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'''Previous discussions:''' | |||
{{Old AfD multi| date = 6 September 2008 (UTC) | result = '''keep''' | page = Dominion of Melchizedek }} | |||
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{{Archive box|search=yes |collapsible=yes |], ], ], ]}} | |||
== Accurancy & Balancing question for El C == | |||
== The Ruse That Roared, Washington Post == | |||
Suggested addition to the SEC statement: | |||
Much, but not all, of this Washington Post article is reproduced on the page on DoM; that can be treated as reliable. For information only, I include an unreliable source (hosted on the Dominion of Melchizedek's site and which has been altered by them, with the addition of bracketed comments): link to the . ] (]) 08:06, 26 February 2015 (UTC) | |||
*When brining a lawsuit against a New York lawyer, the Dominion of Melchizedek was described as "non-existent" by the United States ]. . Subsequently, when the SEC settled that case, it wrote that the "Dominion of Melchizedek has a website promoting itself as a sovereign entity, recognized by certain governments." | |||
== Newspaper articles not currently used == | |||
Suggested addition to the OCC former employee's statement: | |||
*In an address to the 4th International Financial Fraud Convention in London, ] ], John Shockey, a former special assistant in the office of the U.S. ], stated: "The Dominion of Melchizedek is a fraud, a major fraud, and not a legitimate sovereign entity. Persons associated with the Dominion of Melchizedek have been indicted and convicted of a variety of crimes." The U.S. Comptroller of the Currency website is less vocal and only refers to Melchizedek in one of its published warnings, as a "non-recognized sovereignty" that "]d" Caribbean Bank of Commerce. | |||
*Also, shouldn't the WP quote be made accurate so that the article doesn't falsely claim that the WP "opined" that CAR would "probably" recognize, when it only wrote that "you get the feeling" that it would recognize. Seems that this inaccuracy is both an insult to the WP and to CAR. EDM suggested the quote should be corrected or totally removed, but Gene_Poole thinks the inaccurate version makes smoother reading, so he wants it to remain inaccurate. What do you think? Sincerely, ] 01:41, 2 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
------ | |||
::Hi, sorry for the delay. I'm afraid I find that addition too detached for our purposes here. Of course, from the vantage point of the SEC's interests, they find it prudent not to call those governments "corrupt," not to acknowledge that the CAR is rather crudely under the domination of French imperialism (with direct presence of and intervention by French troops, clearly the decisive military force in the country), that their leadership is shameless enough to so vulgarly be bought off to procliam nonesensical titles, and so on. The document dosen't even mention the CAR. But I am. Anyway, unlike former officials, it dosen't make sense for them to qualify these governments, and conversely, it dosen't make sense for us to include it as "less vocal" of the DoM. In short, we can't simply add such a ''sanitizing'' excerpt, noted as an aside, ''i.e.'' outside of what otherwise are considered pertinent diplomatic circles, as per recognition. ] 12:14, 13 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
] (]) 16:33, 26 February 2015 (UTC) | |||
:::Dear El C, No problem on the delay, but I think you have mixed up the three issues. The first issue is to only balance the SEC's statement currently in the article, with their follow up statement that the SEC made at the conclusion of their case. The second is the US OCC being less vocal than their former employee, and as it stands now only their former employee is quoted in the current article, but not the US OCC's official web site regarding DOM. The third is the fact that the Washington Post article didn't "opine" that CAR would "recognize the state of denial if it had a letterhead" as the current article about DOM now falsely proclaims, but the actual article only said that "you get the feeling" that CAR would recognize the state of denial if it had a letter head. Why is it so hard to have Misplaced Pages quote the Washington Post accurately? And why shouldn't the article be balanced with what the US OCC actually wrote about DOM? And why shouldn't the SEC mention of DOM in their case against that NY lawyer be balanced with their statement at the settlement of that same case? Sincerely, ] 01:03, 14 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
::::Hi, thanks for the response. Perhaps it would be best to deal with one issue/proposal at a time, specifically citing what is there versus what you wish to supplant/supplument it with. Because at the moment that isn't entirely clear. Regards, ] 01:15, 14 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
== Official website == | |||
:::::Mr. El C, I hope you don't mind me helping with this subject. I would suggest by starting with making the Washington Post article reference accurate. | |||
Just a heads-up for any other editors who are tempted to add information that's taken directly from, and supported by a cite to, the : it's not a reliable source. If you want to add information, you'll need to find a nice, reliable secondary source, which is most likely to be a news article or something like Quatloos that's been accepted over on ]. Court documents will do, at a push (there's an argument that, if it hasn't been reported elsewhere, it's not weighty enough to merit inclusion, and there are possible BLP aspects when linking to court documents). | |||
The current article has it this way, | |||
Obviously, there's no problem with including the single link to the official website in the Ex Links section. Again though, that link really should be to ''www.melchizedek.com'', even if it's apparent that it's changed. The reason is, we have reliable secondary sources that state that's the right site (Quatloos and Global Pirates: Fraud in the Offshore Insurance Industry) and, with a scam that exists purely on the web, we really do need a reliable source for this. ] (]) 20:45, 26 February 2015 (UTC) | |||
*An article in the Washington Post reported that DoM was "diplomatically recognized" by the Central African Republic, in 1993, but opined that that nation would probably "recognize the State of Denial if it had a letterhead." | |||
== Relatively recent activity involving DoM companies == | |||
The portion in question of the acutal article states: | |||
It's possible that the convicted of insurance fraud in 2010 was related to DoM. Certainly, Cliffview Pilot says so. Not sure if they're reliable, and they don't really make a decent case, so I've not added it to the article. | |||
"You get the feeling that the Central African Republic would | |||
recognize the State of Denial if it had a letterhead." | |||
A detailed summary of DoM c.2008, linked to by , can be found . I've not evaluated it for reliability, but it may have some useful stuff in it. ] (]) 11:41, 3 March 2015 (UTC) | |||
So I suggest our article should state accurately: | |||
==Meatpuppets== | |||
*An article in the Washington Post reported that DoM was "diplomatically recognized" by the Central African Republic, in 1993, but commented "you get the feeling" that that nation "would recognize the State of Denial if it had a letterhead." | |||
Just a reminder... | |||
The main point is to change "probably" to what the article actual said, "you get the feeling" so please feel free to use different wording outside the quotes. Best, ] 00:14, 17 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
Dominion of Melchizedek and associated articles, shall be semi-protected. If necessary, {{Vandal|Johnski}}, or any other editor believed by an administrator to be a sockpuppet or meatpuppet of Johnski, may be blocked indefinitely by any administrator. The article may be unprotected (and reprotected) at the discretion of any admin who deems it safe to do so. ] ] (]) | |||
:There is no further reason to entertain these nonsense proposals designed to imply that "Melchizedek" is something other than a criminal scam. The statement in qestion is 100% accurate as it stands, and there's no reason to re-word it using weasel words. The author of the Washington Post article clearly offers an '''opinion''' on the subject of the "recognition" of Melchizedek" by the Central Afrian Republic - which is what the word "opines" means. No amount of obfscatory babbling by Johnski and his sockpuppet/meatpupet army to the contrary can change that. --] 00:34, 17 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
== External links modified == | |||
::Mr. Gene_Poole: Can you please explain how making the Washington Post reference accurate is using weasel words, or how it is designed to imply that DoM is something other than a criminal scam? Best, ] 00:47, 17 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
Hello fellow Wikipedians, | |||
::Once again the two of you are up to your old scam. Laying the ground work for the '''appearance''' of having consensus and then reverting. As I stated below (which has gone unanswered), this is the reason the case was taken to arbitration. It appears that the arbitration case will lay out some finding of fact against both you and Johnski. The arbitration case has not concluded, so if you guys are playing the old bait and switch game maybe it's time to have to the article protected again. ] 07:54, 17 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
