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William M. Connolley

(69/4/0) ending 15:25, 14 January 2006 (UTC)

William M. Connolley (talk · contribs) – An editor whom I shall declare is well respected by much of the community. For those unfamiliar with his first RFA, he is a climate modeller who is very knowledgeable in the areas of his expertise, such as climate change, its related fields and physics. He is resilient and willing to explain at length, knows how to gauge consensus, works and colloborates well with other users, has good humour and character and overall, a virtuous person who I think we can trust administrator priveleges with. He contributes significantly to the project and is very much dedicated with it that I think he would be extremely valuable as a sysop. He is very good at maintaining a neutral point of view in articles; he remains cool and patient in any dispute. He is someone the community can trust. Elle vécut heureusement _{toujours dorénavant} (Be eudaimonic!) 13:16, 7 January 2006 (UTC)

Candidate, please indicate acceptance of the nomination here: I'm honoured to accept William M. Connolley 15:25, 7 January 2006 (UTC).

Support

1. Support. Naturally, as nominator. Elle vécut heureusement _{toujours dorénavant} (Be eudaimonic!) 13:17, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
2. Support outstanding decision, Elle. KillerChihuahua 13:47, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
3. Support. William is a very experienced, even-handed, and valuabe contributor. His patience is sometimes limited, but that is a very large limit.--Stephan Schulz 13:53, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
4. Support. I'm taking the unusual step of supporting before the candidate has accepted and answered the questions, because (a) it will encourage him to say yes, and (b) I am satisfied with his answers from last time. David | Talk 13:54, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
5. Support - obvious, since I nominated him last time. Guettarda 14:35, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
6. Support - first valid vote ;-) (Relax, guys, I'm sure your votes will be counted by the 'crat as well. I think the protocol is to wait until the bell rings.). --Ancheta Wis 16:45, 7 January 2006 (UTC)

   We could always re-vote, but then we'd be meatpuppets... oh dear, which rule to ignore? KillerChihuahua 16:54, 7 January 2006 (UTC)

7. Support good editor. --a.n.o.n.y.m 16:55, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
8. Supported before and still support - Vsmith 17:03, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
9. Support, but can I vote oppose so you don't waste much time on janitor tasks? - Taxman 17:08, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
10. Support. -- DS1953 17:51, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
11. Support, as I did in July. Superb contributor and likely to be an excellent admin. Antandrus (talk) 18:27, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
12. Support. -- Phædriel 18:31, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
13. Support. --Ian Pitchford 18:39, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
14. Support'#— Dunc|☺ 18:42, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
15. Support, mature and committed user. Unlikely to abuse administrative tools. Christopher Parham (talk) 18:58, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
16. Support. —Kirill Lokshin 19:53, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
17. Support. The ArbCom having removed the revert limitation as "unnecessary" and the reopened case having reached a better conclusion than the original, concerns in that regard are dispelled. I'd stress, hopefully without need, that William M. Connolley should be ultra-very-extremely-cautious in any use he might consider making of admin powers on anything related to climate change. -Splash 20:09, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
18. εγκυκλοπαίδεια* 20:11, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
19. Support. KHM03 20:30, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
20. Support, with an encouragement to read WP:BEANS after response to number 8 below. Jkelly 21:00, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
21. Support crandles 22:10, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
22. Support, as last time. -- Jitse Niesen (talk) 22:13, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
23. Support - he probably should have been sysopped last time. Chick Bowen 22:32, 7 January 2006 (UTC)
24. Support. Good grief. --Jay (Reply) 00:13, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
25. Support, same as last time.-gadfium 00:39, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
26. Support, seconding Splash's advice above. Titoxd 00:49, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
27. Support checked you over earlier and your edits look sound.--MONGO 01:49, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
28. This one's a cinch. --King of All the Franks 02:07, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
29. Rob Church 02:09, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
30. Support. Dragons flight 02:15, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
31. Support Good admin candidate. --rogerd 02:22, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
32. OMG Support.  Grue  06:10, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
33. Support: --Bhadani 06:35, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
34. Support - BanyanTree 07:54, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
35. Support I liked the answers to the questions below. --Chris S. 08:59, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
36. Support. I like all his 9 answers but I'm gonna give him a 10th question. - Darwinek 09:37, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
37. Support, of course. - Mailer Diablo 10:54, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
38. Support Seems like this candidate would make a briliant admin. --- Responses to Chazz's talk page. Signed by Chazz @ 11:13, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
39. Support Certainly, old mate of mine from down the years in Cambridge. Charles Matthews 11:17, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
40. Support --Terence Ong 12:19, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
41. Support. A pleasure. Ambi 13:53, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
42. Support -- sannse (talk) 13:57, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
43. Why do we always write "support" anyway? Well I'm not doing it, dammit. - brenneman 14:00, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
44. Support 14:48, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
45. Support Highly knowledgeable contributor--Confuzion 15:31, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
46. Support - Should be a good admin -- Francs2000 16:10, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
47. Support. Good contributor who will likely make good use of the admin tools. Decent responses to the optional questions. --Deathphoenix 17:28, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
48. Support. I opposed last time, but I now feel confident that WMC would make a good admin. Carbonite | Talk 17:29, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
49. Support Izehar 18:47, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
50. Support Jim62sch 19:11, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
51. Enthusiastically support. --Pjacobi 19:16, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
52. Support Hooray for weather! adamsan 19:23, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
53. Support For atmospheric civility in RFArs and reversion edit summaries. Smmurphy 19:59, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
54. Support as per above. --PS2pcGAMER (talk) 21:12, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
55. Support, but of course. Anyone with that much patience... (PS: Is anyone else surprised at the lack of oppose votes?) Shimgray | talk | 23:34, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
56. --Jaranda 02:04, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
57. Support, proud to support a fellow atmospheric scientist. EWS23 | (Leave me a message!) 05:38, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
58. Support. utcursch | talk 06:30, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
59. Support. SlimVirgin 06:55, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
60. Support. Sjakkalle (Check!) 08:02, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
61. Support. But keep on editing! Thincat 14:29, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
62. Support. --Viriditas 15:00, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
63. Support. Have had very good experiences with him on the talk page for Global warming and related-topic articles, with resolving disputes. —Kmf164 (talk | contribs) 19:56, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
64. Support TestPilot 21:25, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
65. Support, Pavel Vozenilek 22:00, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
66. Support –Joke 22:03, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
67. Support, just remembered to Sceptre 22:43, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
68. Looks like a runaway, but Support regardless. -Colin Kimbrell 22:54, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
69. Support very knowledgeable and good to work with even when he disagrees with you Salsb 01:31, 10 January 2006 (UTC)

