Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 02:30, 10 August 2005

Welcome to the Misplaced Pages

Welcome, newcomer!

Here are some useful tips to ease you into the Misplaced Pages experience:

• First, take a look at the Misplaced Pages Tutorial, and perhaps dabble a bit in the test area.
• When you have some free time, take a look at the Manual of Style and Policies and Guidelines. They can come in very handy!
• Remember to use a neutral point of view!
• If you need any help, feel free to post a question at the Help Desk
• Explore, be bold in editing pages, and, most importantly, have fun!

Also, here are some odds and ends useful from time to time:

• Misplaced Pages:Policy Library
• Misplaced Pages:Utilities
• Misplaced Pages:Cite your sources
• Misplaced Pages:Verifiability
• Misplaced Pages:Wikiquette
• Misplaced Pages:Civility
• Misplaced Pages:Conflict resolution
• Misplaced Pages:Brilliant prose
• Misplaced Pages:Pages needing attention
• Misplaced Pages:Peer review
• Misplaced Pages:Bad jokes and other deleted nonsense
• Misplaced Pages:Village pump
• Misplaced Pages:Boilerplate text

Feel free to ask me anything the links and talk pages don't answer. You can most easily reach me by posting on my talk page.

You can sign your name on any page by typing 4 tildes, likes this: ~~~~.

Best of luck, and have fun!

Also, thanks for the help over at Randi Rhodes: I didn't want to contribute to an edit war anymore. Just FYI, even though it seems like an open-and-shut case of original research, I'm opening a survey in the talk page just to kill this dispute off before it begins.

Thanks again! – ClockworkSoul 16:16, 26 Feb 2005 (UTC)

Thanks for the welcome

Originally posted on User_talk:ClockworkSoul

Your warm welcome and pointers are much appreciated. Already need help redirecting a mis-titled new article about TMAP http://en.wikipedia.org/Texas_Medical_Algorithm_Project . The article also needs refinement to improve neutrality while preserving factual integrity. Thanks again! Ombudsman 17:37, 27 Feb 2005 (UTC)

• My pleasure. Now, what exactly do you need to do with the article and its redirect? Do you need it renamed, or just have a redirect put in? Also, if you have time, could you lend a hand in the survey regarding the brewing edit war on Talk:Randi Rhodes? It could use some love. Many thanks! – ClockworkSoul 21:32, 27 Feb 2005 (UTC)

It wasn't difficult to figure out how to redirect, so that's done. However, immediately after fixing that problem, the expected question about neutrality was posted at 21:24, 27 Feb 2005, by Antaeus Feldspar: (POV check -- phrases like "TMAP is a typical, corporate-sponsored "disease awareness" campaign"). Your assistance on navigating this politically loaded issue would be invaluable. Thanks, Ombudsman 21:42, 27 Feb 2005 (UTC)

Yikes. I'll go over it and do what I can. This may need a few eyeballs on it to really scrub it clean, though. – ClockworkSoul 21:55, 27 Feb 2005 (UTC)

I'm very happy to hear that. :) It's a start, right? I'm glad I could offer what little help I could. – ClockworkSoul 06:10, 28 Feb 2005 (UTC)

Hey, my computer isn't that good, but your picture on Koko(gorilla) didn't show up. Howabout1 00:28, 7 Mar 2005 (UTC)

Exceptional Newcomer Award

For exhibiting a dedication to NPOV beyond your experience, I hereby present you with the Exceptional Newcomer Award. Paste the template onto your user page, and wear it with pride!

So....what do you think?

You pointed out that there was a need for NPOV on the ADHD article. I did the best I was able. Whatcha think of the result?*Kat* 17:11, Mar 28, 2005 (UTC)

My pleasure. *Kat* 20:36, Mar 28, 2005 (UTC)

New Freedom Commission on Mental Health

Nobody asked me, but then considering how I spent six hours cleaning that article up, I don't think I need an invitation. Ombudsman, I checked the history, and I find myself in total agreement with Antaeus. In fact those additions that you made were what convinced me that the article needed to be cleaned up ASAP. I think that what happened is that--armed with everything you have ever learned from Time Magazine and Dateline NBC, you attempted to neutralize a less-than-npov article, and instead you ended up making it even more pov than it had been before.

