From: Daniel Ehrenberg <littledanehren@yahoo.com>
Why does everyone oppose advertising? If it's descrete enough, it's not intrusive and doesn't lower our credibility.
I do not oppose advertising on Wikipedia (or on a fork). It is hard to imagine an article which would not lead gracefully to a short, non-obtrusive ad at the bottom of a page, if nothing else for a book about the subject of the article. It is, however, a "slippery slope" and anyone knows that once a camel gets its nose in the tent the rest of the camel is not far behind.
It is hard to sell advertising in any event. People who do sell advertising find it very hard indeed if they have only a no-intrusive option to offer. WalMart is not likely to be happy with anything less than saturation pop-ups.
Non-profit status and extensive advertising produce an emotional if not a legal disconnect.
Fred