As Yilley pointed out, there is much more to this story, and it will only truly be known by three parties. The two players, and OTM due to their ability to see chat logs. While I value Shepherd's POV, it must be remembered that it is only that... a POV. There are no photos of what was said to bring on the retort. In fact, it is rather suspect that those are not included.
But just a couple bones of contention I have with the logic that is being used in this thread and the other about this topic:
1. Nazi is not a race. It was a political party, that has obviously become synonymous with being an institution of hate. Regardless, calling someone a Nazi is not a racist remark. Offensive? Sure. But not racist. Semantics... I digress.
2. The analogy of linking Nazi to a derogatory term for blacks is backward and incorrect. One is a victim of a term, the other is a creator of hate. Calling someone a Nazi could be likened to calling someone a Klansmen or a KKK f*** up, as they both connote organizations of hate and racism.
With that, one could argue that using those terms is akin to calling someone a hater (and we all know how overused that term is). ie. If I am called a derogatory term, and I respond in kind by likening them to the creators of such terms... am I in the wrong? I would argue no.
The other unfortunate truth, is that the term Nazi has been completely and utterly dumbed down by the internet. (Search for Godwin's Law for an interesting rundown) But for now, Check this out:
http://www.celtic-heroes.com/forum/sear ... words=nazi Aside from the page full regarding this current issue, there are 8 pages of people being called (or referring to themselves as) grammar nazi, or spelling nazi; moderators being called forum nazi; entire clans being called nazi... in fact it seems as if syhdiot used to have a Nazi cat as his signature!!!
3. No, Shepherd. You would never win any court case... small claims or otherwise. There is no case to build. There certainly is no grounds for a class action lawsuit as suggested. OTM has adhered to their policy (you just disagree with their judgement).
Your "family attorney" clearly isn't worth his/her retainer if you were told you could win. The OTM rules clearly state the incidents will be reviewed on "case-by-case basis," and that people found in violation "
may" receive a certain discipline. The case was reviewed. Seems to me that OTM saw no wrong doing. Even if the person was found to be in violation, there is nothing in the rules that state they "will" be punished with any action.
If anything... you're "attorney" should have advised you against making threads like this one, as they could certainly be construed as libel or defamation of character, and would be of a more sizable suit than the small court grievance that you would, ultimately, have thrown out.