Oppose

1. Oppose. In my observations of, and experiences with, William M. Connolley, he showed himself the exact opposite of what is described in his nomination. I have observed him, and/or interacted with him, in connection with several entries in non-mainstream science - a category of endeavour that he has a strong bias against. He has treated with contempt and extreme rudeness any contributor who did not share his bias. He reverted their edits without explanation, repeatedly deleted their posts in Talk pages (yes, he does this a lot) because he didn't like what they said, and generally treated them as if they were non-persons and the Misplaced Pages rules of conduct did not have to be followed in dealing with them. I do not believe that working in - or knowing something about, or not being hostile to, or having an interest in - a non-mainstream science, is sufficient reason for being treated with this kind of contempt, and I think that it is outrageous that Connolley permits himself to act in this manner. It is all right for Connolley to have a bias, and it is all right if he doesn't want to inform himself about areas that he considers abhorrent. But if he has such a bias, he should excuse himself from working on entries that he is strongly biased against. Instead, he parades his bias as if it was a badge of merit, and his ignorance of those areas as if it was a virtue. Sorry, folks, that's not honorable behaviour. FrankZappo 03:48, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

   FrankZappo is a member of a group that has accused us all of being a "neo-maoist cabal" (or actually, a "techno-cult of ignorance" ). As this user has shown very little interest in actually contributing or participating in the community other than furthering his own cause, treating consensus with contempt, I move the vote be discounted. This of course, is left up to the closing bureaucrat. Elle vécut heureusement _{toujours dorénavant} (Be eudaimonic!) 05:13, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

   This is unsubstantiated nonsense. I am not a member of any "group", and have not had anything to do with the web page you quote. If you are referring to the "consensus" that keeps putting various non-mainstream scientific endeavours in the "pseudoscience" category, this is a "consensus" of people who don't have the slightest idea what these endeavours are about, and yet see fit to disparage them. You're right, I don't have any respect for this kind of "consensus", just like I don't have respect for the "consensus" of a lynch mob. And no, I have no interest in your so-called "community". Why would I, and why should I? I am interested in science, not "community" . I thought we were here to evaluate Connolley's courtesy, transparency, accountability, competence, hospitality, etc. What do my "communal" inclinations or disinclinations have to do with it? FrankZappo 06:01, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