As you know from my user profile, I have ADHD. What you don't know is that I have studied this disorder intensely for over five years. What I don't know about ADHD isn't worth knowing. I take perscriptive medication as well as "alternative" medication, (Zinc, Vitamin B, Omega 3 fatty acids). I've shelled out over $170.00 paying for both perscription and natural medicines in the past two days. "The industry" may be making a profit of their products, but by God they have earned it. Your edits' emphasis on the drug industry made it sound like the pharmaceutical companies are simply out for themselves, and that ADHD is their own invention. It isn't, and they aren't. In special cases they will give their products to those who can't afford them. Which, of course, is something Dateline NBC won't report.

Bottom line: Be bold. But when you are, make sure you know what you are talking about.--*Kat* 11:13, Mar 30, 2005 (UTC)

Vaccine

I'll see what I can do. *Kat* 05:22, Mar 30, 2005 (UTC)

bold enough?*Kat* 08:05, Mar 30, 2005 (UTC)

Fair enough. I replaced four of the external links. You're on your own as far as the "cognitive imagery and dialogue quality" is concerned though. ;-) I don't know a whole lot about vaccinations. All of the omitted original material can be found on vaccine's discussion page.*Kat*

My apologies, it was late and I was grumpy when I wrote the above. Check it out now, and tell me what you think. *Kat* 20:36, Mar 30, 2005 (UTC)

Dr. Andrew Wakefield

Hello, Ombudsman. Looking over the edits made to the article, it's very clear that although they are a series of large edits, they are not vandalism. If you have any disagreement with the author, try posting them to the article's (or user's, even though he is an anon) talk page, and work it out. I find that most of our editors are rational and willing to comprimise, and I have no doubt that you can reach a mutually agreeable solution. – ClockworkSoul 23:48, 3 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Have done so. (revisised:) A partial response from the anon makes evident the evisceration of the article was probably due to a combination of boldness and inexperience, rather than simply bad faith. The edits incorporate material from a source known to be engaged in an ongoing smear campaign against Dr. Wakefield, and salient material repeatedly has been deleted by the anon. Edits to the first sentence evidence distortion. Use of terms such as "admission" and "non-clinical" are gratuitous at best. But what is most disturbing is the fact the article is no longer about Dr. Wakefield, and his career and scientific contributions, it is now simply little more than regurgitation of detritus from the ongoing smear campaign against Wakefield. Ombudsman 23:37, 7 Apr 2005 (UTC) (original 23:56, 3 Apr 2005 (UTC))

Stemwinding thread started by Antaeus removed. Ombudsman 23:29, 5 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Copyright Policy

Good work creating new articles and contributing to exisiting ones. When you make contributions, be careful that you don't include copyrighted material. Copyright rules are complicated, so take some time to review Misplaced Pages:Copyrights. A good general rule is that most things on the internet are already copyrighted by someone else, so they cannot be contributed to wikipedia. Again, content from webpages is usually copyrighted and cannot be added to wiki. Keep up the good work, and feel free to contact me with questions. Feco

"Revised"

I notice that you tend to go back and revise your earlier comments when you've changed your mind. This makes it difficult for other editors to follow the course of a conversation, however; it is preferable, if you no longer endorse something you said in the past, to use the <s></s> tags to strike it out -- this makes it easier for others to follow what was said. -- Antaeus Feldspar 00:09, 11 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Antaeus, thanks for the tip. However inelegant, removal of decadent clutter may be a better alternative, or may be an effort to avoid quibbling. However, your inference that earlier posts may no longer be 'endorsed' is true in one instance, as an incorrect recollection of Melanie Philips' reference to an introduction of MMR did cause an error: "The official misrepresentation of these conclusions is one of the most worrying things about this controversy. This is particularly so since the government had introduced the first type of MMR vaccine in 1989 — which it had to withdraw three years later because it was shown to cause aseptic meningitis — even though it knew at the time that Canada had already withdrawn it because it was found to be unsafe."

