Thanks zahavasdad, that is very understanding of you, and of course, I agree. Also, this is not at all analogous to asking a vegetarian for a chulent recipe, though I imagine that was said somewhat in jest. It’s more like asking a law school dropout why he dropped out and what might have got him to stay in. That would seem to be highly useful information in designing a successful academic program.
People keep mentioning that an OTD person should take the “blame” on themselves rather than trying to push it onto someone else. This is a usually incorrect way of thinking about it, as most OTD people that I know do not see their OTD-ness as something that is blameworthy. Thus, they are not trying to blame themselves, you, or anyone else, but rather provide insight into what might have kept them in the fold. I would think that this advice would be seen as useful, and it is unfortunate that people seem to not agree.