   You are a supporter of the Correas under aetherometry; Helicoid's comments were also seen there. The whole point of an RFA is to evaluate the candidate's trust by the community. For example, sockpuppets may not vote. Elle _{vécu heureuse} (Be eudaimonic!) 11:23, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

   What I am a supporter of is the scientific method. I am a supporter of the notion that dissident scientific proposals should be evaluated not by the measuring stick of bigotry and fear of the new, but by an open-minded, careful approach that aims at an impartial evaluation of the experimental evidence, the methodologies, the claimed results, the conclusions drawn. It pains me to see that the Misplaced Pages "community" permits and encourages the rise of scientific bigots to positions of authority, and permits them virtually a free hand when it comes to anything having to do with science. Believe me, you will not get any real scientists contributing to Misplaced Pages for as long as you appoint "administrators" such as Connolley. What you will get is other bigots like Connolley. This is what I am nota supporter of. And I am also not a supporter of the recurring Misplaced Pages "community" tactic of opportunistically redirecting the discussion towards insinuation and trying to cast vague aspersions on the good faith of inconvenient contributors. FrankZappo 16:01, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

   FZ's rudness towards me is easily found: , , , . I think I was distinctly measured and polite in my replies, and I'll note that FZ doesn't actually provide any examples for his assertions. William M. Connolley 15:30, 9 January 2006 (UTC).

   My dear Connolley, I am not talking about isolated instances of rudeness on your part. The whole history of the Aetherometry entry at at Misplaced Pages is one long and consistent example of your bigotry, bias, and contempt both for those who know anything about the topic of the entry and for the policies of Misplaced Pages. And make no mistake - although I did not contribute to "Misplaced Pages, a Techno-Cult of Ignorance", I have to agree with much of the picture it paints. And I also agree with much of what the sequel to that piece, Anti-Misplaced Pages 2: The Rise of the Latrines has to say about Misplaced Pages's nature, hype, philosophy, and scientific bigotry. And, of course, about the ludicrous "Nature" 'study' concerning Misplaced Pages's "scientific accuracy". FrankZappo 16:18, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

   The sheer stereotyping of the community into nerds, and FrankZappo's utter disdain for the community, or the encyclopedia in itself. There have been some administrators who have been acting unilaterally, whose names I will not mention at this moment for the very sake of maintaining harmony, but they seek the encyclopedia's best interest - whether it actually is the subject of much RFC and arbitration election deliberation. Yet, this is unlike Zappo in question, who doesn't actually seek the encyclopedia's best interests and wishes to sabotage it in every way. Furthermore, to accuse Connolley of being a bigot on the issue is to similarly label Theresa knott and many other members of the community all of which have particularly good reputations. Elle _{vécu heureuse} (Be eudaimonic!) 21:08, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

   Hey Natalinasmpf, nice job changing your tag there, very pretty. Almost didn't realize you'd done the nomination. Everyone passing by should know she's embroiled in this Aetherometry conflict as well. I think you're totally off-base calling FZ a saboteur. All I've seen him do is try to ensure the factual accuracy of an article he was interested in the face of know-nothings. That's what I've been doing too. And suggesting that WMC and Theresa Knott and other well-respected members of the community should be given a pass for bigotry on this subject means, I guess, that Misplaced Pages should value and reward bigotry. Pgio 23:12, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

2. Oppose per Frank. --Kefalonia 11:20, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
3. Oppose Connolley stirkes me as the type of editor who will abuse his admin status to enforce his pov. DTC 19:08, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
4. Oppose Let's look at Connolley's behavior when he's miffed. In WMC's link number 4 from above FZ only says I just don't like Connolley. And WMC removed that comment from the Aetherometry Talk page three times, and then changed the article's category to Pseudoscience, with this comment: (reinsert PS, thanks to FZ) . Then he edited FZ's complaint about THAT action off the Talk page . That's just incredibly petty and downright dishonest. I have no confidence WMC will use admin powers any better than that. And all this on a subject he refuses to actually read or understand! Let me put this in Wikpedia terms: WMC calling Aetherometry pseudoscience without actually reading the source material is like a guy who's never seen any anime insisting that Blue Submarine #6 must be about tentacle rape because it's animated, Japanese, and takes place underwater -- or so he's heard. Why would you people trust a guy that won't even admit he doesn't know what he doesn't know? Pgio 23:12, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