SIF copyvio

>>Would deletion of the offending passages and statement suffice for now?<<

Sure... as long as you don't use any of the group's copyrighted material... put it on the temp page per standard procedure while awaiting copyright permission/denial from the group. Feco 04:28, 12 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Thimerosal and autism

Ombudsman,

I applaud your enthusiasm and dedication to fill in Misplaced Pages's gaps with respect to research around the use of thimerosal and autism. I hope you might be willing to consider a few points.

• The largest part of the discussion regarding a link between thimerosal and autism probably belongs in those two articles.
• It's not necessary to repeat the entire debate or add a similar set of external links to the biographical articles of each scientist involved, except where those researchers are intimately involved. Trust in our readers to be able to follow hyperlinks when they need more information.
• The link between thimerosal and autism isn't proven, and it isn't accepted by a majority of scientists or clinicians. It is inappropriate to present honest scientific opinions that the link is unproven as being solely the result of industry lobbying or government suppression.

Thanks for listening. --TenOfAllTrades (talk/contrib) 21:51, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Thanks for weighing in on the Thimerosal article; I think it's turning out well, though some cleanup is needed. --Leifern 23:43, May 2, 2005 (UTC)

Care with article sources

Ombudsman,

I welcome the opportunity to work with you (and other editors) to produce high-quality, neutral articles. I'm sure we both agree that verifiable external sources are an important part of our fact-checking procedure.

Nevertheless, I have to express a bit of concern about the Bernard Rimland article. Although it's starting to evolve away from its original form, I fear it may have started out as quite similar to the external article, Dr. Bernard Rimland is autism's worst enemy. What can I say? I'm an academic, and I get an uncomfortable, itchy feeling in the back of my skull when I see something that so closely paraphrases (and in some cases, directly quotes) another publication.

Please consult outside sources, but I would strongly encourage you to rewrite from scratch. Thanks, TenOfAllTrades (talk/contrib) 04:33, 27 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Autism epidemic

Hi Ombudsman. I appreciate your invitation to review the article. I'm a bit concerned about the heavy emphasis on mercury/thimerosal and MMR. Despite the opinions of a few scientists, we still don't have any good theory to explain autism, and I think our article should reflect that—there isn't necessarily a conspiracy by the pharmaceutical companies and the "medical establishment" to cover up the evils of vaccines. There are a lot of good, honest scientists and clinicians who have published solid work that shows the evidence just isn't there. (Not that they have proven a link doesn't exist, just that we lack good epidemiological or biochemical data to support one at this time.) Hopefully you'll cover other theories in more detail as you continue to revise the article...? --TenOfAllTrades (talk/contrib) 03:19, 5 May 2005 (UTC)

Images

Hi. When you upload images, please be sure to include information on the source of the image, and the image copyright status using one of the Misplaced Pages image templates. Please add that information on images you've already uploaded. Images with no information or copyright may be deleted from Misplaced Pages in the future. See Misplaced Pages:Images and associated pages for details on how to take care of that if your not sure, and feel free to ask on my talk page if you have any questions. Cheers, -- Infrogmation 16:21, 25 May 2005 (UTC)

Hi there, thanks for uploading all the images on Bryan Ferry. At present, they don't have tags, please could you add them to the images? Thanks Craigy File:Uk flag large.png (talk) 00:44, May 30, 2005 (UTC)

As you asked me to check your image tagging on Image:William G Steiner.jpg, I changed the tempate to PermissionAndFairUse as that seemed more appropriate to me. Cheers, -- Infrogmation 05:08, 31 May 2005 (UTC)

Thanks and signature.

