dojo master regexp your arse, glasshoppa!

Dojo Toolkit and Regexp monster child runs amok. Citizens terrified. Where will it stop?? I want to put ‘>=2 ‘ in a combobox. Dojo master say no. In fact, it seems to be escaping any even vaguely ‘dodgy’ characters. I can’t put < in, fair enough. I can’t put & in. I tried ‘<‘ even. It converts that to & lt; but it won’t resolve anything with an ampersand in either. This bug, and yes I say it IS a bug, is bugging the arse off me. bloody wordpress is at it too! Leave me the hell alone! What is wrong with you people?!?!