)
I'm serious about #5. The 150 words I've posted here are 150 too many.