I have just added archive links to {{plural:7|one external link|7 external links}} on ]. Please take a moment to review . You may add {{tlx|cbignore}} after the link to keep me from modifying it, if I keep adding bad data, but formatting bugs should be reported instead. Alternatively, you can add {{tlx|nobots|deny{{=}}InternetArchiveBot}} to keep me off the page altogether, but should be used as a last resort. I made the following changes: | |||
:::Mr. Davidpdx: This is not an attempt to giving the appearance of consensus, rather to get help from El C to make the Washington Post reference accurate, which you apparently don't want. Gene has the nerve to say that making the Washington Post reference accurate is using weasel words, when his own words sound like weasel words to me, where Gene_Poole wrote on your page, "I feel that the use of the ''Washington Post'' quote is fine as it is. The purpose of the statement is to offer the opinion that the Central African Republic would recognise the state of denial if it has a letterhead. Adding "you get the feeling that..." to the quoted section is unneccesarily verbose, and changes nothing." Now he has the nerve to say there is no difference between "probably" and "you get the feeling" and that exchanging the words is 100% accurate. Hopefully El C has the patience to get to the bottom of this and see the need for accuracy and not just take Gene's word for it. Best, ] 21:04, 17 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
*Attempted to fix sourcing for http://www.sfweekly.com/sanfrancisco/fantasy-island-the-strange-tale-of-alleged-fraudster-pearlasia-gamboa/Content?oid=2182093 | |||
*Attempted to fix sourcing for http://www.occ.treas.gov/ftp/Alert/98-38.txt | |||
*Attempted to fix sourcing for http://www.forbes.com/sites/williampbarrett/2010/10/08/boy-do-we-know-tzemach-ben-david-netzer-korem/ | |||
*Attempted to fix sourcing for http://www.dallasobserver.com/1996-05-02/news/scam-without-a-country/full | |||
*Attempted to fix sourcing for http://www.justice.gov/usao/fls/PressReleases/101206-02.html | |||
*Attempted to fix sourcing for http://www.courthousenews.com/2009/06/15/SEC_Ties_Gold-Mining_Shares_to_Empty_Shell.htm | |||
*Attempted to fix sourcing for http://www.sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/2009/lr21084.htm | |||
When you have finished reviewing my changes, please set the ''checked'' parameter below to '''true''' or '''failed''' to let others know (documentation at {{tlx|Sourcecheck}}). | |||
::::I believe El C has stated his position regarding your complaint about the quote. I'm not sure why you believe he will change his opinion based on the fact you say he will. If your holding your hopes up based on that, I believe you are kidding yourself. ] 11:42, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
----- | |||
:My first question is where did El C supposedly bring up this question? To my knowledge, he hasn't been very active in editing this article at all the last few months. He removed the NPOV notice on the page, but that's all I'm aware of. Feel free to look at the article history, in the last three months that's the '''only''' edit he's made. | |||
{{sourcecheck|checked=false}} | |||
:In terms of the talk page, it goes back almost 4 months since he's made a contribution on this article. Again, please feel free to check for yourself. If you have a problem with a specific user, why are you not sending that person a message? | |||
Cheers.—]<small><sub style="margin-left:-14.9ex;color:green;font-family:Comic Sans MS">]:Online</sub></small> 21:49, 29 March 2016 (UTC) | |||
:While discussing it is fine, please keep in mind there is still an arbitration hearing going on at the moment. ] 11:32, 2 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
== Bias of Editors == | |||
::Dear Davidpdx, I did bring up these issues with El C (not that I have a problem with El C) on his talk page. There are enough votes to finalize the arbcom, so why shouldn't these issues be dealt with now, and how do you see the arbcom affecting these unresolved issues? Sincerely, ] 06:23, 11 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
Bromley86 is a contributor and an editor of this page who continually changes information back to his original edits without due respect for a realistic analysis of the current Status of the Dominion of Melchizedek. This page has been skewed and bias for many years and only purports negative information on the state from over 10 years (ago as of 2016). | |||
:::First, there actually aren't enough votes to close the arbitration hearing or it would have been done already. If you look at the page, it says six arbitrators is needed for a majority. Last I looked they only had four. | |||
There is no new information about the current administration of the Dominion of Melchizedek under Prime Minister David Williams and other Members of the Body-Politic, their positive activities in humanitarian efforts, or the removal of all former members; including the Founder's who turned over all title, claim, and right to the Dominion of Melchizedek. | |||
:::Second, the arbitration '''does''' effect what's happening to this article, because of the edit waring going on. Furthermore, if you look at the possible outcomes of the case (I say possible because it is not yet finalized) they include: | |||
Further, this particular user and editor of the page has shown he is not competent in his understanding of International law, the Law of Nations, or the proceedure of Nation States in the recognition of foreign States. This is evident in the fact that he/she sources "Quatloos", the Security and Exchange Commission and the Comptroller of the United States in their comments about the current status of recognition of the Dominion of Melchizedek. Those departments/entities have no authority to determine the Status of any foreign State. Such powers reside exclusively with the State Department of the United States and similar high offices of other States. | |||
:::'''Finding of Facts''' | |||
Finally, the major source used, Quatloos has dozens of missing or dead links. To use Quatloos as the sole source of relevant, up to date, and fair analysis of a State is bias and arbitrary. | |||
:::*POV war-The edit warring is sustained, and marked by aggressive editing by Johnski and a host of apparent associates. | |||
This is one way the introduction could read... It could be amended, however, the current introduction is not fact, unsupported, and should not stand if this page is going to be reflected fairly and properly. | |||
:::*Association-Johnski, and his numerous puppets, are reasonably believed to be associated with the Dominion of Melchizedek and are capable of using a wide variety of IPs to access Misplaced Pages. | |||
"The Dominion of Melchizedek (DoM), Is a micronation formed in the 1990's and has undergone major transformations as the current Members continue to learn, understand, and apply international law so the State can effectively and peacefully co-exist among the Family of Nations. Former Members of the Society, including the founders have been removed by the current Members of the Body-Politic and although there have been reports of fraud perpetrated by the Dominion of Melchizedek in the 90's and early 2000's, there has been no such reports since 2012 under the current administration of the DoM." | |||
:::'''Proposed Remedies''' | |||
] (]) 16:24, 28 July 2016 (UTC) | |||
:::*Dominion of Melchizedek and associated articles, shall be semi-protected. If necessary, Johnski, or any other editor believed by an administrator to be a sockpuppet or meatpuppet of Johnski, may be blocked indefinitely by any administrator. (note: these have been taken directly from the Arbitration Preposed Decision page). | |||
: You are repeatedly adding a section to the lead which is both a promotional whitewash, and unsourced. You clearly have some COI with the subject of this article: your editing history spans several years, with no other edits. Just what is your connection to this group? Are you aware that WP sourcing policy applies equally to editors with "inside knowledge", and the rest of us. ] (]) 16:28, 28 July 2016 (UTC) | |||
:::Please explain to me why the arbitration outcome wouldn't have an impact on the "unresolved issues" that you continue to push? ] 04:53, 12 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
:: What aspects of the introduction do you consider "Promotional whitewash" and "Unsourced"? The Micronation was formed in the 90's (recognized that is), The removal of the founder of the Dominion of Melchizedek is sourced on the States Website, if you can find any allegations of fraud or illegalities of the State since 2012, then that particular statement would be proven false I suppose. The Statement about the current Members continuing to learn, understand, and apply international law to peacefully co-exist is based on learning and knowing the mindset of the current Head of State of the Dominion of Melchizedek, Prime Minister David Williams. His information is readily available on-line. | |||
::::My point in bring these (unattributed comments) into play is the fact that Johnski has used the talk page to justify his reverts and claim consensus. This has happened over and over again and is part of the reason behind the arbitration case. | |||
