On 8/6/07, Anthony wikimail@inbox.org wrote:
Your analysis makes at least two major incorrect assumptions: 1) that current IP address blocks are an effective way to stop determined banned users (the kind that would be using TOR); and 2) that there is no possibility for middleground between adminship and getting an account (in technical terms, it assumes that the "ipblock-exempt" can only be granted along with adminship).
To address point 1, they are not necessarily an effective way to stop banned users from editing, but they are better than nothing and help to some degree. More importantly, it is much easier to track the activity of a malicious user if they either have to use legitimate IP addresses or hardblockable-on-sight open proxies. It also makes them work harder; Tor is available as a pre-packaged solution that is easy to install and use without too much advanced knowledge.
As to point 2, it is an option I would be personally willing to consider. However, implementing it would require both (a) agreement of the developers or of WMF to implement such a thing in software (my understanding is that patches to add this functionality have been refused) and (b) either an active push by Wikipedia users for such a feature with reasonable rough consensus behind it (it appears this does not exist; at the very least, there are those with strenuous objections to it) or a push by the influential to allow it.
The Arbcom technically do not make policy; we but interpret it. Thus we cannot force through such a policy change ourselves, although an unanimously held position of the sitting Arbcom would be a powerful force in favor. However, I believe the Arbcom is divided on this issue and will not state such a unanimously held position (heck, I'm personally divided on the issue). Jimbo appears to be somewhat in favor, but I'm not sure Jimbo alone could push this kind of change against strong opposition. Lastly, the WMF Board could change Foundation policy, I suppose, and make this happen, but again I don't really see it.
Thus, I don't see this change happening overnight. Perhaps over time the community will warm to the idea.
This also, of course, has the chicken-and-egg problem that those who are most motivated to want to permit editing from Tor are blocked because Tor is blocked.
Furthermore, since even if this flag was available outside of adminship, it would only be available to already known and trusted users. Therefore, it would be of use only to a tiny subset of Tor users; those who have already built up a positive reputation on Wikipedia by either editing without using Tor, or having successfully evaded such blocks for long enough to build up such a reputation. Most Tor users will not have built up such a reputation, because they won't be able to edit through Tor and are unwilling to not use Tor; blocking of Tor addresses has been on occasion lax in the past but my feeling is that this is much less so now.
I'm guessing that this last is a good part of why the developers are unwilling to implement such a patch; it would be useable only by such a tiny fraction of the community that its utility is marginal at best. What subset of Wikipedia users are trusted enough to get such a flag but not to get adminship? Probably a few dozen at the extreme most, and I can't see even that many.
Thus, I don't feel this is actually a workable solution.
-Matt