Wikipedia talk:Articles for deletion/Archive 9#Vote
Archive of "what to do when there's no consensus?"
{{aan}}
Currently, if there's no rough consensus on keeping or deleting, we keep. But this isn't very satisfying to those who genuinely feel that some material shouldn't be in the encyclopedia. I think a wikipedia:inclusion dispute header would help in some of these cases. It may also provide a slightly softer way for people to question whether an article should be included in Wikipedia, without resorting to VfD, which may provide m:more heat than light. Martin 14:43, 2 Jan 2004 (UTC)
:I think there should be a unilateral way for someone to say, on the record, "I think this article should/shouldn't be included", with 40 chars of explanatory text. Then someday an upgraded w'pedia could
::(1) have a little green square in the upper-right-hand side of each article, which on mouseover lists positive opinions; similarly, next to it, a little red square, which on mouseover lists negative opinions;
::(2) run weekly scripts which pore over the db of such feedback and suggest articles for cleanup, conflict resolution, etc. based on this information.
::(3) allow people to say "when I visit a page on Angela's or Maveric's bad-list, add a red line across the top so I know without mouseover to be wary of it".
::(4) allow for targeted "come join this VfD" nots to be posted to the personal talk pages of everyone who has expressed an opinion about a page. +sj+ 20:41, 2004 Feb 20 (UTC)
:I certainly don't think it should replace VfD, but it could be used for articles where there is no rough consensus to delete yet people still feel strongly about its inclusion. Angela. 08:23, 3 Jan 2004 (UTC)
:One issue I have with the idea is that for some (many?) such articles, there would be no way to ever resolve the dispute (short of waiting for the voting population to change). In that case, the tag becomes permanent. This is unlike the disputed facts or POV labels, where (in theory) the article can be changed in some way to eliminate the objections. I would hate to see Wikipedia with skads of articles with a permanent disputed inclusion label attached.
:I am also unsure of what adding such a label would accomplish. It does not suggest that any action is pending, or is necessary. As much as I'm in favor of having standards for inclusion, I don't think this is the right approach. -Anthropos 08:48, 3 Jan 2004 (UTC)
:I think is is a great idea. Wiki is much more than an encyclopaedia it is a place where stubs (which may be nothing more than a post by an individual curious about a subject) grow into articles with comprehensive info from otherwise obscure or foreign language references compiled by many individuals. Sometimes all that needs doing is for an article to be named more accurately or the info moved to a more appropriate place (as in the case of the late Transiaxartesia article which I wish I could read again). A new kind of stub label on an article pointing out that the article is of highly disputed, obscure or apochryphal nature would save a lot of time worrying for others to deal with improving those articles which are not under any form of question. There could also be an equivalent VfD in votes for the removal of the label. If the number of votes becomes not insignificant then it might be removed.
::On second thoughts, I'm not sure it will work as those who don't dispute it will just keep removing the tag. Angela. 05:35, Jan 4, 2004 (UTC)
:::Would it be possible to set something up whereby it cannot be manually removed until it has passed a certain number of votes for removal? Likewise automatic removal once it has passed that quota?Zestauferov 12:39, 4 Jan 2004 (UTC)
I see Angela and Zestauferov's point, but a similar kind of approach seems to work reasonably for neutrality disputes - people generally refrain from removing dispute markers until the dispute is resolved somehow, or until everyone from one side of the dispute has given up on Wikipedia as
Sometimes adding facts or changing titles can resolve an inclusion dispute - especially articles that "can never be more than dictionary definitions" [sic] or are "no content stubs", but others too.
I don't see the benefit in a parallel to VfD for removing dispute tags - unlike article deletion, editing an article is a universally reversible change, so they don't need such a heavy level of peer review and due process - either in adding them or removing them.
