[WikiEN-l] Nazi userboxes

Thu Nov 30 21:51:44 UTC 2006

>From: Rob <gamaliel8 at gmail.com>
>Reply-To: English Wikipedia <wikien-l at Wikipedia.org>
>To: "English Wikipedia" <wikien-l at wikipedia.org>
>Subject: Re: [WikiEN-l] Nazi userboxes
>Date: Thu, 30 Nov 2006 16:47:16 -0500
>
>On 11/30/06, Thomas Dalton <thomas.dalton at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Is everyone displaying any of the userboxes on these pages
> > 
>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:GRBerry/German_userbox_solution#Political_parties
> > going to banned?
> >
> > The only reason I can see for treating Nazis differently from anyone
> > else is because people don't like Nazis. It boils down to banning
> > someone for being unpopular.
> >
> > If Wikipedia were based in Germany, it would be an obvious ban for
> > breaking the law, but Wikipedia is under US jurisdiction, and the US
> > doesn't have any such law.
>
>Do you believe that the Nazi party is no different from any of those
>other parties, or is this just a cheap rhetorical device?  Be honest.
>
>Do you also not see the difference between free speech in the public
>sphere and in the private sphere?  While the principles of and laws
>regarding free speech should of course apply to Nazis like they do to
>everyone else, Wikipedia is not obligated by those principles and laws
>to provide a soapbox for Nazis.

Isn't it pretty far outside of our purview to be providing a soapbox for 
some controversial political parties and not others?  Why do we allow any of 
this crap?  What justifies allowing people to proclaim their affiliation 
with one party and not another?  I'll agree that Nazi is beyond the pale, 
but where, precisely, is "the pale"?

GTB

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