Why people leaving the game should NOT be an automatic ban/loss

I have seen so many requests for lichess to ban/flag/dismember anyone who leaves the game early that I feel it is necessary to weigh in on the subject. Leaving a game intentionally without resigning is a jerk move. It really is. If there were a way to determine if someone intentionally left a game with 100% certainty, then I would be all for lichess coming down upon the quitters with vengeance.
It isn't possible to do so, however. Take me for instance. I play a lot of games. I finish a lot of games. And yet, my internet connection often goes out half way through the game. This leaves me at a disadvantage, not my opponent. My opponent can use the extra time to think about his or her move. I have to rush my moves.
One argument that I often see is that people don't have enough time to finish the games when their opponent leaves. If this is the case, do you have the time to finish the games when your opponent doesn't leave, but uses all of his/her time to actually think about moves? The only option I see besides warping the space-time continuum is to leave early yourself, which is exactly what the other party is being accused of. By agreeing to the conditions of a game, you imply that you are willing to sit and wait the entire duration of the game. If you don't have 60 minutes, 30 of which to wait, don't play a 30+0 game.

> It really is. If there were a way to determine if someone intentionally left a game with 100% certainty

There is and it's exactly what lichess does. Basically if you disconnect game after game and always do so in a completely losing position (but it somehow never happens to you in the middle of a game or when you're winning) then we can be quite certain that the disconnections are intentional (statistical precautions are taken of course). Nothing to worry about if you're not doing that.

@clousems the fault in your logic is that you assume that people are willing to wait 30 minutes instead of playing for 30 minutes. There is quite a bit of difference between those 2 things. You would not expect a boxer to wait 10 rounds in the ring, after his opponent climbed out of the ring in the second round, would you?

I'm sorry, but if your connection sucks it's not Lichess' problem and your opponents shouldn't be punished by having to wait and watch the timer tick down. The rampant behaviour of players leaving games in lost positions makes me want to find a different platform to play chess where this behaviour is punished more strictly.

"The rampant behaviour of players leaving games in lost positions makes me want to find a different platform to play chess where this behaviour is punished more strictly"
-- Is there an alternative?

@VRlunatic : "...it's not Lichess' problem..."
Agreed. Never said it was the site's problem. I wrote this is as a response to the weekly threads requesting punishment of anyone who leaves a game, which are gradually approaching a level of "ban everyone who doesn't play all of their moves within 30 seconds of my move."
Also, I am curious to know the answer to the question posed by #5. I can't really think of a stronger available enforcement policy than banning, unless France allows charities to hire assassins.
The point is that people leaving games, while annoying, is a fact of life. Immature people ragequit. By agreeing to play in a certain time control, however, you are stating that you are willing to wait for your opponent.

@Morozov : Well, if a boxer straight-up leaves, he isn't getting prize money. The fact that lichess does not offer both parties money for participating weakens the analogy. I see your point though.

In Overwatch it's a team-based shooter that requires good teamplay. If one player leaves, the team with one less player is at a huge disadvantage. If one player just goes afk, it's still the same as if they just left. So, overwatch has a system in which if you don't move for about 1-2 minutes, a red banner will popup saying "You will be removed from the game if you remain inactive". I think Lichess could have some sort of system like this where after a couple minutes a little notification icon pops up thats like "Hey, you here?" If they don't click yes in 1 minute or so it can allow the opponent who's been patiently waiting to claim victory. I get that maybe you go afk for a second to go to the bathroom or something, but maybe if the timer is long enough it can work out. Maybe a new idea to implement.

the fact is that fair players will resign the game if they suddenly have no time to finish the game (or are "bored"). Someone could propose a draw instead of resigning ("i have to go, can we agree to a draw?") or leave a message in the chat at the very least. Of course assuming the disconnection is intentional.

@HydroMask Great idea, I completely agree! Of course this should be applied only in classical format.

Forum topic lichess.org/forum/lichess-feedback/either-stop-the-problem-with-time-wasters-or-i-revoke-my-donations suggests that there is a major problem with opponents frequently wasting time. I assume that both are true:
* There is a high incidence rate of opponents wasting time.
* Players who repeatedly waste time are banned.

Players in that same thread are asking that we add a feature to second-guess the work of our moderators by displaying statistics about whether a player tends to waste time, because apparently moderators aren't banning offenders fast enough?