Ben Harper always reminded me of a fellow on the bungie.org hotline server. He went by the handle 'Patient Zero', and if anyone reading this knows who I'm talking about (I called him Mikey-san, as did many other server members), tell me how to contact him, if you would.
In any case, I used to be an avid member of the hl.b.o server. I'd log in most every day and often post articles in the news about things that might've interested the server population. I critiqued Jägermeister's art, argued politics with Gawyn and umop3p!sdn, and bothered Patient Zero.
I don't think he liked me in the first place, he's the sort that never likes anyone at first. Rather arrogant, I suppose. Or perhaps I mistake that for something else. He would have something to contribute to conversations once in a while, usually an acerbic remark that most of us on the server didn't want to take the time to decode his intricate sarcasm to find out who he was insulting today anyway. steve hated him, petri hated him, it's a wonder he stayed around for so long. Until the server went down, as I recall. I was talking to petri, or maybe it was steve, and I inquired as to why they didn't just ban him.
He contributed little to nothing to the environment, save for the aforementioned acerbic remarks. He didn't often post news, and when he did, he generally made it short, and to the point. He drew nothing (or at least nothing that he scanned), and his HTML was limited to his own page, or perhaps his company's as well. I don't remember that too well.
One day, I was looking in the server files for new desktops and whatnot, and stumbled upon a screenshot of Mikey-san's desktop. What really caught my eye about it was the font. It had a sort of 22nd century feel to it that I rather liked at the time, and so I messaged him on hotline as to where one might acquire this font. I messaged him twice in 30 minutes, asking for his attention for a moment, and after recieving no response, I realized that he was still active in the Users window. So I messaged him with my entire inquiry, and he sent back, "Finally you've finished your incessant bombardment." and continued to berate me for this for over 10 minutes.
I eventually found that the font was one of those $400 ones that only a graphic designer like Mikey-san would ever bother buying in the first place, and in my foolishness asked him to upload it. I don't think he's ever forgiven me. Mikey-san was the Lawful Neutral type, not one to go out of his way to break the law, and morally opposed to the idea. He knew who I was (and am), and knew quite well that I could never, nor would ever, pay $400 for a font to use on my desktop.
My behaviour after that point was something I am somewhat ashamed of, and do not wish to discuss here. Needless to say, a long and bitter feud existed between him and I, worse than he and most of the other server members. I thought him a fanatic. An asshole, definitely. An idiot, probably. In my blindness, I failed to see the way I was behaving. I wish I could talk to him today, and tell him how dearly sorry I am for that.
I have just been informed that he now hangs out on rhl. I retract everything!