[WikiEN-l] need to work out clear policies on MANDATORY and OPTIONAL rules on WP

[Tom Cadden]

Andrew Gray <shimgray at gmail.com> wrote: On 17/11/05, Tom Cadden  wrote:

> A classic example is one vote where over twenty users have voted to put a page at the location that is contrary to MoS policy. Arguments ranged from
>
>  * well I like that name
>  * well I always use it
>  * I personally haven't heard any other name used
>  * the Government wants it
>  * it will eventually become widespread
>  * I hope it eventually becomes widespread
>  * I think it will eventually become widespread
>  * we should be encourging it to become widespread
>  * I think the old name is colonial
>  and a lot of others.
>
>  None of those are criteria recognised in the Manual of Style, which
> sets the simple criteria 'the most common name used in English',
> not 'the most common name likely to be used in the future', 'the
> name we would like to use', or 'the name the government tells us
> to use' but simply the most common name in use as of now.

Of course, there's also a significant number that are opposing based
on the fact that they consider the other name to be the most commonly
used in English. 
   
 Which is why an independent evaluation procedure is needed to establish independently verifiable facts. Right now much of the debate on various pages seems to be based on
   
 * I believe that it is the most common name 
   
 even when independent evaluation proved unambiguously that it isn't.
   
 Repeatedly waving the strawman that people are voting
to ignore the MoS, or that they all somehow are incapable of
understanding what a manual of style is, doesn't help in the least.
   
 Arguments such as 
 >  * well I like that name
 >  * well I always use it
 >  * I personally haven't heard any other name used
 >  * the Government wants it
 >  * it will eventually become widespread
 >  * I hope it eventually becomes widespread
 >  * I think it will eventually become widespread
 >  * we should be encourging it to become widespread
 >  * I think the old name is colonial
 >  and a lot of others.
   
 are all 100% contrary to WP's Manual of Style. Yet they are how people vote to decide to ignore the mandatory rules of the MoS. Either the MoS is mandatory or it isn't. If it is, then votes to ignore it on grounds that conflict with the MoS are invalid. 
   
Again, please assume *some* good faith on the part of people who
disagree with you. It costs nothing and saves on everyone's blood
pressure.
   
 The expressed reasons for many of the votes show no reason to assume good faith, when people willfully make decisions in open disregard of the rules thousands of other Wikipedians follow. 
   


		
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