[WikiEN-l] Vigilantism or due process (was: Plautus)

[Caroline Ford]

Jussi-Ville Heiskanen wrote:

|Oh, please no.
 Agree completely.

> The dangers are more salient than the benefits. We can afford to lose 
> any number
> of users to exasperation with vandals and trolls. What we can not 
> afford is to
> create (even with the best of intentions) a insular culture of 
> obeisance and
> initiatory progression through the ranks. Sysophood is already too 
> often withheld
> from unpopular users(/users holding unpopular views). Openness is the 
> jewel of
> wikipedia, and it should be protected at nearly any cost.

Also agree. People do vote for political reasons. I can see the start of 
political camps forming in Wikipedia which worries me. There is also a 
fair amount of obedience to sysops which is wrong as well. I guess these 
are the dynamics of groups.

>
> I understand the will to prevent useful users from leaving in 
> frustration, but
> we must be more concerned about the whole of wikipedia, than any one, 
> or even
> several users. "The law created before me, shall outlast me." As much 
> as it pains
> us all, it is _most_ important to lay down rules which can be 
> justified without
> reference to current cases, and personages.
>
> Jussi-Ville Heiskanen (aka Cimon Avaro)

It's far too open to abuse. There is an element of popularity contest 
about it. No-one seems to object to banning unpopular users.

The truth is, I don't trust some sysops not to ban people for political 
reasons, or to ban people they've previously been fighting with. 
Therefore a definite no.

Caroline / Secretlondon