   Calling Aetherometry pseudoscience is gentle. It violates some of the strongest, most validated scientific theories out there (among others, thermodynamics and relativity). Support for it is non-existant among serious physicists. Experimental evidence is negligible. It's very easy to come up with crap. That's why scientists use a simple crap filter. If it is unsupported, but in blatant conflict with known laws of physics, it does not deserve detailed analysis. We do science. Arguing with propellerheads is typically not productive, and not part of the job description of a scientist. Come when your perpetuum mobile has earned you the first million dollars. --Stephan Schulz 23:31, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

   Nice, dude. Your first comment on the matter is to -- rush to judgement. What literature in Aetherometry did you actually review to determine that the experimental evidence is negligible? Care to comment on the mechanisms covered by the Correas' patents? Care to actually differentiate between laws of Physics (which Aetherometry does not violate) and received scientific wisdom? Care to resolve a spacetime singularity while you're at it? Your crap filter is an excuse for lazy thinking, I'm afraid. And note, the mobile would be no more perpetual than any other; it is the understanding of the nature, place and quantity of accessible energy in the universe that is different. Pgio 01:38, 10 January 2006 (UTC)

   Agree with SS. Basically you complaining that guy put pseudoscience tag on pseudoscience article. And article itself state: The term ... is not in use by mainstream physicists, and ... is not supported by scientific consensus! I truly think we should promote such a nice guy. TestPilot 23:50, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

   'Scuse me? The def of the category "pseudoscience" says: "This category comprises articles pertaining to fields of endeavor or bodies of knowledge that are both claimed by their proponents to be supported by scientific principles and the scientific method, and alleged by their critics or the mainstream scientific community to be inconsistent with such principles and method." I would like to see a cogent argument from you as to why Aetherometry, in your view, is inconsistent with scientific principles and method. And don't give me this crap about scientific consensus; the scientific method does not require any such consensus. One can be on a desert island and still do science that follows the scientific method and the scientific principles. So git! gimme your arguments. FrankZappo 03:06, 10 January 2006 (UTC)

5. Oppose per reasoning stated above. JSIN 02:46, 10 January 2006 (UTC)

Neutral

Comments

• I thought the answer to the 3RR question could have been a bit better, personally. -Splash 00:19, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
• This vote was moved to comments section because it is from a non-logged in user: Support enthusiastically. --24.12.29.115 03:34, 8 January 2006 (UTC)

• I would like to ask the candidate's view on Misplaced Pages:Process is Important? DES 23:07, 9 January 2006 (UTC)

• Edit summary usage: 99% for major edits and 100% for minor edits. Based on the last 150 major and and 150 minor edits outside the Misplaced Pages, User, Image, and Talk namespaces. Mathbot 16:30, 7 January 2006 (UTC)

Questions for the candidate
Dear candidate, thank you for offering to serve Misplaced Pages even more. Please take the time to answer a few generic questions to provide guidance for voters:

1. What sysop chores, if any, would you anticipate helping with? Please check out Category:Misplaced Pages backlog, and read the page about administrators and the administrators' reading list.

A. The climate change pages are often controversial and suffer vandalism: being an admin would ease the task of keeping this in check (and because it came up last time, let me re-emphasise that I have no intention of using admin powers to settle content disputes on these pages). Other than that, I'm not expecting to be particularly active, though as time progresses I expect to ease my way into other admin chores.

2. Of your articles or contributions to Misplaced Pages, are there any about which you are particularly pleased, and why?

A. I've contributed heavily to global warming and related articles. From a scientific viewpoint, many of these are now good. There are, sadly, still flow-of-prose problems with them, though - I think I have to recognise that while I'm happy adding science, beautiful prose is not my forte. Less controversially, I'm proud of my three feautured pictures and a number of Computer-generated images

3. Have you been in any conflicts over editing in the past or do you feel other users have caused you stress? How have you dealt with it and how will you deal with it in the future?

A. I've been heavily involved with conflicts, in two main areas: global warming (see-also Misplaced Pages:Requests for comment/William M. Connolley, Misplaced Pages:Requests for arbitration/JonGwynne, Misplaced Pages:Requests for arbitration/Climate change dispute and Misplaced Pages:Requests for arbitration/Climate change dispute_2) and pseudoscience (aetherometry, dynamic theory of gravity, etc). Wiki has some difficulty dealing with these problems (i.e., when people have a very strong and essentially erroneous POV they wish to push, but only a small number of editors are prepared/available to resist; see Misplaced Pages:Requests_for_arbitration/Reddi_2/Workshop#Troika for one possible solution). But I've learnt from this that an endless revert war doesn't help; that its necessary to involve other editors and to negotiate. I can certainly claim a familiarity with the mechanism of RFC/RFA which, who knows, might prove useful elsewhere.

