Sheldon pointed out:
> The difference between being a troll or "tact-impaired"
> is minor enough that for most practical purposes it isn't
> worth considering.
Certainly. You're a case in point. Of all our sysops and respected
contributors, you are easily the least tactful. You bully everyone who
dares to disagree with you (even Jimbo). But we generally ignore your
tactlessness, because of the honor of having a best-selling, published
author in our ranks. And, oh yes, because once in a while you come up
with a good idea.
But the only reward for good behavior, as you put it, is a thank you
note from another contributor. You might get a barnstar, a pat on the
back via e-mail, public accolades on the mailing list or your user talk
page.
By the way, I think you're an outstanding writer, Sheldon. (You're just
wrong about global warming, but, hey, no one's perfect! ;-)
Rating systems simply don't work. Any system devisable can be "worked"
by clever and devious people with nothing better to do. Hackers (ahem,
"Real hackers" call these folks 'script kiddies' or 'crackers').
Some might even say that the Western journalism system (the "media") can
be cracked -- say, by unethical manipulation of statistics, just to
mention one way of "stacking the deck". I believe you have a lot of
professional knowledge about how the unscrupulous do this, Sheldon.
Ed Poor