:: As for "Promotional Whitewashing" and "Unsourced" content in the lead, there is no proof which substantiates the current lead on this page. I have attempted to find where this statement is made in the Quatloos article cited. There is nothing of the sort. Two wrongs do not make a right. If you can proof that the statements made by me in the lead are in error, by all means, it should be updated to reflect the facts. Just as the current lead should be updated to reflect the facts. Accusations can go both ways, which is why it is important to stick with facts and reliable sources. ] (]) 16:44, 28 July 2016 (UTC) | |||
::::Second, my comments are signed. The above comments about the arbitration case were slightly off center as I didn't get them offset to match my comments. Those are now fixed. ] 14:41, 13 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
::: Please note that, per ], the lede should introduce and briefly summarize the article. As it currently stands it does that quite well, and there is no need to defend any of the charges within the lede. | |||
:::::Thanks for the clarification/indentation. In light of my explanation above, I remain content with the tag removal. Regards, ] 15:20, 13 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
::: If there is consensus that we need to defend against some of the charges of fraud, or soften their blow, let's find independent ] on that topic and write a new section about the current administration of the DoM, since 2012. ] 17:13, 28 July 2016 (UTC) | |||
::::::I'm not sure I understand the issue with this, the passage is clearly quoted. Please clarify. Thanks. Regards, ] 16:39, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
== Until this dispute is resolved == | |||
:::: Please Note, per ], "The lead is the first part of the article that most people will read. For many, it may be the only section that they read". You state, the introduction does a good job with introducing the facts presented on the page, however, nowhere in the article does it state that 1) the individuals charged where not charged as Members of the Dominion of Melchizedek but rather, All individuals charged with fraud or other such criminal activities were charges as US Citizens (as they should be since those individuals were, in fact, US Citizens because they never properly naturalized into the State per the procedures laid out by the United States or international conventions. 2). The introduction is misleading because nowhere in the article cited does it make the statement which is being made in the introduction. Further, Quatloos is not an authority on which States/Societies are considered recognized or unrecognized. Quatloos is a website, not a government or an agent of the US Government or any government, regardless if they purport to be attorneys. Likewise, Other sources such as the Security and Exchange Commission and the Comptroller of the United States have no authority to determine whether or not a State has recognition or exist. Per the (which the US is signatory to); "The political existence of the state is independent of recognition by the other states. Even before recognition, the state has the right to defend its integrity and independence" 4). The Dominion of Melchizedek has been recognized by multiple countries, some of which is even cited within this page. | |||
I am placing {{disputed}} on the article page. ] 22:18, 17 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
::::″According to the Washington Post, the Central African Republic extended diplomatic recognition to the DoM in 1993, but the Post article went on to remark, "...you get the feeling that the Central African Republic would recognize the State of Denial if it had a letterhead." An article in the Quatloos! the online anti-fraud site noted that: "Melchizedek has apparently obtained some sort of recognition from some smaller states ... all of which are notable for their corruption. Claims that the DoM has received recognition from any major government are pure lies.″ | |||
:Let's clarify, what does the dispute being result entail? I'm just curious. ] 11:42, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
::I have removed it; please do not reinsert it without clear grounds. Thanks. Regards, ] 16:39, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
:::: The Washington Post was correct in its reporting that the Central African Republic extended Diplomatic Recognition to the DoM, Everything else is an opinion of the editor of the Washington Post and the editors of this page. More importantly and to the point, those comments have no bearing on the political relationship between the two States. Further, the statements credited to Quatloos is also an opinion. The Fact is that the DoM has been recognized in various capacities by various states and yet, the introduction still leads with the statement that the Dominion of Melchizedek is '''"unilaterally declared, internationally unrecognized micronation"''' (which "unrecognized" is spelled incorrectly). | |||
:::Mr. El C: Honestly, you can't see the difference between "probably" and "you get the feeling"? Gene changed what the Washington Post wrote from "you get the feeling" to "probably". It is not a question of quotation marks. It is a question of his changing the meaning of what the Washington Post wrote, trying to make the reference imply what he wants it to say instead of what it actualy states. Gene is claiming that the Washington Post said that the CAR would probably recognize the State of Denial if it had a letterhead when in fact the Washington Post only said that "you get the feeling" that it would recognize the State of Denial if it had a letterhead. Would it be so hard to throw Johnski and myself a bone and accurately reference the Washington Post article? | |||
::::We can include the full "You get the feeling that the Central African Republic would recognize the State of Denial if it had a letterhead" passage, I have no objections (even if I'm not entirely clear how that really matters as per accuracy, though). ] 22:05, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
:::Some of the other reason that I placed the accuracy notice is the following: | |||
:::: As for writing a new section about the current administration, That is preferable. However, this requires the willingness of the editors and monitors of this page to be willing to address the bias and double-minded opinions being perpetrated on the entire page and to update the entire page to reflect a more neutral and accurate history of the Dominion of Melchizedek (a video recorded history of the DoM by the two longest Members of the DoM can be found on its Official Website under the notice section). The fact is, that the Dominion of Melchizedek is recognized and since the current Head of State, David Williams has taken over the State in 2012, there has been no reports of fraud, deception, nefarious activities or the like. This should be addressed in the introduction if a reader is going to get a full picture of the micro-state and its current activities in the international community. | |||
* Membership: I can't find anywhere that they have "membership", unless it means 50 members of the government, but could find that they have "citizens", that for ecclesiastical reasons, they will not number. | |||
:::: As for providing a reliable source, what do you suggest? Are letters from foreign Governments thanking the Head of State of the DoM for their assistance during a health crisis considered an independent and reliable source of information? How about the many websites, interviews, and articles that speak about David Williams and his years of educating individuals in the area of international law and the principle of the Right of Self-Determination? When you are not actively out seeking press, but focused on building a State, where do you find a reliable source? The website of the Dominion of Melchizedek is not considered a reliable source, yet I wonder how many other official government websites are likewise considered unreliable sources! ] (]) 18:44, 28 July 2016 (UTC) | |||
:*It relates to affiliation, less than 50 the criteria. Feel free to provide otherwise estimations. <sup>]</sup> ] 22:05, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
::::: I wouldn't focus too much on the lede. As I mentioned, it is meant to summarize the article, and to do it well. We can't add any content into the lede that does not already exist in the article. | |||
*Date of foundation of 1986 is disputed. | |||
::::: If you feel that there is a side to this that is misunderstood or underrepresented, gather some sources and put together a draft section. No, the government slash website of DoM is not considered a reliable source, but if what you say is true then there should be ] that portray the DoM in a positive light since 2012. | |||
:*Who disputes it? <sup>]</sup> ] 22:05, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
::::: On the other hand, if such sources are unavailable, then it will be impossible to write such a section. In that case the article will likely remain as it is, a fairly accurate summary of the sources that are available. ] 19:00, 28 July 2016 (UTC) | |||
*Purported currency: they purport to have "Dominion Dollars". According to CBS and Forbes, their currency was quoted on the Bloomberg. | |||
