"Daniel R. Tobias" wrote

That, in fact, is how I got dragged into the whole BADSITES issue in the first place, since I was one of those who liked to make fun of the silly stuff that got said in those sites, with links, and I also at one point was featured in both Brandt's Hivemind and Merkey's MerkeyLaw, and proudly linked to them on my user page for it. I resented a policy that told me I couldn't do what I regarded as harmless diversion.

Well, we collectively might have to grow up a bit, and not descend to the level of those who mock (and worse).

In the greater scheme of things, this is probably a "minor price to pay" as noted above, but in terms of the harm done to the general culture of Wikipedia (by not only BADSITES itself, but by the entire mindset behind it and all its other manifestations), where the entire field of discussion gets riddled with landmines, tripwires, and political third rails that one must avoid, the harm is more than minor in my opinion. It's similar to the pernicious harm to academia caused by the Political Correctness movement, where students and faculty are afraid to speak freely for fear of offending some minority group.

Right. There is some danger that this thread might fizzle out, since the case is closed. Why not batten on an off-topic discussion of PC? I'm sure we'll all be illuminated.

Charles

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