# Banned poster are now "guests?"

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/banned-poster-are-now-guests/318898>\
**Category:** About This Message Board\
**Created:** [August 27, 2005, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/banned-poster-are-now-guests/318898 "2005-08-27T20:21:50Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\
**Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/banned-poster-are-now-guests/318898/1 "2005-08-27T20:21:50Z")

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I’m sorry if this has been answered before, but I know I’ve come across at least one banned poster that has “guest” under his name instead of “banned.”

Is there a possibility such banned posters can sneak back in and pay the $14.95 fee and be full-fledged members again?

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**Author:** ![rayh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@rayh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rayh)\
**Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/banned-poster-are-now-guests/318898/2 "2005-08-27T20:41:34Z")

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Bannings are sometimes revoked, in which case the status would revert to what it was before the banning.

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**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\
**Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/banned-poster-are-now-guests/318898/3 "2005-08-27T22:02:18Z")

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No, it’s a glitch in the script Jerry runs to convert expired member subscriptions.

Every few days the script runs and sweeps the system for expired subscriptions. When it finds one, it changes the user title to “Guest.”

At the same time, it apparently changed some of the BANNED user group titles to “Guest” as well . . . but they’re still banned.

I can’t quite see the use of changing them back if it’s going to happen again, which it probably would as soon as that script ran again. No harm done, in any event.

your humble TubaDiva

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**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\
**Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/banned-poster-are-now-guests/318898/4 "2005-08-27T23:35:59Z")

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So it’s just a naming glitch, but they’re still banned? Thanks for clearing that up.

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**Author:** ![rfgdxm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c0e974/32.png) [@rfgdxm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rfgdxm)\
**Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/banned-poster-are-now-guests/318898/5 "2005-08-28T02:08:53Z")

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> [@ivylass](#):
>
> So it’s just a naming glitch, but they’re still banned? Thanks for clearing that up.

I presume these banned people have non-posting Guest status. As such they couldn’t cause any trouble.