[Wikipedia-l] I'm seeing a trend here or How to keep drivingaway good contributors

[The Cunctator]

On 10/25/02 12:47 PM, "Larry Sanger" <lsanger at nupedia.com> wrote:

> On Fri, 25 Oct 2002, The Cunctator wrote:
> 
>> On 10/25/02 11:02 AM, "Larry Sanger" <lsanger at nupedia.com> wrote:
<snip
> (1) The list you refer to is not of difficult contributors, Cunc; it is a
> list of *behaviors*.  Read it again.  And as long as we are going to ban
> some people for some *behaviors*, we sure as heck *better* clearly define
> those behaviors.

Basically, we shouldn't.

> (2) I don't read MeatballWiki and I don't think they define Wikipedia's
> values for Wikipedia.  We define our own values.  I don't know if that's
> what "avoiding CommunityExile" means, and I don't care.  Are you saying we
> should never ban anyone?  That surely isn't your view, though; you thought
> we should ban 24.

If you don't want to understand what I'm saying, then there's not much point
in trying to explain. But I'll continue for the benefit of others: I think
that ideally we should never have to ban anyone. I didn't think we should
ban 24. I didn't strongly think we should *not* ban 24, either. It was a
push, given the circumstances.

> 
>>> This is a bit off the topic, but it came up and I can't let it pass.  KQ
>>> said recently that Cunctator is the project's *conscience*.  Perhaps KQ
>>> was just trying to be nice, but I think that is actually unfair to the
>>> rest of us, who like to think we have a principled approach to the project
>>> as well.  It also accords Cunc respect as somehow *the* representative of
>>> a *particularly* moral point of view, to whom the rest of us ought to pay
>>> special heed--I disagree with that and I enjoin you not to accord *any*
>>> one person such special respect.  (I'm not sure KQ meant to imply all this
>>> by "conscience of the project," and I also doubt, in his reasonableness
>>> and modesty, that Cunc would reject the description when cashed out as I
>>> have done, but I just want this to be clear.)
>> 
>> I suppose all this faint praise will make me a better devil's advocate...
> 
> I wasn't aware of even faintly praising you, but if you want to claim to
> be faintly praised, go right ahead.  ;-)

Just to raise your awareness: you granted me "reasonableness and modesty".
That's certainly praise, if faint.