Our loss.

I totally agree. Our loss indeed; but it does make me wonder how our calling him on his impolitness is enough to drive him off?

It's okay for him to barate people for asking "dumb questions" or reaching "wrong conclusions", but not okay for us to question that?

Seems to me that if you can't take the heat, you stay out of the kitchen. Not only does being impolite take more effort than being polite; it invites a certain reaction that is both predictable and contextually warrented.

No amount of genius, seniority, name recognition nor earning power on behalf of an attacker removes the right of the attacked to a defense.

I have had a tendancy to tilt at windmills all my life, but I've found a quitely spoken statement of fact infinitely more effective than shouting, or being rude.