From: BJörn Lindqvist <bjourne(a)gmail.com>
Date: 2006/02/17 Fri AM 11:50:17 EST
To: English Wikipedia <wikien-l(a)wikipedia.org>
Subject: Re: [WikiEN-l] Arbcom has completely lost its mind
If Wikipedia isn't mine, then who owns it? Who gets to decide whether
publishing "I am a fish" on your user page is allowed or not? Why
doesn't my opinion carry as much weight as the next one? AFAIK there
is no Wikipedia-rule against writing pedophile on your user page. I
thought that was the whole reason for this email thread.
The Foundation owns Wikipedia.
Most constitutions (the one in the US for example)
explicitly
guarantees every citizens right to free speech. Most countries also
have laws that makes saying and publishing certain things illegal. In
most countries with "free speech," you are allowed to put "almost any
poster you want on your front door." Similarly, Wikipedia allows you
to put almost any description of yourself you want on your user page.
No. The U.S. Constitution prohibits Congress from restricting ''free
speech''. The courts have extended that to state and local governments. There is
no protection of free speech on private property, such as the servers on which Wikipedia
is hosted. Try going to a shopping mall and lecturing the shoppers in favor of a position
that is not popular in your community.