Thanks for the responses. Martin 19:12, 5 Jan 2004 (UTC)
I see the need for an anti-
that I feel that such a marked article is indeed appropriate for the Wikipedia?). I could just use plaintext, but surly a plethora of such "meta-markup" is itself injurious to the readability of an article. Bevo 23:55, 12 Feb 2004 (UTC)
:Articles are, by default, suitable for inclusion. It is only the minority where agreement can not be reached over whether to delete a page that a notice is needed. Angela. 23:59, Feb 12, 2004 (UTC)
: You can indicate your support on the Talk page. If you think inclusion is warranted, and someone else thinks it is not, then there is a dispute, no? Martin 00:04, 13 Feb 2004 (UTC)
::By policy, is the mark permanent? Bevo 00:13, 13 Feb 2004 (UTC)
:::No, I expect it can act like the other dispute notices (accuracy and NPOV) and could be removed when there is no longer a dispute. Angela. 00:20, Feb 13, 2004 (UTC)
This is a terrible idea. There's no obvious way to resolve such a dispute, so these marks will stick around forever. That pollutes the article space and confuses newcomers. I have removed all of these tags, if someone wants to restore them, we should vote here first.—Eloquence 20:02, Feb 15, 2004 (UTC)
: I'd have to concur with Eloquence. This is a horrible idea and will do nothing to resolve the issue of generating "more heat than light". VfD isn't the best solution, but for articles which survive multiple VfD's this only further insults the original contributor(s) in question. As we've seen countless times on VfD already, there is an innumerable number of subjects and completely valid articles which many of us feel divided on whether or not they're "noteworthy enough" for Wikipedia. This doesn't mean that we should begin censoring those articles because 50% of the community doesn't like them, or worse yet put up little flags on each article further polluting what otherwise could be a great community effort. User:Radman1 (talk)]] 15:21, 25 Nov 2004 (UTC)
: Thank you for your feedback. I've reverted your removals. If you want to re-remove them, you should vote here first.
: I think this is a good idea for the reasons I have given above. Unlike Eloquence, I feel that inclusion disputes can be resolved in some cases, and are no harder than many neutrality disputes, where the tag is equally long-term. Martin 20:06, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)
:: These dispute headers are like a disease spreading to virtually all controversial articles on Wikipedia. They are useless and annoying, and they do not help to address the issues that caused them. Given that these two positions are apparently irreconcilable, I hereby call for a vote on this matter.—Eloquence
: Are you allowed to just randomly call for a vote? I thought we were meant to discuss the matter first? Perhaps if you would allow me to explain why I feel they are useful, and helpful? By all means call a vote if we fail to come to some sort of agreement. Martin
:: I have read the discussion above, and I have commented on the matter. I do not feel inclined to discuss such a trivial issue to death, and yes, I can call for a poll, if you pledge to accept the result of the poll. Of course you can play baby and insist that we go through a 10 day discussion period first, counting on me getting tired of the subject by then, but I would prefer it if we could settle this issue within the next few hours.—Eloquence
: "play baby"? *raised eyebrow*.
: I'll have that ten day discussion period then, if that's what I'm entitled to. I don't know whether you'll get tired, you seem to be quite adamant about this. All I'm asking is that, if you don't like this solution, then you provide a better solution. How do we solve inclusion disputes, if not like this? Martin 21:00, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)
:: For headers such as this, the first impression is often the most important. If a majority of people feel that they are annoying, that's reason enough to get rid of them. That doesn't mean that you haven't touched upon a valid problem, and my proposal for deletion reorganization (which has received majority support and will therefore be implemented) addresses some of them by providing a two-stage process that should settle these questions once and for all.—Eloquence
Vote
The vote is on the
{{inclusion}}
This header does not necessarily endorse the deletion of any particular page, but indicates an opinion that the following content may not be encyclopedic or notable. Can this header be added to articles where there is no consensus for or against deletion, but many people feel strongly that they should not be included in Wikipedia?
=Yes=
Yes, anyone can add the header.
