In the world of Debian, I'm a nobody. I happily use it for a multitude of reasons, one of them being live-build. As a casual user I don't see much of the politics that make up an organization such as Debian. I don't think I need that kind of clarity, however, to see that this is being handled in about the worst way possible. Out of the blue, someone rolls up, kicks in your door and demands you leave your house. Exactly what kind of response did you think you were going to get to that, Iain? I see Daniel hasn't responded to you and I don't blame him. I wouldn't either.
Why I appreciate your contributions to Debian, this is just sad. What a jerk.