On 6/17/08, Wily D wilydoppelganger@gmail.com wrote:
I'm really unsure on what I think. ArbCom introducing new policy? That's probably bad.
It is headed 'special enforcement' rather than 'special policy', and I think the distinction is more than merely terminological. The policy basis is WP:BLP which has been in place for some time and has wide acceptance; I agree it would be wrong for Arbcom to change that policy.
But how the community will respond is still up in the air and needs
voices. Recall that even though the ArbCom introduced the contraversial MONGO remedy, eventually the community pushed back until it could no longer be applied farther than the original policy had allowed. So if a lot of people are upset (and I've never seen so much talk of open revolt), it probably is possible for the community to collectively put this into a different, more well thought out form.
I believe this new provision will be workable, and with administrators acting responsibly, will benefit the encyclopaedia. If we find this doesn't happen then we will have to have a look again. However, I would be disappointed if there is an organised campaign of resistance aimed at trying to overturn the ruling ("open revolt"), more because that's just not the way we do things.