On Feb 8, 2004, at 8:37 AM, Fred Bauder wrote:
I don't propose we start screening people before we let them edit. Just that once they start trolling Wikipedia and it becomes so much of an issue that it is before the arbitrators that then behavior in other forums becomes relevant both for determining what kind of a person we are dealing with but also for determining remedies, keeping in mind that there is little prospect that a person with long-standing habitual habits of disruption will be able to change or would want to.
One problem with bringing up a person's pre-Wikipedia history is that a reformed troll is likely to be, shall we say, tact-impaired. Such a person is *more* likely to be falsely accused of trolling (remembering that trolling includes intent). On the other hand, this history can greatly help arbitrators to decide how to deal with a user. Many people are simply bad at garnering sympathy for their point; it's a skill not everyone has. Simply accusing such people of trolling is likely to make matters worse and make the arbitrators' job harder.
Peter
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