To deal with an issue that came up at my previous RFA: at that time, I was under 1RR parole on climate change articles. That parole irked me, though I pretty well stuck to it . But I'm pleased to say that (a) the arbcomm have now revoked it The one revert parole placed upon William M. Connolley was an unnecessary move, and is hereby revoked Misplaced Pages:Requests_for_arbitration/Climate_change_dispute_2#Removal_of_the_revert_parole_imposed_on_William_M._Connolley (b) the time limit on it has now expired anyway.

If you'd like a recent example, try Talk:Global_warming#Another_phase_of_tuning....3F.

4. What do you think of these questions?

A. They are fair enough... hold on a bit and I'll answer them. William M. Connolley 15:26, 7 January 2006 (UTC)... Done.

The following are some optional questions. There are no correct answers to these questions and I simply want to know your opinions rather than see a correct answer. Thanks! --Deathphoenix 18:12, 7 January 2006 (UTC)

5. When would you use {{test1}}, and when would you use {{bv}}?

A. Trick questions, eh? On the user page of a new contributor; in the first case one who has made an apparent test edit; in the second one who has made what looks like (repeated?) vandalism. But although I guess these are things that experienced users would do, they are not exclusively admin tasks.

6. What would you do if a user reverts an article four times in slightly more than 24 hours? (Thus obeying the letter of WP:3RR.)

A. I strongly support enforcement of the 3RR (including against myself should it be necessary). In fact I should have added "patrol 3rr page to help enforcing violations where needed" to my what-tasks-would-you-do, above. First time violators get a warning. Experienced people who may be acting in good faith get chance to re-revert themselves (e.g.). Repeat offenders get blocks. If you obey the letter of the law... then its not really my business as an admin. If the behaviour is repeated, then others need to raise it as a user RFC I guess.

7. In your opinion, when would you delete an article under CSD A7 (unremarkable people or groups) and when would you nominate it for an AFD instead?

A. Except in extreme cases I've come to see AFD as not worth the trouble. So for someonething who was merely not notable I would be unlikely to bother. I really don't see the problem with articles about non-notable things. Where I do object is non-notable things made to seem important - this is the pseudoscience stuff again. But there I would tend to support a redirect to the appropriate bit of real science rather than trouble with afd.

8. How would you tell the difference between a sockpuppet and a new user?

A. Ha! Are you thinking of Talk:John Lott? Socks tend to edit one article alone. Quite why they don't have the sense to make a pile of token edits elsewhere I don't know...

9. How would you use WP:NPOV when writing or editing a disputed article?

A. With caution. People tend to cite it to their own ends. Misplaced Pages:Neutral_point_of_view#Undue_weight is particularly important.

The following question is from Darwinek (just in case someone thinks it's one of mine) --Deathphoenix 17:28, 8 January 2006 (UTC)

10. How do you see Misplaced Pages in 2010 ?

Bonk. This question is an imponderable . Are you expecting super-powers of an editor? Either way, the answer to questions of this ilk is fraught with expectations that possible future admins possess a crystal ball. Might I ask the questioner to retract the question? Or is the questioner attempting to size up the prospects of the bet between Mike Godwin and Eric Goldman? Or is this a question better put to the Misplaced Pages:Reference Desk? --Ancheta Wis 16:44, 8 January 2006 (UTC)

Calm down, awright?! That was only a funny question with intention to cheer this serious atmosphere here. I am in full support of William's adminship and this won't change in 2010. Be cheerful and spread WikiLove. - Darwinek 22:42, 8 January 2006 (UTC)

I was going to say some of that in my answer, but I did have some other things to say too. I will say them in a bit, too. Don't delete the question! William M. Connolley 17:15, 8 January 2006 (UTC).

OK, for what its worth, here is the rest: I see wikipedia continuing its growth and influence. The problems of scaling will continue: how to smoothly adapt current practices to a larger community. At the moment this appears to be working mostly OK. Problems exist with the gap between arbcomm level and admin level: I expect this to have to be bridged/changed someway well before 2010. I very much hope more experts - from my area of interests, particularly scientists - will contribute: at the moment all too few do. To make this work, we will have to find some way to welcome and encourage them and their contributions without damaging the wiki ethos. This isn't working terribly well at the moment. I predict that wiki will still be a benevolent dictatorship in 2010 - the problems of transition to full user sovereignty are not worth solving at this stage. William M. Connolley 20:36, 8 January 2006 (UTC).