I do not mind Paul. Sure at times he is a bit much, but when that happens I use some level of self control to keep from taking the bait, just ignore him/his posts, or do not even bother to read them.
I have not been following this bullshit, but if Paul broke the rules, he should serve out his ban the same as anyone else. I suppose Eric could allow him to come back early if he would like to make a public, sincere apology to DamianJ for whatever it was that had gotten him banned.
The point here is, Paul simply had gotten wrapped up in the heat of the moment and apparently used bad choice of words, or bad judgement in whatever he had said. It can happen when you are relentlessly trolled day and night by the same people. We're all only human after all.
Paul can choose to serve out the remainder of the month ban per the rules, or I am sure he could contact Eric and work out a resolve. Either way, it is up to the MODS should a rule have been broken.
Paul is annoying at times, but at least he has some relevance in this industry. There are many more malicious trolls on this forum that deserve a ban beyond him. Paul may have needed a time out, and received it from the looks of it. But there are many others who relentlessly attack people and their business just because they do not like them. Those really should be the one's who should be getting the hammer dropped on them.
That being said, if Paul broke a rule, he should be treated the same as anyone else.
