Am I the only one who was at first confused then just annoyed last fall when No_Strings & MercurialBliss chose to switch avatars, then accounts for about a month? Yeah, they're in love and it's cute; but a slap on the wrists was in order as that was a clear cut breaking of the rules.
No, it was not a clear cut breaking of the rules. No rule whatsoever was actually broken AFAIK. JB and Jason are correct
We did not switch accounts, or post under each other's identites - all that happened was a change of avatar, galelry and profile information.
All of which many member do almost daily, none of which is against any part of the ToS if I recall it correctly.
Forget about the fact that we changed our galleries to each others pictures, and is it still deserving of a slap on the wrist?
As for the recent suspensions:
I think that the punishment is too harsh for some, not harsh enough for others... in that sense it's all been kept equal as it's unfair for
everyone. It may sound illogical at first, but this helps erase any grey areas, in my opinion.
Break the ToS, get banned. Black and white. The decision that was made supports objectivity rather than subjectivity, moreso than previous moderator/administrator decisions anyway. (Which is what many have called for? This decision isn't a universal panacea for sure, but a start, no?)
The only people who we know have been banned that I haven't personally seen break the ToS are Lex and Vince. Though there's quite possibly something that I've missed.
Do I think mercurialbliss broke the ToS? Yes.
Do I agree with any punishment the moderators therefore hand out to her? Well, yes.
I don't agree with the lack of warnings, the fact that some members who have broken the ToS are not banned or that it took this long to 'resolve'.
All said and done, I believe this outcome, while not the best by far, is much better than many other possible conclusions. (If, indeed, this has brought any kind of closure to recent events.)
If anyone would like to contact mercurialbliss feel free to PM me and I will pass the message on.
Edit: This does not imply that I think the mods have been doing a good job of late(I think quite the opposite, in fact), or that my own decision were I a mod would have been similar.