[WikiEN-l] declining numbers of EN wiki admins - The theory that making it easier to get rid of admins is a solution to the decline in their active numbers

[Abd ul-Rahman Lomax]

At 11:19 AM 5/31/2010, Charles Matthews wrote:
>[...] remedies - for a bigger picture
>- have the disadvantages of requiring a great deal of investment of
>time. I believe I have tried a number of those, without yet getting a
>complete view of the elephant.

Right. Sensible. There is a solution to that, which is structured 
discussion and investigation. Deliberative process, where each issue 
involved is examined carefully. Yes. It takes a lot of time, but with 
good structure, it's a collective effort and very practical. Without 
good structure, it's basically impossible. And what we get is one 
effort after another, never completely examined, rejected or fought 
over without ever finding true consensus, which represents, in the 
end, much more "waste of time," whereas effort to find consensus, 
done intelligently -- which often requires some skilled facilitation 
or process assistance -- isn't wasted. It builds something that will last.

The blind men can come up with a complete description of the elephant 
if they trust each other's good faith, and move around just a little 
bit, so that each one gets more than one "view." It is only when they 
insist that their own experience must be all-encompassing that they 
fail to grasp the truth.

What do you get when you can see from more than one point of view at a time?