[WikiEN-l] Philosophical question re sources

[Steve Bennett]

On 3/21/06, Ryan Delaney <ryan.delaney at gmail.com> wrote:
> Looking at this article, I think the main problem is that it is /not/ about
> the organization, but about the organization's arguments. The whole "Safe
> Speed's Claims" and "Opposition and Criticism" examples could be summarized
> in a few sentences.

Having now looked at the article, it actually has quite a few
problems. It has various points of view sprayed all over it. Some
examples:
--
(Intro para): Safe Speed does not campaign against speed limits, only
against their enforcement by automated means, because their view is
that sticking to a speed limit does not guarantee safe driving, and
that all motoring laws should be enforced appropriately and
proportionately.
...
The group has links with libertarian groups. One prominent supporter
(presented as giving academic support to Safe Speed's claims) is Dr.
Alan Buckingham, a specialist in family life and relationships at Bath
Spa University College and a contributor to The Centre for Independent
Studies.
...
Although Smith has always used the word "we" when discussing Safe
Speed on the website, it is very much his idea and his organisation.
...
The Safe Speed website makes the claim that if any fact can be proven
to be incorrect, it will be removed. One page was removed following
criticism by Jocksch, whose work was cited, but subsequently
reinserted with similar content..

--

Perhaps there is not much that is interesting and encyclopaedic that
can be said about this group. At the moment, this article really
doesn't paint Wikipedia is a good light. It gives far too much detail
to the claims (claims by *any* single group should never be given that
much detail, regardless of validity), and falls into the classic
"claims / criticism" trap. There are also very few sources even for
the claims (which ought to be easily sourcable from the website).
There is also general bloat, featuring remarks about the history of
motoring regulation, which clearly don't belong in this article.

My last question is: Who the hell is Paul Smith? The article begins
"Safe Speed is a UK web-based road safety organisation run by Paul
Smith." and only has this to say about him: "Smith ran the project as
a hobby from his home in Scotland for some time but in 2003, following
a period of illness in which his self-employed computer engineering
business ran down, he took it up full time at some significant
personal cost. Although Smith has always used the word "we" when
discussing Safe Speed on the website, it is very much his idea and his
organisation. Smith is also a member of the motorists' pressure group
Association of British Drivers (ABD)."

Are we to be led to believe that this whole article is about some
angry British motorist running a website from home?

Steve