I think you inverted the logic. His case is "Hans Reiser was an outsider, but when he turned out to be a killer (which does not strictly relate to his FS work) we dropped him like a hot potato. Contrast that with Mike Godwin, who did a thing (the respondand thinks is) reprehensible, but because he is a big name, we give him leeway"

he's making a compare-and-contrast argument, as I understood it.

The difference is, Hans Reiser was a murderer. Mike Godwin is just conflicted between his belief in a greater good outcome and his role as a PIR/ISOC conflicted person. I think its a bit apples-and-fishcakes as comparisons go, but I sort of get it.

"our community[...]tend to forgive"

"I was actually thinking about how the community handled Hans Reiser"

That sure looks like an example to me, not a contrast.

But maybe you're right.