Hey - thanks for the butterfly barstar! Also, you forgot to put your signature on the Misplaced Pages:Votes for deletion/September 11, researchers, so I went ahead and added it for now. I shall try to notify others of that vote. Once again thanks, and keep up the good work. --Blackcats 18:20, 8 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Votes for Deletion (VfD)

If you'd like to weigh in on the deletion discussion regarding Edward Yazbak, you'll need to follow the link in the VfD template at the top of the article (click where it says this article's entry, or go to Misplaced Pages:Votes for deletion/Edward Yazbak.) Discussion and votes left on the article's Talk page won't be counted—and probably won't be noticed by the admin closing the discussion. --TenOfAllTrades(talk) 00:49, 11 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Thank you for your support

Thank you for supporting my candidacy for adminship. Kelly Martin 02:07, Jun 11, 2005 (UTC)

Insurance

If you outline on the talk page what you have in mind for the rest, I may be able to help. It has stayed pretty bad and it hasn't reached to top of my priority list to rework, but I know a lot of the things it needs, and am fairly knowledgeable in the subject and Misplaced Pages policy. Thanks for working on it. - Taxman 20:45, Jun 15, 2005 (UTC)

W. Mark Felt

Salve!
I nominated W. Mark Felt as a WP:FAC. As you commented on the article's talk page, I'd appreciate your comments at Misplaced Pages:Featured article candidates/W. Mark Felt. PedanticallySpeaking 14:55, Jun 17, 2005 (UTC)

Thimerosal talk page

Are you going to respond to my comments there or are you going to focus on makeing kennedy look like an idiot?Geni 02:14, 18 Jun 2005 (UTC)

don't waste my time with arguments by assertion.Geni 10:53, 18 Jun 2005 (UTC)

9/11 conspiracy theories

9/11 conspiracy theories has been involved in extensive discussions over its title. Please take a sec and say why you think that your proposed title is preferable. Thank, -Willmcw 10:02, Jun 20, 2005 (UTC)

Thanks

Hey Ombudsman, thanks for welcoming me into the wikipedia community and giving me the introductory info. I'll go throught it gradually over the next week or two.

Laters, --ErikStewart 14:36, 20 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Admin Tally

You can check here to see that there are 490 admins. -- Uncle Ed (talk) 02:40, Jun 21, 2005 (UTC)

I sampled Special:Listadmins. Admins 200-209 and 300-309.

• 200
• Jun 21, 2005
• Jun 20, 2005
• Apr 30, 2005 (prior, Feb 17)
• Jun 21, 2005
• Jun 21, 2005
• Dec 10, 2004
• Jan 23, 2005
• Jun 20, 2005
• Sep 21, 2004
• Jun 15, 2005 (prior Jun 9)

• 300
• Jun 20, 2005
• May 19, 2005
• Jun 17, 2005
• Jun 21, 2005
• Jun 19, 2005
• Jun 20, 2005
• Jun 20, 2005
• Jun 21, 2005
• Apr 25, 2005 (prior Mar 8)
• May 31, 2005 (prior May 11)

• 12 active, 8 inactive or slightly active = 60% active

If this is roughly accurate, then the number of active admins is probably around 300 or less. (I don't know how many total editors were active in the last 30 days). While some admins involve themselves in setting policies (which anyone may participate in), others seem to confine themselves to truly janitorial work. For that reason I'm not sure if "bureaucracy" is the best way to describe the corps of admins, or the dangers threatened by their expansion. The more plausible fear, I think, is that too many admins will result in a "police state", with more sped-up deletes, heavy-handed blocks, and POV enforcement. I am certainly opposed to any movement in the direction of stifling unpopular POVs. I'm not sure that the number of admins is the major factor though. Another view, which I don't endorse either, is that having more admins broadens involvement and reduces the relative power of any one admin. I think that the most important issues are probably the rules and procedures, official and unofficial, that admins follow and/or enforce on others, Those powers should stay limited. -Willmcw 05:26, Jun 21, 2005 (UTC)

Also- Thanks for your support for my adminship. Maybe we should limit the number of admins to 500. ;) Cheers, -Willmcw 05:26, Jun 21, 2005 (UTC)

• Thanks for the perspective, Willmcw. Ombudsman 05:38, 21 Jun 2005 (UTC)

