<P>I've been saying that the [[coaliton of the willing]] article was a mess for a long time now, but didn't have the enrgy to fight everybody who thinks it's wonderful. Since the article is SUPPOSEDLY about the allies, I never understood why the position of every country in the world was included. I agree with Ed that another article discussing the national positions is needed, but I didn't want to face attack for trying to edit [[coalition of the willing]] for fear of having my head handed to me.
<P>The lack of NPOV in the war articles is a serious problem, as well.
<P>Zoe
<P> <B><I>"Poor, Edmund W" <Edmund.W.Poor@abc.com></I></B> wrote:
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<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>We need to come up with a neutral, timeless name for the war</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>in Iraq. Forgive me for the length of this post, but I</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>believe it's important enough to warrant your attention.</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>I object to the incessant labeling of the war in Iraq as</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>the "invasion of Iraq". There is a lot more to the war than</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>the fact that 2 or 3 countries have invaded it.</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>Regardless of our personal feelings about how right or wrong</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>the conduct of any nation in the war has been, the</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>*articles* should:</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>* have neutral content</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>* have neutral titles</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>Let me lay my cards on the table, so you don't</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>misunderstand. My church opposes the US campaign: Bush was</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>wrong to attack. I agree with that POV. Many others do,</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>also, although perhaps not for precisely the same religious</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>reasons as Rev. Moon.</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>However, even though I'm "right" about my POV and most</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>Wikipedians happen to agree with me...</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>WE ALL AGREED TO ADHERE TO JIMBO'S NEUTRAL-POINT-OF-VIEW</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>POLICY</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>Excuse me for shouting, but several of us have been</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>confounding neutral-point-of-view with other things. I'm not</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>naming names and not engaging in prolepsis or other Roman</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>rhetorical tricks. I just want to fix the problem, so let's</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>all pitch in, please.</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>The war started in 2003, and it's taking place in Iraq</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>(which is near the Persian Gulf), so we might call it:</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>* the [[2003 war in Iraq]] or [[2003 Iraq War]]</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>* the [[2003 Gulf War]]</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>There are various military campaigns. I know of 4 countries</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>fighting against Iraq (the "allies" or "coalition"). We</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>should write about the war from the standpoint that there</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>are two sides in the war:</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>* Iraq</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>* US, UK, Australia & Poland</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>(I might be wrong about Australia or Poland; if so, that's</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>an important detail and please correct me.)</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>(There might be other countries which are parties to the</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>conflict. Maybe Iraq has a military or other ally which I</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>don't know about; if so, we should write about that ally!</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>There are up to 4 dozen countries in various degrees of</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>opposition to Iraq, and we've begun an article or two on</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>them.)</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>Also, I think "coalition of the willing" is a purely</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>political phrase: propaganda, i.e., a slogan. I don't think</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>it makes a good title for either of the following topics:</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>* the countries which oppose Iraq in the 2003 war, or</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>* every country which has made a statement or taken action</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>FOR OR AGAINST IRAQ</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>The latter topic, especially, would be just plain stupid to</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>call [[coalition of the willing]] because by design it</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>includes opponents.</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>I started dividing the [[coalition of the willing]] article</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>into:</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>* a short article about the slogan "coalition of the</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>willing"</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>* a longer article, tentatively called [[US-led coalition</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>against Iraq]]</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>But the "...coalition" article lists every nation in the</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>world which has ever made a statement or taken action on the</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>war. Roughly, there are around 2 or 3 dozen nations ranged</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>against Iraq (in word or deed) and maybe 5 dozen speaking up</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>for them or providing aid.</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>Shouldn't we have an article which lists the positions of</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>each nation of the world on this war? If so, what should we</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>call it? How about [[national positions on the 2003 war in</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>Iraq]]? Can we think of a shorter or more accurate title?</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>I hate to keep taking discussion off the talk pages, but</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>this is the only central place I know of, and talk gets</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>fragmented and overlooked too easily when discussing</FONT></SPAN> <BR><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>multiple articles.</FONT></SPAN> </P>
<P><SPAN lang=en-us><FONT face=Arial size=2>Ed Poor</FONT></SPAN> </P></BLOCKQUOTE><p><br><hr size=1>Do you Yahoo!?<br>
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