- Anthony DiPierro
- Gentgeen 16:49, 25 Feb 2004 (UTC)
- Eequor 11:33, 9 Aug 2004 (UTC)
- Probably the best thing would be to get rid of this header entirely, but if we are going to have it, anybody can use it. Sam http://en.wikipedia.org/w/wiki.phtml?title=User_talk:Sam_Spade&action=edit§ion=new Spade 20:10, 17 Aug 2004 (UTC)
- Ðåñηÿßôý | Talk 03:58, 25 Aug 2004 (UTC)
=No=
No, there should be consensus before adding a header.
- —Eloquence 20:15, Feb 15, 2004 (UTC) (strongly)
- Martin 00:04, 17 Feb 2004 (UTC) (given that we all accept that NPOV and accuracy dispute headers are here to stay)
- Davodd 05:55, Feb 29, 2004 (UTC)
- There should be clear disagreement. Neutrality 00:20, 11 Aug 2004 (UTC)
- Andre 07:49, 16 Aug 2004 (UTC)
- User:Poccil (Talk)]] 06:11, Aug 17, 2004 (UTC) There is already a
{{notable}} tag.
=Other (please explain)=
=On short polls=
You can already vote on this poll, but the official voting period will be from February 25 to February 27, 20:00 UTC respectively.
:I've crossed out the notice about the dates of the poll. I think it is highly unfair to suggest that voting must take place over a period as short as two days, particularly when this poll has not been advertised anywhere. It's not on the village pump and it's not Wikipedia:Current polls. I haven't voted as I was waiting for someone who felt these things ought to be removed responded to the questions put forward by Sam and Gentgeen at the end of this page. I think the discussion needs to continue until those questions are resolved, and then voting happen after it has been advertised properly. Angela. 09:36, Feb 28, 2004 (UTC)
=Discussion=
Arguments against the header:
- There was no consensus for deleting the page, so it is unlikely that such a consensus can be reached in the future. A compromise on these matters will be reachable in only very few cases -- after all, the dispute is about whether the very page should exist at all. If the people disputing its existence were ready to accept a compromise solution, they could have done so the moment that the debate about the existence of the page happened. They are not likely to do so any more just because an annoying header was added to the page.
- Headers like this look unprofessional and distract from the purpose of Wikipedia as being an encyclopedia. They make us look like a community who cannot agree on the most basic matters, and while this may be true to some extent, it is certainly not the image which we want to present of ourselves to first-time visitors, and certainly not sanctify it as policy.
- There is already an unacceptable numbers of these headers (accuracy disputes, NPOV disputes), which are used as a cop-out to avoid having to improve the article or sort out differences. We should talk about procedures to eliminate these headers within a given timeframe before adding more of them.
-- Eloquence
On your first point, just because we've not made a decision yet, doesn't mean that we will never reach a decision. For example, we might resort to a semi-formal vote, as for the AKFD redirects. Equally, the subject of the article may become dramatically more important and thus more encyclopedic. Sometimes a compromise can be a redirect. Sometimes it can be the addition of more material, or references, which enhances verifiability. Many options here. Martin 20:26, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)
: The Votes for deletion process is a decision making process. It currently requires consensus. If a consensus is not reached, a page is considered fit for inclusion in Wikipedia. It's as simple as that. If you want to change the policy, take it to Wikipedia talk:Deletion policy instead of adding silly headers.—Eloquence 20:58, Feb 15, 2004 (UTC)
:: Then let me change my first sentence: just because we've not made a [consensus] decision, doesn't mean that we will never reach a [consensus] decision.
