Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 19:14, 6 July 2009

I'm Off The Case. I'm stepping back from most administrative matters for the foreseeable future. I will try to stay on top of a handful of issues where I don't expect anyone else to step up, but I can't guarantee more than that.

Archives

July 2006—January 2007 Feb 2007—March 2007 March 2007 April 2007 May 2007–July 2007 Old odds and ends Admin stuff, RfA through June 2007 July 2007 July–August 2007 August 2007 September 2007 September 2007 September 2007–October 2007 November 2007 November 2007–January 2008 January 2008 February 2008–March 2008 March 2008–May 2008 June 2008 June 2008–July 2008 July 2008–September 2008 September 2008–October 2008 October 2008–November 2008 November 2008–December 2008 December 2008–February 2009 February 2009–May 2009 May 2009–present (Date ranges are approximate)

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Clarence Thomas

I think you have good points on the CT article, but Ferrylodge and Simon Dodd will tag team to slant the article in Thomas's favor unless you start an RfC or something of the like. RafaelRGarcia (talk) 16:17, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

One of the few rules that I've set for myself on Misplaced Pages is this: never get into a back-and-forth argument with Ferrylodge. It doesn't matter who's "right" - it will degenerate into an annoying, legalistic battle of last-wordism. I mean, it took quite an uphill effort just to get Thomas' confirmation hearings mentioned at all in the lead, when they are the single biggest aspect of any reputable biography of the man (including Thomas' own autobiography, for that matter). Arguing with Ferrylodge tends to bring out the worst in me, and it's definitely not how I want to spend my volunteer time. He can write the book on Clarence Thomas; it's not worth it. I would be willing to comment at a content RfC, as a previous editor of the article, but that's about it. MastCell  16:28, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

I have added a couple lines from Strange Justice about the Post reporters who found corroboration of the allegations. It's critical that this information be included. Strange Justice's authors, writers for WSJ, concluded that Thomas lied. The current version of the article is mealy-mouthed about what actually happened. So stay the course. RafaelRGarcia (talk) 00:53, 4 July 2009 (UTC)

I think I've made my opinions, both about content and about editorial agendas, clear at Talk:Clarence Thomas. I don't have enough interest in the subject to fight about it; I really do make a point of avoiding substantive content arguments with Ferrylodge for my own sanity; and there appears to be a fairly serious edit-war underway there. All of those factors add up the following: I'm not getting involved. MastCell  05:05, 4 July 2009 (UTC)

Thank you

Thanks for dealing with the LuvGoldStar account. SlimVirgin 20:07, 26 June 2009 (UTC)

No problem. I haven't exactly been impressed with the average admin's willingness to stick out their necks on sockpuppetry cases, even obvious ones. Though I guess it's understandable given some historical, high-profile events. Anyhow, it looked pretty open-and-shut to me, so I'm happy to help. MastCell  21:12, 26 June 2009 (UTC)

ELISA test in Lyme Disease

As we both seem to have strong opinions about this, I've asked for a third opinion in Misplaced Pages:Third opinion. I have to admit that I have extremely strong concerns about this issue as my wife passed two ELISA tests and so it took nine months to diagnose her Lyme Disease, which is now chronic and nearing the point of crippling her. Simesa (talk) 19:52, 29 June 2009 (UTC)

I am sorry to hear that. I think we agree on the value of accurate information here. Maybe a third opinion will be useful. MastCell  21:17, 29 June 2009 (UTC)

Civility

Yes. Please, please. Heimstern Läufer (talk) 02:56, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Hi.

Hi, I was the "problem" editor at Wikifan bogus sock report. The ANI has now spilled over into a dispute between User:SlimVirgin and I. She is accusing me of Fraud and threatening to file a topic ban against me. I find this turn of events very disturbing and would really appreciate at least some kind of intervention or "weigh in" that doesn't involve me getting permabanned. Also, Slim still believes I am a member of the CAMERA conspiracy. If you don't have the time, can you recommend someone? Please? Wikifan12345 (talk) 08:45, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

I'll be honest with you: I don't know that you want me to get involved here, because I have a very low tolerance for what I regard as primarily agenda-driven editing in general, and on these topics in particular. My initial impression - while I have not reviewed your contributions in detail - is that you generally fall into this sort of category.

I do have a few general suggestions:

• If you've cited a source, then you generally need to be willing to respond to challenges of that source. It's OK if you don't have the book in front of you - not everything is at one's fingertips, even in the Information Age - but you need to accept that other editors can challenge material that they find questionable, and it's up to the editor inserting the material to meet those challenges with detailed info about the source. Being defensive (or, worse, going on a counteroffensive against the challenging editor) isn't a productive approach. That's just how Misplaced Pages's policies work, at least as I understand them.
• Especially when you're making a point that you feel strongly about, it's important to go through the sources first and be sure that you understand what they're saying. Contentious statements are always going to be challenged on Israeli/Palestinian articles. The best possible response is a calm, rational one: "Here is the source. Here is a quote from the source supporting the text I inserted. Here is the page number where anyone owning a copy of the book can verify the material." If you don't have this info, then the second-best response is a calm, rational one: "I don't have the book in front of me, so I can't answer your question at the moment. Move the material to the talk page, and I will look it up next time I'm at the library; do any other editors have access the information in question?" Responses that evade the question, or cite other Misplaced Pages articles, are less useful.

