It is a public website and a public service - it's like saying "hey I got free lemonade here, but you can't have it unless I decide I like you first."

If you're giving something away online for free, then you are giving it away for free. I'll never understand the cognitive dissonance of "conditionally free".

A more important question is where do we draw the line of abuse? If someone links to my website and that's okay with me, but someone else does and I don't like it, do I have the right to conditionally block access to them? And do they have the right to circumvent that to regain access that I freely give to others?

> I'll never understand the cognitive dissonance of "conditionally free".

it's not a cognitive dissonance. Lots of places have conditionally free stuff - it's a form of price discrimination (coupons, special deals etc).

Microsoft is within their rights to make their servers conditionally free. What the community can respond with is to move to a different server, if such conditions are not within the bounds of the community's lines.

"Bathroom for customers only" is a completely reasonable ask from a business owner, and is what Microsoft is doing here.

> I'll never understand the cognitive dissonance of "conditionally free"

I don't think I understand. You don't understand how something can only sometimes be free? Like, free parking only on weekends? Free entry for young children? And free software depending on who you are and what you are going to do with it?

>it's like saying "hey I got free lemonade here, but you can't have it unless I decide I like you first."

Which is completely reasonable, you may need a different analogy.