I suppose we could ask for users to serve as "prosecutors, a few do now on
their own. We don't seem in mind in such cases that the offended parties are
not bringing the case but a third party who has marshalled all the offenses
together and made a case.
Fred
From: Tim Starling
<t.starling(a)physics.unimelb.edu.au>
Reply-To: English Wikipedia <wikien-l(a)Wikipedia.org>
Date: Sun, 07 Nov 2004 02:10:25 +1100
To: wikien-l(a)wikipedia.org
Subject: [WikiEN-l] Re: Broken dispute resolution mechanisms (was Reithy is a
problem)
May I suggest that when a serious matter arises
that any user disturbed by
it engage in the dispute resolution procedure. Our failures to act in cases
which are not before us are to be expected. We do not initiate cases.
All I'm asking for is that every once in a while, we re-evaluate our
dogma. You say "we do not initiate cases" as if that settles the matter.
I don't know if your rule about not initiating cases is good or bad, I
just wish we'd think about it critically every once in a while.
Let me take the negative position. Why not act on cases that are not
brought before you? Is this a serious balance to your power? If the 9 of
you wanted to abuse your power and bend editorial direction to suit your
philosophy, would you have trouble finding a single non-member to bring
cases that you secretly ask to be brought? If you are aware of failures,
trolls bringing stress and anger to honest contributors and damaging the
quality of the encyclopedia, how can you sit by and do nothing in good
conscience?
-- Tim Starling