:::::: You say "I wouldn't focus too much on the lede". umm, the lede is the most important part! Why wouldn't I focus on it? Did you actually read my response? The DoM has been recognized. Yet the lead, as well as other information inaccurately reports the opposite. The section under recognition even states the DoM has been recognized not only by the Central African Republic but other smaller states! This makes the lede inaccurate; not to mention double-minded and contrary to the facts presented within the article itself! | |||
:*CBS and Forbes claimed "their was quoted on the Bloomberg" when? <sup>]</sup> ] 22:05, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
:::::: When you say "fairly accurate", in whose opinion? I have been accused of having a POV conflict of interest, yet "fairly accurate" means nothing. Something is either accurate or it is not. With regards to recognition, I have added many links from various documents provided by foreign governments to the Dominion of Melchizedek on Treaties of Peace and Recognition, however, Those links are always taken down and I am told they are not reliable sources simply because those documents are housed on the DoM's website. | |||
*Listed as a ''microntion'', but only claims to be an "ecclesiastical sovereignty" and has been recognized as such. Also, Micronation is defined at Misplaced Pages as having no recognition from any world government, so either that has to be changed, or DoM should stop being called a micronation. It doesm't matter our opinion about how they got their recognition, the fact is that they indisputably have been recognized as an ecclesiastical sovereignty by one or more world governments. | |||
:::::: The problem, at the end of the day, is simple. The editors of this page and the public at large are highly ignorant of international law, the Law of Nations, and how this Planet actually operates. It is not understood how Nations recognize other nations or who in a government has the authority to take such action, most people have never heard of the right of self-determination or actually exercised said right, and most are completely ignorant of their own history. This page paints the Dominion of Melchizedek in a purely negative light. It does not keep the third party sources of foreign government documents when added. It does not keep in mind that all nations/states/societies all have had checkered past, including the United States. The Founders had to fight a war. They had to borrow money and go into debt. They had to trade and get recognition from the pirates in the beginning because they couldn't get recognition from the more notable states at that time (). Heck, they had to completely reform their Government because the Articles of Confederation was a complete failure. This is just the facts because creating a new society is not an easy thing to do. People make mistakes just like Societies do. | |||
:*The article reads: "micronations do not <u>generally</u> have diplomatic relations with recognized nation-states of the world or major international bodies." (emphasis added) Please qualify using reliable sources that this ''only'' is a consideration in diplomatic conventions. <sup>]</sup> ] 22:05, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
:::::: You can find documents from the DoM's website which provide sources of foreign governments recognizing the DoM. You can find Letters from Liberia as late as February of 2015 thanking the DoM for helping during a national crisis. These documents, whether Misplaced Pages wishes to acknowledge them or not, clearly show that 1) the State is recognized as a separate state by other governments, 2) the state is very much real, not a fantasy, nor an online phenomenon, and 3) the lack of news on the DoM and its activities is proof that the state, under its current administration is not involved in any activity which would cause government agents to go after its members or peak the interest of the media. It is well known that negative news is the best form of news and positive news is boring news. | |||
*It has not been linked to banking ] only the banks it licensed have been accused of being linked to banking fraud, not DOM. | |||
:::::: At the end of the day, these dialogues contribute to the public record of the State doing what it can to correct the misinformation and the skewed bias nature of the Misplaced Pages page known as the Dominion of Melchizedek. I am still waiting for proper answers to the questions I have put forth over the past couple of years and still waiting to see who, as an editor on this page, actually have the credentials to discuss international matters with regards to self-determination and the recognition of states/societies. | |||
:*It licensing the banks ''is'' the link, in this case. This is at least how it's being depicted elsewhere, no? If no, then <sup>]</sup> ] 22:05, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
:::::: @bradv, How much of the material, sources, and factual truths provided by the various sources which contribute to the contents of this page have you personally gone through and vetted? ] (]) 19:53, 28 July 2016 (UTC) | |||
*The DoM was NOT created in ] by ] and his son, ]. According to Context Magazine its foundations go back to the 1950s, and there were apparently other people involved in founding it, such as, Josiah Merriman, and Albert Blaustein. | |||
::::::: It is not Misplaced Pages's job to decide international policy, and it is not the job of individual editors to argue about international policy. It is our job to go through reliable sources, summarize them, and gather the sources together into an encyclopedia. | |||
:*This was written in Context Magazine ''when''? Their source, if possible. <sup>]</sup> ] 22:05, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
::::::: From the statements you have made here and on your talk page, I'm beginning to think you are ] to help build an encyclopedia. You are here to promote the Dominion of Melchizedek, and convince people that it is a real country. | |||
*I can not find any fact to support that "during the ]s the Pedleys were convicted and imprisoned for multiple various land and share-related frauds." Perhaps someone can cite for me, for example, the share-related fraud either or both of them were convicted of in the 1980s. | |||
::::::: It is not, and even if we say it is on Misplaced Pages, it still won't be. ] 20:40, 28 July 2016 (UTC) | |||
:* mentions these. Not sure why citing these in detail is pertinent for our purposes. ] 22:05, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
::::::::I can't speak for Bradv, but in my case 100% of the existing cites and can state that they accurately support the points made in the article. I've also had a quick look, for the purposes of this discussion, at DoM's mentions in the online press 2012 onwards: | |||
*How can we say that "None of these claims is recognized by any established government" since the treaties they publish on their web site mentioned some of the claims and are purported to be signed by established governments such as Burkina Faso? | |||
::::::::*In the context of scams: | |||
::::::::*Tangential: | |||
::::::::So there's no ability to add anything about the current activities of DoM as, at best, it's morphed from an entity notable for being involved in scams to a non-notable entity. That morphing, should it be the case, does not mean the article needs to be deleted, as the historical situation is still notable. ] (]) 20:58, 28 July 2016 (UTC) | |||
::::::::: Bradv, you mention "it is not the job of Misplaced Pages or the editors to decide international policy" I agree one hundred percent. You nor this site, have that authority or knowledge base to make such determinations (it is evident in your responses). Yet, almost immediately after your statement you follow up by making an assumption on international policy by assuming the State doesn't exist, which is an opinion not substantiated by any reliable and verifiable source. This is a violation of Misplaced Pages's policies and procedures! You don't have the right to voice your opinion. You only have the permission to add verifiable information. | |||
:*Claims should be ''are'' (plural). Who sees the ] as an established govt., even in passing? <sup>]</sup> ] 22:05, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
::::::::: Furthermore, you are making assumptions and presumptions to my motives for engaging in the correction of facts and verifiable information presented on this page. You have proven, based on your off hand comments that you do not have a neutral point of view on this page because you keep interjecting your bias assumptions and opinons. I have maintain one firm position which is that the lede to this page is unverifiable and inaccurate not only because of the source that was cited, but because of the source presented within this article by other editors which state that a "reliable" source; Washington Post, indeed adminted that the DoM has received diplomatic recognition. Regardless of the opinion of the editor of the article sourced about the reasons the Central African Republic or any other state would engage in recognizing the DoM (diplomatically or otherwise), this is a factual event. Two facts are verifiable as cited in my previous response on the Rights and Duties of States..."The political existence of the state is independent of recognition by the other states. Even before recognition, the state has the right to defend its integrity and independence". This is international law and is agreed to by all states. Furthermore, Article 6 of the same International treaty states "recognition is unconditional and irrevocable". I don't know about you, but that sounds pretty straight forward and specific to me. Considering the State has received communications from a foreign Government as late as February of 2015, and considering there are numerous documents from other states engaging in Treaties of Peace and Recognition, your comment that the state "still wouldn't exist" or any editors comment that the State is unrecognized is a complete lie! It is something you want to believe but does not fit the reality at hand. | |||