• • BTW, good job on Brown Act. I'd linked to it some months ago and was surprised when the link was red. Writing the article was somewhere way down on my to-do list. You did it better than I would have. Cheers, -Willmcw 07:35, Jun 22, 2005 (UTC)

The New Pearl Harbor

Hey - if you could help keep an eye on the The New Pearl Harbor article I would appreciate. Someone recently inserted a bunch of unsourced (orginal research) anti-Griffin editorializing. I've reverted that now, but it would probably be good idea to keep watching that page. Thanks. Blackcats 08:26, 22 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Autism epidemic

Just wanted to say that I agree with your latest change to the first sentence, it's better than both preceding versions. - DaveSeidel 00:43, 23 Jun 2005 (UTC)

September 11, researchers article

I note you are one of the major contributors to the September 11, researchers article. Please start merging it with the 9/11 conspiracy theories article as soon as possible, as, in accord with the VfD on the topic, the September 11, researchers article will soon be turned into a re-direct. Thanks. Jayjg 16:47, 26 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Hi Ombudsman. A vote was already taken regarding the title of the 9/11 conspiracy theories article, and there was no consensus for changing it. It was precisely for this reason that the September 11, researchers was created. Misplaced Pages frowns on POV-forks like that, which is why the VfD strongly indicated that the September 11, researchers should be re-merged into the original article. I'd appreciate it if you could help with this as soon as possible. Jayjg 28 June 2005 18:56 (UTC)

Neanderthal

Please take a look at the recent edits to this article. - UtherSRG July 7, 2005 12:04 (UTC)

Peace Dove

To all participants of the WikiProject Kindness Campaign: There is a proposal on Misplaced Pages talk:WikiProject Kindness Campaign for the Peace Dove. Please comment as you see fit. Thanks, Sango123 16:29, July 14, 2005 (UTC)

Helen Gandy

You supported my nomination of the Mark Felt article and I wonder if I could get your support on another FBI article up as a FAC, Helen Gandy, who was Hoover's secretary for five decades. PedanticallySpeaking 21:04, July 14, 2005 (UTC)

Re: Vandalism patrol

No problem. I didn't know you were a sock puppet. :) Sango123 20:47, July 18, 2005 (UTC)

Thought police VfD

Hi, I am sincerely interested in (and completely ignorant of) the nature of your concerns, as expressed in your keep vote, regarding this and related articles. I'd appreciate any explanation you have the time and desire to give. Thanks, Xoloz 05:48, 22 July 2005 (UTC)

Getting Psychotherapy into This Week's Improvement Drive

Hi there! I noticed that you contribute a lot to Mental illness, and I thought you might care to help out the Psychotherapy article. As it stands this article could use a lot of help, and thus I've taken the liberty of trying to get it to be the focus of a week's improvement drive. All we need to get it for a week's worth of focus and improvement is enough votes, so go to Psychotherapy's vote page and help out this very needing article! JoeSmack (talk) 21:21, July 25, 2005 (UTC)

Important VFD

Please see the VFD for commons:List of victims of the 1913 Great Lakes storm. This is of vital importance. This list and others like it are being pushed off of the entire Wikimedia project. It started at Misplaced Pages, where they were VFDd in favor of moving to Wikisource/Commons. Now they are being VFDd off Wikisource (they don't really belong there, since they are not original source texts), with people there saying they should be on WP/Commons, and it is also being VFDd on Commons, where people don't realize that Commons accepts texts (says so right on the Main Page). This will set a precedent for any user-created lists. -- BRIAN0918  22:39, 30 July 2005 (UTC)

Autism Links

Thanks for cleaning those up... I should mention that I changed it to the list style so that it doesn't show up in the TOC, as someone complained about the size of the TOC a while back on Misplaced Pages:Featured_article_candidates/Autism --Ryan Norton 08:07, 9 August 2005 (UTC)

Do you have any official wiki role?

You appear to have extreme and troubling positions on psychiatric issues. Do you have any official role within wiki, or did you just give yourself the name "ombudsman" to attain credibility?--24.55.228.12 02:30, 10 August 2005 (UTC)