I don't know many admins who are willing to spend a lot of time policing Israeli/Palestinian articles, for reasons which I'm sure are obvious to you. I'm torn between wanting to step up in an area where the project is clearly hurting, and a desire to spend my time here doing things I actually enjoy. Recently, the latter has been winning out, so I don't think I'm going to involve myself further at this point. Sorry for the frank response, but I hope there is at least something of interest to you in it. MastCell  21:53, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

I totally agree with you. However, If you review the discussion you will find that I was trying very hard to explain the sources and information cordially but Slim continued to make more excuses as old ones were resolved. I primarily edit Middle Eastern-related articles but so do plenty of other editors, and never have I been excused of being an advocate except by User:NonZionist and User:RolandR. The paragraph in question had already several citations within the article, and at History of Arab-Israeli conflict (word for word). Slim claiming Bard and Sela were not "reliabile" after citing the Academic policy was dubious at best, considering both are academics and one of them is an actual professor at a major university. I've had conflicts with Slim in the past but never this violent. I've never accused slim of being part of a Pro-Palestinian organization or advocating on behalf of it, yet she felt it was appropriate to imply I belong to a CAMERA-conspiracy and am possibly a sock of tundra (which is absurd). I mean, if I were to accuse you of being a part of a partisan website and a party to a conspiracy, I'm sure the reaction would involve a block if not a ban. :D Wikifan12345 (talk) 22:15, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Meh, I'm accused of belonging to so many conspiracies, I can't keep track. That's life on Misplaced Pages. I don't really have an interest in getting involved in either the content dispute or the surrounding behavioral issues, so I think we can leave it there. MastCell  22:38, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Okay. Thanks for the response! Wikifan12345 (talk) 22:50, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Homeopathy

For your enlightenment:

• Mitchell and Webb: If Homeopathy Beats Science

• "Don't drink water - it remembers all the shit it had in it."

-- Brangifer (talk) 06:08, 4 July 2009 (UTC)

Lyme Disease Controversy and politics

I really am very conceened about the accuracy of Lyme disease#Controversy and politics. I think more needs to be done, and the section expanded (especially based on comments from others in another forum reading this article), so I've opened an RfC (which I expect will find I'm somewhat biased myself). I do want to emphasize that the rest of the article does seem reflective of current mainstream beliefs. Simesa (talk) 12:20, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

Hi MastCell, also related to the Lyme Disease article, your edit reverts several obvious improvements to the article, including at least one added reference (Donahue et al.) that appears valid to me. I see that you were reverted later, and correctly so; but there should be no need for me to tell you, a highly experienced editor, that edits shouldn't be wholesale reverted because only portions of the edit aren't to your liking. Pro crast in a tor (talk) 16:03, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

You're correct that I should go back and add those references back; thank you for the reminder. I would prefer that further discussion take place at Talk:Lyme disease. MastCell  16:39, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

Ummm...

Misplaced Pages:Administrators'_noticeboard/Edit_warring#User:Andonee_reported_by_User:Stephan_Schulz_.28Result:_.29. Great minds and all that... ;-) --Stephan Schulz (talk) 18:52, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

Yeah, what a pain in the ass to fill out a 3RR report. It's a good reminder of what non-admins have to go through to get an obvious disruptive edit-warrior blocked; I've started taking for granted that if I see something untoward, I can just handle it (assuming I'm not involved). MastCell  18:55, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

AN/3RR is about the worst noticeboard we've got in all of Misplaced Pages. Mostly a waste of time in my experience when you can just ping an active admin about a violation and have it dealt with fairly quickly. Nathan 19:01, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

Yeah, but I'd feel kind of dirty doing that (although I have, on occasion). Besides, it really does build character and empathy - it is an immense undertaking to build a 3RR report, but there's no other way for an unconnected or genuinely novice user to deal with a disruptive edit-warrior. MastCell  19:06, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

Unidentified Climate Scientists

Hi MastCell,

What's wrong with adding the adjective 'unidentified' (or 'unnamed') to describe the climate scientists quoted by ABC news? If their names are in the referenced article, I stand corrected.Andonee (talk) 19:04, 6 July 2009 (UTC)Andonee

What's wrong is that you're framing our presentation of the article to imply that the climate scientists should not be trusted. I think that's fairly obvious. On a deeper level, what's wrong is that you're edit-warring and using IPs to try to force your proposed text into the article, which is not only doomed to fail but is annoying and disrespectful toward the other contributors on the page. MastCell  19:08, 6 July 2009 (UTC)