*Forbes magazine never used the word "ruse," but did use the word, "dubious" in referring to DOM. | |||
::::::::: You can make whatever statement of assumption you wish about my motives, but it should be clear to any neutral party that reviews this dialogue, I am pointing my responses and my focus of facts presented on this page with third party source material that Your Government and every other Government know, understand, and abide by. I am also pointing out violations of Wikipedias own policies regarding verifiable sources. ]. | |||
:*How are you able to substantiate this claim? <sup>]</sup> ] 22:05, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
::::::::: @Bromley86 - This also includes @Bradv; Just because someone writes and article and they are considered third-party from the Subject of the page and Misplaced Pages, does not mean that the Source is accurate in what they present. Bromley86, you cited numerous articles that were posted after 2012, yet all these articles merely mention the name Dominion of Melchizedek! Seriously, | |||
Therefore, I am returning the tag until these accuracy disputes are resolved.] 20:11, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
:::::::::your first Article references a woman who has had no affliation with the DoM prior to 2006. Anything she has done personally, does not automatically tie to the State! Who knows why this particular individual decided to write this article in 2013, 3 years after the event allegedly occured? | |||
:Now answered. I'm afraid that much of the onus falls on you, though. And in light of the arbitration case, I am removing the tag until you are able to provide well-referenced citations. We had the tag for so long now, I think we're at the stage where we need ''the objections'' to be presented in a much more well-referenced form, since the material appears to adhere to mainstream diplomatic and scholarly views. If and/or when we do, I will gladly reinsert it myself. Until then, I'm not inclined to have it remain, seemingly indefinitely, sorry. Thanks. Regards, ] 22:05, 18 January 2006 (UTC) | |||
:::::::::Your Second article is a blogger who decided to write a historical peice on other micronations because of an indivdiual trying to claim a track of land for his daughter! (more than likely her source for the DoM was this page). It is a one paragraph, mentioning facts she found interesting! | |||
:::::::::Your Third article has got to be a joke if you are including this as a reliable source. The only mention of the Dominion of Melchizedek is the fact that this man "Alleged to have ties to the Dominion of Melchizedek". Ok. People alleged things all the time. Doesn't mean they are true! That is why in a court of law, allegations must be verified by facts! | |||
:::::::::Your Fourth article again has only a mere mention of the Dominion of Melchizedek in relation to a group attempting to exercise its right of Self-Determination, unfortunately, they are following the path of the DoM early on which is the lack of understanding "naturalization of citizens". | |||
:::::::::Your Fifth article only has this mention "scams (like the Dominion of Melchizedek, which sold fake passports at inflated prices)". Of course, this allegation is address in the history of the DoM put out by the State itself. The man who was arrested for creating fake passports was not only caught creating fake passports for the DoM but multiple nations. He was not a "member" of the DoM nor any other state he was selling passports of! Criminals don't care about things like that! There are thousands of people who sell fake passports of any state to any person dumb enough to pay for them. | |||
:::::::::Your Sixth article only states this..." In addition, he is said to have shares of a fictional bank in the "Dominion of Melchizedek" ok. where is that proof? Again, people can and will say anything. Just because something is said, does not make it true. | |||
:::::::::Your final two articles 7 mentions the DoM in passing and 8 is a link that goes to a subsription page which is a violation of wikipedias external link policy..notabley number 6. | |||
:::::::::Bottom line is that I keep hearing about reliable sources, crediable sources. yet you present these articles which are a joke at best. If anything, it shows that people who write about microstates will continue to write about the Dominion of Melchizedek based on its history because they have no other information to go by. By and large, it is due to the information on this page since anytime someone hears about the Dominion of Melchizedek, they will look it up on Misplaced Pages. | |||
:::::::::I see you took the citation down off the lede. That is the first step. however, per the policies on Misplaced Pages and lede to pages, "As a general rule of thumb, a lead section should contain no more than four well-composed paragraphs and be carefully sourced as appropriate." As the Lede stands, it is one blanket statement that has no verifiable source. The lede should also "Like in the body of the article itself, the emphasis given to material in the lead should roughly reflect its importance to the topic, according to reliable, published sources.". Since there is no reliable, published source verifying the lede, it stands to reason, it must be changed and updated to reflect an accurate discription of the topic at hand. <!-- Template:Unsigned --><small><span class="autosigned">— Preceding ] comment added by ] (] • ]) 22:40, 28 July 2016 (UTC)</span></small> <!--Autosigned by SineBot--> | |||
::::::::::I wasn't providing them as references in articles, merely pointing out that there's been no mention in news sources of the DoM in a manner which would support the sorts of changes that you would like to make. Thank you for making my point in detail! | |||
::::::::::Regarding the Lead, it's fine as it is: | |||
::::::::::*''The Dominion of Melchizedek (DoM), is a unilaterally declared, internationally unrecognised micronation'' - all mentioned in the Body and referenced, with the exception of the actual word "micronation". I'll have a look at making sure that's in somewhere. | |||
::::::::::*''known for facilitating large scale banking fraud in many parts of the world during the 1990s and early 2000s'' - again, covered in the body and reffed, although I see none of our current refs/points relate to the naughties, so I'll remove that part. ] (]) 02:46, 29 July 2016 (UTC) | |||
== Fraud == | |||
Just visited DOM's website. A purported "photograph of Melchizedek" looks like an island in Fiji! (Cannot identify which one it is — but I'll try to find out) ] (]) 10:07, 30 December 2016 (UTC) | |||
== Johnski Redux == | |||
It appears once again Johnski and his meatpuppets have started to push their propaganda on the DOM article. Please be aware this went through arbitration many years ago and the result was the banning of of Johnski and ALL of his known meatpuppets. This page can be semi-protected by an administrator and new meatpuppets can be banned. ] (]) 13:47, 27 June 2019 (UTC) | |||
: Diffs? ] (]) 15:06, 27 June 2019 (UTC) | |||
::Andy, I'm not sure what you mean. ] (]) 13:11, 28 June 2019 (UTC) | |||
::* ] | |||
::: Where are these "meatpuppet edits"? Who is "Johnski"? ] (]) 13:16, 28 June 2019 (UTC) | |||
::::They are the edits being done by unregistered users. Johnski was (is) someone who is directly involved in DOM who along with other people are making a concerted effort to add unsubstantiated claims. https://en.wikipedia.org/Wikipedia:Requests_for_arbitration/Johnski/Proposed_decision ] (]) 01:54, 29 June 2019 (UTC) |
Latest revision as of 19:27, 19 February 2024
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Archives |
The Ruse That Roared, Washington Post
Much, but not all, of this Washington Post article is reproduced on the Quatloos page on DoM; that can be treated as reliable. For information only, I include an unreliable source (hosted on the Dominion of Melchizedek's site and which has been altered by them, with the addition of bracketed comments): link to the waybacked copy. Bromley86 (talk) 08:06, 26 February 2015 (UTC)
Newspaper articles not currently used
Bromley86 (talk) 16:33, 26 February 2015 (UTC)
Official website
Just a heads-up for any other editors who are tempted to add information that's taken directly from, and supported by a cite to, the official website: it's not a reliable source. If you want to add information, you'll need to find a nice, reliable secondary source, which is most likely to be a news article or something like Quatloos that's been accepted over on WP:RSN. Court documents will do, at a push (there's an argument that, if it hasn't been reported elsewhere, it's not weighty enough to merit inclusion, and there are possible BLP aspects when linking to court documents).
