Sorry, I am/was not sure how to specify who and when the quote is from. (just noticed my quotes were different from most).
Oh, just got it. 
Well, for starters, commoners do not need nobles to give them scrolls. It is commoners that bring most scrolls into the game.
I admit that I have often treated commoners with a little respect, but then, I have never beaten my horse either.
Commoners are where most UI's and scrolls come from, commoners are the only ones that can have IU's repaired, etc.
Like my horse, they have their uses.
It is my opinion that a horse should be treated well so long as he is performing his desired function. When his usefulness to me ends, it is time to "retire" him and get a new one.
Is it the fault of the horse when I gather 100 together and train them for war against an enemy that is not prepared to deal with a cavalry charge?
One of the players involved said he was given scrolls by a noble.
The comparison with horses is absurd. Advies were always meant to be a roleplay side-game, not tools of war.
There's also absolutely no possible defense against what was pulled off. None whatsoever. BM was never about sending ICBMs to foreign nations to just watch them die from afar.
If you really want to compare with horses, think of that: would you leave a horse alone in a room with an unprotected button to launch nukes? But they had no reason to worry about it, the advies are all their alts anyways, so it's just giving themselves the launch codes. Players don't typically backstab themselves.
