From: "Tony Sidaway" minorityreport@bluebottle.com
Jim Cecropia said:
Well of course page protection is unpopular and banning has a "good consensus'--page protection affects *me* but banning affects *them*. :)
Precisely. It's like the speed limit. Only unrestrained editors ever whine about it.>
But consider that page protection can be short--just long enough, if the participants calm down, for the admin to look at the situation and put a few choice comments and suggestions on the article talk, and see if he s/he can get some feedback as to how to proceed. Yes, this is some work for the admin, but the admin cannot take a step like that and walk away. In fact, one admin who did that (among other things) was de-admined. With the 3RR block, the admin is walking away: the "winning" side is satisfied, and the "loser" stews in his/her juices for 24 hours. This is easy but doesn't contribute to Wikipedia, the community, or the encyclopedia.
You're expecting far too much from administrators. We're editors, not fairy godmothers. I should bloody well hope that the "loser" stews. That's what the 3RR is for. Learn to play nice or stew. How hard is it for a bright editor to work out what side of that equation he wants to be on?
"Learn to play nice or stew." You see, you've made my point and the point of several others, Tony. Application of the 3RR in blocking makes the blocking admin judge and jury, and essentially assigns guilt where we don't know that the admin even examined the issue.
Also be aware that a careless 3RR block also stigmatizes that user. It's the same concept that you don't parade a person on trial in front of the jury in prison clothes or cuffs--the jury "knows" that person hasn't been found guilty yet, but with those stripes and chains he sure "looks" guilty.
The "bright" editor may do what I've done on certain articles: not edit them any more. But by me I'm not being bright, I'm failing to contribute and, frankly IMO, some articles I've abandoned are not the better for leaving them to the partisans.
As to the admin's job. A year ago we had <200 admins, now we're pushing 400. No admin is required to do anything (which is one reason I like people to express positive interest in the job); but if one of these 400 takes the time to step into a situation, they should be ready to at least see it through its initial stages.
--C