Obviously, there's no problem with including the single link to the official website in the Ex Links section. Again though, that link really should be to www.melchizedek.com, even if it's apparent that it's changed. The reason is, we have reliable secondary sources that state that's the right site (Quatloos and Global Pirates: Fraud in the Offshore Insurance Industry) and, with a scam that exists purely on the web, we really do need a reliable source for this. Bromley86 (talk) 20:45, 26 February 2015 (UTC)
Relatively recent activity involving DoM companies
It's possible that the Ronald Allen convicted of insurance fraud in 2010 was related to DoM. Certainly, Cliffview Pilot says so. Not sure if they're reliable, and they don't really make a decent case, so I've not added it to the article.
A detailed summary of DoM c.2008, linked to by someone heavily involved in Quatloos, can be found here. I've not evaluated it for reliability, but it may have some useful stuff in it. Bromley86 (talk) 11:41, 3 March 2015 (UTC)
Meatpuppets
Just a reminder...
Dominion of Melchizedek and associated articles, shall be semi-protected. If necessary, Johnski (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · nuke contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log), or any other editor believed by an administrator to be a sockpuppet or meatpuppet of Johnski, may be blocked indefinitely by any administrator. The article may be unprotected (and reprotected) at the discretion of any admin who deems it safe to do so. Misplaced Pages:Requests_for_arbitration/Johnski/Proposed_decision Davidpdx (talk)
External links modified
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Bias of Editors
Bromley86 is a contributor and an editor of this page who continually changes information back to his original edits without due respect for a realistic analysis of the current Status of the Dominion of Melchizedek. This page has been skewed and bias for many years and only purports negative information on the state from over 10 years (ago as of 2016).
There is no new information about the current administration of the Dominion of Melchizedek under Prime Minister David Williams and other Members of the Body-Politic, their positive activities in humanitarian efforts, or the removal of all former members; including the Founder's who turned over all title, claim, and right to the Dominion of Melchizedek.
Further, this particular user and editor of the page has shown he is not competent in his understanding of International law, the Law of Nations, or the proceedure of Nation States in the recognition of foreign States. This is evident in the fact that he/she sources "Quatloos", the Security and Exchange Commission and the Comptroller of the United States in their comments about the current status of recognition of the Dominion of Melchizedek. Those departments/entities have no authority to determine the Status of any foreign State. Such powers reside exclusively with the State Department of the United States and similar high offices of other States.
Finally, the major source used, Quatloos has dozens of missing or dead links. To use Quatloos as the sole source of relevant, up to date, and fair analysis of a State is bias and arbitrary.
This is one way the introduction could read... It could be amended, however, the current introduction is not fact, unsupported, and should not stand if this page is going to be reflected fairly and properly.
"The Dominion of Melchizedek (DoM), Is a micronation formed in the 1990's and has undergone major transformations as the current Members continue to learn, understand, and apply international law so the State can effectively and peacefully co-exist among the Family of Nations. Former Members of the Society, including the founders have been removed by the current Members of the Body-Politic and although there have been reports of fraud perpetrated by the Dominion of Melchizedek in the 90's and early 2000's, there has been no such reports since 2012 under the current administration of the DoM."
Bssmith117 (talk) 16:24, 28 July 2016 (UTC)
- You are repeatedly adding a section to the lead which is both a promotional whitewash, and unsourced. You clearly have some COI with the subject of this article: your editing history spans several years, with no other edits. Just what is your connection to this group? Are you aware that WP sourcing policy applies equally to editors with "inside knowledge", and the rest of us. Andy Dingley (talk) 16:28, 28 July 2016 (UTC)
- What aspects of the introduction do you consider "Promotional whitewash" and "Unsourced"? The Micronation was formed in the 90's (recognized that is), The removal of the founder of the Dominion of Melchizedek is sourced on the States Website, if you can find any allegations of fraud or illegalities of the State since 2012, then that particular statement would be proven false I suppose. The Statement about the current Members continuing to learn, understand, and apply international law to peacefully co-exist is based on learning and knowing the mindset of the current Head of State of the Dominion of Melchizedek, Prime Minister David Williams. His information is readily available on-line.
- As for "Promotional Whitewashing" and "Unsourced" content in the lead, there is no proof which substantiates the current lead on this page. I have attempted to find where this statement is made in the Quatloos article cited. There is nothing of the sort. Two wrongs do not make a right. If you can proof that the statements made by me in the lead are in error, by all means, it should be updated to reflect the facts. Just as the current lead should be updated to reflect the facts. Accusations can go both ways, which is why it is important to stick with facts and reliable sources. Bssmith117 (talk) 16:44, 28 July 2016 (UTC)
- Please note that, per the manual of style, the lede should introduce and briefly summarize the article. As it currently stands it does that quite well, and there is no need to defend any of the charges within the lede.
- If there is consensus that we need to defend against some of the charges of fraud, or soften their blow, let's find independent reliable sources on that topic and write a new section about the current administration of the DoM, since 2012. Bradv 17:13, 28 July 2016 (UTC)
- Please Note, per The manual of style, "The lead is the first part of the article that most people will read. For many, it may be the only section that they read". You state, the introduction does a good job with introducing the facts presented on the page, however, nowhere in the article does it state that 1) the individuals charged where not charged as Members of the Dominion of Melchizedek but rather, All individuals charged with fraud or other such criminal activities were charges as US Citizens (as they should be since those individuals were, in fact, US Citizens because they never properly naturalized into the State per the procedures laid out by the United States or international conventions. 2). The introduction is misleading because nowhere in the article cited does it make the statement which is being made in the introduction. Further, Quatloos is not an authority on which States/Societies are considered recognized or unrecognized. Quatloos is a website, not a government or an agent of the US Government or any government, regardless if they purport to be attorneys. Likewise, Other sources such as the Security and Exchange Commission and the Comptroller of the United States have no authority to determine whether or not a State has recognition or exist. Per the Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States (Article 3) (which the US is signatory to); "The political existence of the state is independent of recognition by the other states. Even before recognition, the state has the right to defend its integrity and independence" 4). The Dominion of Melchizedek has been recognized by multiple countries, some of which is even cited within this page.
