Why is that ghoulish? I disagree with the policy, but it's fundamentally different to force someone to leave and to force them to stay.

People are being forced to leave.

And being compelled to stay

In that specific situation, no they weren't. The only legal action is to leave the country, so it's impossible to claim they're being compelled to do anything else.

And leaving forfeits the visa application

And so would the ad-hominem attacks. A thread starts with discussion around facts and then it spirals downward with attacks on commenters.