:: No, I don't want to change that aspect of deletion policy. Incidentally, deletion policy currently only requires rough consensus, IIRC. Martin 21:54, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)
On your second point, I simply disagree. We have had specific kudos in a number of reviews for openly saying that the neutrality of a certain page is disputed. While few people care as much about our neutrality as we would like to think, it's still a benefit. Martin
: I have not seen a single case where the NPOV dispute headers led to increased work on improving the neutrality of the page. On the contrary, the parties involved in the dispute simply settled on this header as a pseudo-compromise: "This version can stand, but I dispute it. Now I will go do something else." These headers are a way to avoid dealing with problems. And the inclusion dispute header is much different from the neutrality dispute header in terms of its impact on readers -- "They can't even agree on whether they want this article? What kind of encyclopedia is that?"—Eloquence 21:01, Feb 15, 2004 (UTC)
:: I also have not seen a case where the NPOV dispute headers led to increased work on improving that particular page. I have seen cases where an NPOV dispute header led to increased work on Wikipedia as a whole. Further, by allowing a pseudo-compromise, these headers reduce edit wars, which is a major cause of people leaving Wikipedia. I am trying to consider this holistically.
:: In regards to your second point, these articles (by definition) are going to make some people think "they have an article about that? What kind of enecyclopedia is this?". An inclusion dispute header thus often increases our credibility, compared to the same article without such a header. Martin 21:54, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)
On your third point, I certainly am fine with you talking about procedures to eliminate disputes, and wish you luck in your attempts to do so. In the meantime, though, there are articles whose neutrality, accuracy, and encyclopedic nature are disputed, and thus a temporary "cop-out" is necessary. Martin 20:30, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)
: These dispute headers do nothing to address or solve the dispute, as such they are useless. Because the inclusion dispute headers are practically permanent fixtures on some articles, they are most unprofessional and annoying.—Eloquence
:: I believe I've answered this point above. Martin 21:54, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)
Regarding usefulness, I think I've already said why they're useful - they are a compromise between two otherwise incompatible viewpoints. A temporary compromise can be useful in getting a bit of breathing space for folks to reflect, consider the options, and maybe change their mind - safe in the knowledge that there is no five-day time pressure to do so. It's good to take our time over things - there is no vast rush, and there are always 200,000 other articles that could use work.
: They're not a compromise. The article is still there, the header does not change that. They're just plain crap.—Eloquence
:: "crap"?
:: The article is still there, but the header indicates that we care about the views of those who feel it should not be. My experience is that this recognition of dissenting viewpoints is, in itself, valuable. Some people seek reassurance that they are not being ignored. Martin
Still, if you don't find this page useful, you don't have to use it. That's the beauty of Wikipedia - we can each do our thing and rarely need to clash. I don't see the benefit in saying that this header can NEVER be used where there is an inclusion dispute, and I don't see the benefit in saying that it must ALWAYS be used. Some flexibility, please. Martin 20:38, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)
: That is a completely nonsensical paragraph. How am I supposed "not to use them" when you slap them all over the place? It's not like I have a user preference to disable them (and don't dare to suggest that).—Eloquence
:: I was saying that you do not have to add them to your articles, and if someone else does, you can be more pro-active in removing them, and when you clean up VfD, you can choose not to use them in handling cases where there is no consensus. Is that clearer? Martin
As a practical example, if you succeed in your attempt to implement deletion polls, then this page will allow you to find at least some of the pages that should probably have a poll done on them - easily and simply. Is that not a benefit? Martin 20:39, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)
: No, it's not. When the new deletion scheme is implemented, plenty of pages will be re-listed to go through the two stage process, regardless of whether they had the silly header on top of them or not.—Eloquence
----
Elsewhere, Eloquence said to me: "how about helping me to implement the two stage deletion process instead? This addresses the problem of inclusion disputes at its very roots: a currently unsophisticated decision making process".
Erik, I think this is more or less right. Once we no longer have any inclusion disputes, beyond articles simply being listed on "deletion requests" or "deletion votes", then this page will be unneeded, and we can delete it. And I have some sympathy with what you're proposing at deletion policy, though I'm still unsure about some of the details, so I'm abstaining for now.
Still, I think it would make sense to fix the deletion process first, and delete this page afterwards, once it is no longer needed, rather than the other way round. Certainly I can promise you that, if your new deletion process is as successful as you hope it will be, then I will be delighted to kiss this page goodbye.