- ″According to the Washington Post, the Central African Republic extended diplomatic recognition to the DoM in 1993, but the Post article went on to remark, "...you get the feeling that the Central African Republic would recognize the State of Denial if it had a letterhead." An article in the Quatloos! the online anti-fraud site noted that: "Melchizedek has apparently obtained some sort of recognition from some smaller states ... all of which are notable for their corruption. Claims that the DoM has received recognition from any major government are pure lies.″
- The Washington Post was correct in its reporting that the Central African Republic extended Diplomatic Recognition to the DoM, Everything else is an opinion of the editor of the Washington Post and the editors of this page. More importantly and to the point, those comments have no bearing on the political relationship between the two States. Further, the statements credited to Quatloos is also an opinion. The Fact is that the DoM has been recognized in various capacities by various states and yet, the introduction still leads with the statement that the Dominion of Melchizedek is "unilaterally declared, internationally unrecognized micronation" (which "unrecognized" is spelled incorrectly).
- As for writing a new section about the current administration, That is preferable. However, this requires the willingness of the editors and monitors of this page to be willing to address the bias and double-minded opinions being perpetrated on the entire page and to update the entire page to reflect a more neutral and accurate history of the Dominion of Melchizedek (a video recorded history of the DoM by the two longest Members of the DoM can be found on its Official Website under the notice section). The fact is, that the Dominion of Melchizedek is recognized and since the current Head of State, David Williams has taken over the State in 2012, there has been no reports of fraud, deception, nefarious activities or the like. This should be addressed in the introduction if a reader is going to get a full picture of the micro-state and its current activities in the international community.
- As for providing a reliable source, what do you suggest? Are letters from foreign Governments thanking the Head of State of the DoM for their assistance during a health crisis considered an independent and reliable source of information? How about the many websites, interviews, and articles that speak about David Williams and his years of educating individuals in the area of international law and the principle of the Right of Self-Determination? When you are not actively out seeking press, but focused on building a State, where do you find a reliable source? The website of the Dominion of Melchizedek is not considered a reliable source, yet I wonder how many other official government websites are likewise considered unreliable sources! Bssmith117 (talk) 18:44, 28 July 2016 (UTC)
- I wouldn't focus too much on the lede. As I mentioned, it is meant to summarize the article, and to do it well. We can't add any content into the lede that does not already exist in the article.
- If you feel that there is a side to this that is misunderstood or underrepresented, gather some sources and put together a draft section. No, the government slash website of DoM is not considered a reliable source, but if what you say is true then there should be newspapers or books that portray the DoM in a positive light since 2012.
- On the other hand, if such sources are unavailable, then it will be impossible to write such a section. In that case the article will likely remain as it is, a fairly accurate summary of the sources that are available. Bradv 19:00, 28 July 2016 (UTC)
- You say "I wouldn't focus too much on the lede". umm, the lede is the most important part! Why wouldn't I focus on it? Did you actually read my response? The DoM has been recognized. Yet the lead, as well as other information inaccurately reports the opposite. The section under recognition even states the DoM has been recognized not only by the Central African Republic but other smaller states! This makes the lede inaccurate; not to mention double-minded and contrary to the facts presented within the article itself!
- When you say "fairly accurate", in whose opinion? I have been accused of having a POV conflict of interest, yet "fairly accurate" means nothing. Something is either accurate or it is not. With regards to recognition, I have added many links from various documents provided by foreign governments to the Dominion of Melchizedek on Treaties of Peace and Recognition, however, Those links are always taken down and I am told they are not reliable sources simply because those documents are housed on the DoM's website.
- The problem, at the end of the day, is simple. The editors of this page and the public at large are highly ignorant of international law, the Law of Nations, and how this Planet actually operates. It is not understood how Nations recognize other nations or who in a government has the authority to take such action, most people have never heard of the right of self-determination or actually exercised said right, and most are completely ignorant of their own history. This page paints the Dominion of Melchizedek in a purely negative light. It does not keep the third party sources of foreign government documents when added. It does not keep in mind that all nations/states/societies all have had checkered past, including the United States. The Founders had to fight a war. They had to borrow money and go into debt. They had to trade and get recognition from the pirates in the beginning because they couldn't get recognition from the more notable states at that time (barbary treaties). Heck, they had to completely reform their Government because the Articles of Confederation was a complete failure. This is just the facts because creating a new society is not an easy thing to do. People make mistakes just like Societies do.
- You can find documents from the DoM's website which provide sources of foreign governments recognizing the DoM. You can find Letters from Liberia as late as February of 2015 thanking the DoM for helping during a national crisis. These documents, whether Misplaced Pages wishes to acknowledge them or not, clearly show that 1) the State is recognized as a separate state by other governments, 2) the state is very much real, not a fantasy, nor an online phenomenon, and 3) the lack of news on the DoM and its activities is proof that the state, under its current administration is not involved in any activity which would cause government agents to go after its members or peak the interest of the media. It is well known that negative news is the best form of news and positive news is boring news.
- At the end of the day, these dialogues contribute to the public record of the State doing what it can to correct the misinformation and the skewed bias nature of the Misplaced Pages page known as the Dominion of Melchizedek. I am still waiting for proper answers to the questions I have put forth over the past couple of years and still waiting to see who, as an editor on this page, actually have the credentials to discuss international matters with regards to self-determination and the recognition of states/societies.
- @bradv, How much of the material, sources, and factual truths provided by the various sources which contribute to the contents of this page have you personally gone through and vetted? Bssmith117 (talk) 19:53, 28 July 2016 (UTC)
- It is not Misplaced Pages's job to decide international policy, and it is not the job of individual editors to argue about international policy. It is our job to go through reliable sources, summarize them, and gather the sources together into an encyclopedia.
- From the statements you have made here and on your talk page, I'm beginning to think you are not here to help build an encyclopedia. You are here to promote the Dominion of Melchizedek, and convince people that it is a real country.
- It is not, and even if we say it is on Misplaced Pages, it still won't be. Bradv 20:40, 28 July 2016 (UTC)
- I can't speak for Bradv, but in my case 100% of the existing cites and can state that they accurately support the points made in the article. I've also had a quick look, for the purposes of this discussion, at DoM's mentions in the online press 2012 onwards:
- So there's no ability to add anything about the current activities of DoM as, at best, it's morphed from an entity notable for being involved in scams to a non-notable entity. That morphing, should it be the case, does not mean the article needs to be deleted, as the historical situation is still notable. Bromley86 (talk) 20:58, 28 July 2016 (UTC)
- Bradv, you mention "it is not the job of Misplaced Pages or the editors to decide international policy" I agree one hundred percent. You nor this site, have that authority or knowledge base to make such determinations (it is evident in your responses). Yet, almost immediately after your statement you follow up by making an assumption on international policy by assuming the State doesn't exist, which is an opinion not substantiated by any reliable and verifiable source. This is a violation of Misplaced Pages's policies and procedures! You don't have the right to voice your opinion. You only have the permission to add verifiable information.
