[WikiEN-l] A definite version of WP:CRYSTAL

[Jay Litwyn]

== Wikipedia is not a crystal ball. ==

<nowiki>{{speculation}} and {{prophecy}}</nowiki> are not welcome on
wikipedia. No articles about anticipated events are verifiable, because
anticipated events are not reliable. They are not reliable, because they are
not testable. Exceptional claims require exceptional references.
[[:category:Reliable Modern Prophets and Agencies of Prediction]] is very
small. Forward-looking documents and statements should be restricted to
events that are almost certain to happen in the obvious sense, considering
how many times it has happened in the past and the resources devoted to
making it happen again.

[http://future.wikia.com/ Wiki-future], [[WP:IRC]], [[WP:TALK]],
[[WP:E-MAIL]] and [[USENET]] are fine venues for writing about the future,
and it does not belong here until it is a fact, so look out for sentences
that contain words like "would", "could", "may", and "might", because they
should tell you what makes them likely, almost now.

$continue with exceptions...no, because as WP:CRYSTAL is now, there hav
already been a lot of exceptions and that's probably why I ended up with so
much static when I tried to take the [[weasel words]] out of it. I'm sure
there are people who took and take this policy by the name of the section
heading, like I did. I don't know a more sensible and pivotal rule than this
to divide wikipedia from the rest of the media.