Was that a personal attack?

Morgan Peterson just slapped me with 500 points for "grossly insulting" someone. I was responding to a user who claimed he intentionally buys bacteria to build up immunity, telling him, "Why don't you just go get HIV and let us know how that immunity thing works out for you?" This guy said he does it purely out of spite, and since we're talking about COVID, he was pretty much implying he wants to spread the virus on purpose. So, yeah, that’s why I reacted the way I did. Look, my response wasn't classy, and I fully expected a warning, but 500 points for an insult feels like overkill. I see much harsher insults floating around here all the time without anyone getting flagged, but whatever.

If another moderator could take a look and tell me if this penalty actually makes sense, I’d appreciate it.

That part where you tell someone to "go screw themselves" is the final insult in that opus you just penned; the rest consists of roughly one coherent thought compared to at least five instances where you lash out at other users, varying from subtle jabs to full-blown verbal assaults. For the most part, I simply delete those outbursts, but even by my standards, you have truly crossed a line this time. If you actually bothered to read the thread you’re posting in, you might notice that the rhetoric has settled down significantly and that insults are rare, if they exist at all.
And we managed to achieve that level of civility through objective moderation whenever it was possible.
Of course, I am all for reviewing the ban list, but as far as I am concerned, there is nothing wrong with the way you choose to communicate.

So, am I really being offensive in five out of six posts? Where exactly are you getting that from? Can you actually back that up by showing those specific posts where I’m supposedly being abusive? Or is it possible you're just hyper-focused on my comments and losing your objectivity? How else can we explain why this post from last night went totally unpunished, yet I get hit with a massive 500-point penalty for "being aggressive"? Since my very first day on this sub, you've been threatening me with partial bans just because I had the nerve—believe it or not—to ask someone who made a public claim to actually prove it. If I was being offensive, like I was yesterday, then give me a standard warning or a fair penalty. Don't stack imaginary offenses in your head just to justify handing out draconian punishments that don't fit the actual violation.

Jesse Price said:Am I truly being offensive in five out of my six posts? Where on earth did you conjure that notion from? Could you perhaps provide some semblance of proof by actually citing those specific posts where you claim I am being insulting? Or is it possible that you have become so hyper-focused on my contributions that you’ve lost all sense of objectivity? How else am I to explain why this post from last night sailed through without a single sanction, yet I find myself facing a draconian 500-point penalty for supposedly being aggressive? From the very first day I started posting in this subforum, you have been threatening me with partial bans simply because I had the audacity—can you believe it?—to ask someone who made a public claim to actually substantiate it. If I truly insulted someone, as I allegedly did yesterday, then please, issue me a standard violation for insults. Do not manufacture a litany of grievances in your mind only to punish me with such excessive severity when the punishment bears no relation to the supposed offense.

The reason what you're citing went unnoticed is quite simple: I didn't see it.
As for the rest, I'll leave it to the admins to deal with your appeal; I have stated my piece.

Morgan Peterson, what’s your take on this?

Sabaa?

Look, I’ve already put in a request to have your ban lifted, so please just be patient while one of the administrators handles it. It isn't necessarily because the moderator made a mistake with the penalty, but rather because there are plenty of users far more problematic than you who won't be getting their sanctions reduced nearly as easily. I really must ask you to be more mindful of your tone in future discussions.