- Furthermore, you are making assumptions and presumptions to my motives for engaging in the correction of facts and verifiable information presented on this page. You have proven, based on your off hand comments that you do not have a neutral point of view on this page because you keep interjecting your bias assumptions and opinons. I have maintain one firm position which is that the lede to this page is unverifiable and inaccurate not only because of the source that was cited, but because of the source presented within this article by other editors which state that a "reliable" source; Washington Post, indeed adminted that the DoM has received diplomatic recognition. Regardless of the opinion of the editor of the article sourced about the reasons the Central African Republic or any other state would engage in recognizing the DoM (diplomatically or otherwise), this is a factual event. Two facts are verifiable as cited in my previous response on the Rights and Duties of States..."The political existence of the state is independent of recognition by the other states. Even before recognition, the state has the right to defend its integrity and independence". This is international law and is agreed to by all states. Furthermore, Article 6 of the same International treaty states "recognition is unconditional and irrevocable". I don't know about you, but that sounds pretty straight forward and specific to me. Considering the State has received communications from a foreign Government as late as February of 2015, and considering there are numerous documents from other states engaging in Treaties of Peace and Recognition, your comment that the state "still wouldn't exist" or any editors comment that the State is unrecognized is a complete lie! It is something you want to believe but does not fit the reality at hand.
- You can make whatever statement of assumption you wish about my motives, but it should be clear to any neutral party that reviews this dialogue, I am pointing my responses and my focus of facts presented on this page with third party source material that Your Government and every other Government know, understand, and abide by. I am also pointing out violations of Wikipedias own policies regarding verifiable sources. "All material in Misplaced Pages mainspace, including everything in articles, lists and captions, must be verifiable.".
- @Bromley86 - This also includes @Bradv; Just because someone writes and article and they are considered third-party from the Subject of the page and Misplaced Pages, does not mean that the Source is accurate in what they present. Bromley86, you cited numerous articles that were posted after 2012, yet all these articles merely mention the name Dominion of Melchizedek! Seriously,
- your first Article references a woman who has had no affliation with the DoM prior to 2006. Anything she has done personally, does not automatically tie to the State! Who knows why this particular individual decided to write this article in 2013, 3 years after the event allegedly occured?
- Your Second article is a blogger who decided to write a historical peice on other micronations because of an indivdiual trying to claim a track of land for his daughter! (more than likely her source for the DoM was this page). It is a one paragraph, mentioning facts she found interesting!
- Your Third article has got to be a joke if you are including this as a reliable source. The only mention of the Dominion of Melchizedek is the fact that this man "Alleged to have ties to the Dominion of Melchizedek". Ok. People alleged things all the time. Doesn't mean they are true! That is why in a court of law, allegations must be verified by facts!
- Your Fourth article again has only a mere mention of the Dominion of Melchizedek in relation to a group attempting to exercise its right of Self-Determination, unfortunately, they are following the path of the DoM early on which is the lack of understanding "naturalization of citizens".
- Your Fifth article only has this mention "scams (like the Dominion of Melchizedek, which sold fake passports at inflated prices)". Of course, this allegation is address in the history of the DoM put out by the State itself. The man who was arrested for creating fake passports was not only caught creating fake passports for the DoM but multiple nations. He was not a "member" of the DoM nor any other state he was selling passports of! Criminals don't care about things like that! There are thousands of people who sell fake passports of any state to any person dumb enough to pay for them.
- Your Sixth article only states this..." In addition, he is said to have shares of a fictional bank in the "Dominion of Melchizedek" ok. where is that proof? Again, people can and will say anything. Just because something is said, does not make it true.
- Your final two articles 7 mentions the DoM in passing and 8 is a link that goes to a subsription page which is a violation of wikipedias external link policy..notabley number 6.
- Bottom line is that I keep hearing about reliable sources, crediable sources. yet you present these articles which are a joke at best. If anything, it shows that people who write about microstates will continue to write about the Dominion of Melchizedek based on its history because they have no other information to go by. By and large, it is due to the information on this page since anytime someone hears about the Dominion of Melchizedek, they will look it up on Misplaced Pages.
- I see you took the citation down off the lede. That is the first step. however, per the policies on Misplaced Pages and lede to pages, "As a general rule of thumb, a lead section should contain no more than four well-composed paragraphs and be carefully sourced as appropriate." As the Lede stands, it is one blanket statement that has no verifiable source. The lede should also "Like in the body of the article itself, the emphasis given to material in the lead should roughly reflect its importance to the topic, according to reliable, published sources.". Since there is no reliable, published source verifying the lede, it stands to reason, it must be changed and updated to reflect an accurate discription of the topic at hand. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Bssmith117 (talk • contribs) 22:40, 28 July 2016 (UTC)
- I wasn't providing them as references in articles, merely pointing out that there's been no mention in news sources of the DoM in a manner which would support the sorts of changes that you would like to make. Thank you for making my point in detail!
- Regarding the Lead, it's fine as it is:
- The Dominion of Melchizedek (DoM), is a unilaterally declared, internationally unrecognised micronation - all mentioned in the Body and referenced, with the exception of the actual word "micronation". I'll have a look at making sure that's in somewhere.
- known for facilitating large scale banking fraud in many parts of the world during the 1990s and early 2000s - again, covered in the body and reffed, although I see none of our current refs/points relate to the naughties, so I'll remove that part. Bromley86 (talk) 02:46, 29 July 2016 (UTC)
Fraud
Just visited DOM's website. A purported "photograph of Melchizedek" looks like an island in Fiji! (Cannot identify which one it is — but I'll try to find out) David Cannon (talk) 10:07, 30 December 2016 (UTC)
Johnski Redux
It appears once again Johnski and his meatpuppets have started to push their propaganda on the DOM article. Please be aware this went through arbitration many years ago and the result was the banning of of Johnski and ALL of his known meatpuppets. This page can be semi-protected by an administrator and new meatpuppets can be banned. Davidpdx (talk) 13:47, 27 June 2019 (UTC)
- Diffs? Andy Dingley (talk) 15:06, 27 June 2019 (UTC)
- Andy, I'm not sure what you mean. Davidpdx (talk) 13:11, 28 June 2019 (UTC)
- Where are these "meatpuppet edits"? Who is "Johnski"? Andy Dingley (talk) 13:16, 28 June 2019 (UTC)
- They are the edits being done by unregistered users. Johnski was (is) someone who is directly involved in DOM who along with other people are making a concerted effort to add unsubstantiated claims. https://en.wikipedia.org/Wikipedia:Requests_for_arbitration/Johnski/Proposed_decision Davidpdx (talk) 01:54, 29 June 2019 (UTC)
- Where are these "meatpuppet edits"? Who is "Johnski"? Andy Dingley (talk) 13:16, 28 June 2019 (UTC)
- Andy, I'm not sure what you mean. Davidpdx (talk) 13:11, 28 June 2019 (UTC)
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