[WikiEN-l] drama and incivility

[Monahon, Peter B.]

> Earlier: ... A great part of the cancer I refer to is the attitude of
some persons in the
Community who not only condone, but actually encourage, the type of
personal
attack statements that began this conversation. And, the practice of
some of
calling names and labeling people they disagree with, rather than either
engaging them in the subject or moving on ...

Peter Blaise responds: 

	Agreed.  On http://www.mediawiki.org/ (the parent software wiki
for Wikipedia) I objected to the
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Don't_be_a_dick page which "officially"
encourages all sorts of disrespect in the community.  I get the attempt
at humor.  I just prefer humor that does not depend on ridicule and
denigration, which I find unhealthy for the sender at least as well as
unhealthy for the receiver of such disregard.  Result?  Banned.  Ouch!
So much for the Wiki Media Foundation believing in their own
proto-democracy tool!  This is what I mean by:

	"Power corrupts.  Absolute power (to ban) corrupts absolutely."

	Hey, I'd LOVE to continue my contributions to the success of the
Mediawiki efforts:
http://www.mediawiki.org/w/index.php?title=Special%3AContributions&contr
ibs=user&target=peterblaise

	... but what can any of us do when the incivility and drama are
admin-inflicted and enforced?  WikiScanner is nice as a user check, but
who check the admins?

	http://mashable.com/2007/08/14/wikiscanner/

	http://wikiscanner.virgil.gr/

-- Peter Blaise