If you can be banned for a bit, or for expressing reasonable dissent, why would we put effort into anything more than shitposting on this site?
Likewise if decisions are made on a whim from the admin/mod team, it is reasonable for the users to feel and act like they are just along for the ride.
One of my coworkers had to do part time jail for a DUI. He lost his driving privileges and had to serve his time on the weekends, but he got to keep his job.