Alas, mods are not omniscient. If anyone has proof Mr. Olie the 2nd is a sock, kindly provide it to the mods. Anybody maintaining a sock account at this point is taking a calculated risk. Is it really worth it?
AFAIK, nobody was given special permission for anything, certainly not from me. Joke socks were likely tolerated so long as they were obvious, and didn't stink up serious threads. It takes just one or two people to piss in the pool and ruin it for everyone.