My fear is that if you delete this page while we still have the old deletion process, it will make deletion debates longer and bloodier, at no real gain. And I'm still concerned that your new deletion process may be overruled, or may prove to not be the panacea that you feel it is. Martin 21:54, 15 Feb 2004 (UTC)
: As I stated above, I find these headers pointless even in the current state -- they don't do what they're supposed to do, they're just ugly. So I invite everyone to vote to get rid of these headers by Feb. 27.—Eloquence
I think you're misunderstanding my purpose. Perhaps I could simply ask you, what do you believe these headers are supposed to do? Martin 19:23, 16 Feb 2004 (UTC)
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So what this basically means, we agree to get rid of the inclusion dispute headers, if the NPOV dispute and accuracy dispute headers are retained.—Eloquence 00:23, Feb 17, 2004 (UTC)
Yep. Martin 00:34, 17 Feb 2004 (UTC)
But what about my inclusion dispute? Should I list Libertarian Socialism on VfD, or what? I feel it is "irredeemably biased". Sam Spade 00:48, 17 Feb 2004 (UTC)
:List it on Cleanup and see if somebody else can do something with it. RickK 00:54, 17 Feb 2004 (UTC)
----
I removed the suggestion that Template:Controversial be used instead. An inclusion dispute is not the same as a controversial issue. What is a riduclous-looking green box going to solve? If anything is going to be used, it should be something that mentions the specific problem - ie inclusion - not something as general as "controversial", and not in a big green box! Angela. 12:13, Feb 18, 2004 (UTC)
----
I'm glad I saved this log. It makes me feel happy to review my awesome predictive powers... :) Martin 01:05, 17 Feb 2005 (UTC)
Why can't I have my Inclusion dispute?
Whats the deal? Why can't this page be active? It fulfils a legitimate need, IMO. How was this decided? A couple people on IRC, or what? For what reasons? I don't get it. Sam Spade 14:51, 18 Feb 2004 (UTC)
:I'd like to know why this can't be used either. I was just about to go and add it to every recipe, just to warn people they're going to be up for removal sooner or later. Gentgeen 16:51, 25 Feb 2004 (UTC)
I strongly object to these dispute headers. I have already explained the reason for this in the "arguments" section above, but my main problem with them is that they are effectively in violation of our process, and that there are no clear circumstances under which they can be removed. If a page is nominated for deletion, but no consensus can be reached for deletion, then the page cannot be deleted, period. These are our present guidelines for deletion. If you do not like the guidelines, you should work to change them instead of going around and adding dispute notices everywhere.
For example, I strongly object to articles about numbers which contain purely trivial information (Talk:List of numbers/Deletion). But there is no wide support to delete these pages, even though many people strongly object to them. It would be silly of me to go around adding dispute headers to these articles. I could object to the other party removing these headers on the grounds that the dispute is not yet "resolved", yet the only way to resolve the dispute is to delete the page. So I could effectively "brand" articles with no way for the other party to remove that brand. That is grossly unfair and there's no reason why we should allow this.
At least for NPOV and accuracy disputes there are ways to resolve these disputes and remove the header. For inclusion disputes these headers can linger for months on end without doing any good whatsoever. Again, if you don't like our deletion policy, work to change it, instead of trying to circumvent it by flagging articles which have passed VfD but which you think should be removed.—Eloquence 09:44, Feb 28, 2004 (UTC)
: Gentgeen's circumstances are slightly different because there is widespread support for moving all the recipes to the relevant wikibook, and (last I checked) this wasn't controversial - see talk:list of recipes: it's just a matter of time.
: To Gentgeen - perhaps create a more specific header, possibley as an HTML comment: < -- Some of this article will shortly be moved to wiibooks -- > ? Martin 16:42, 28 Feb 2004 (UTC)
:: How about This article is a candidate for Transwiki (copying to another Wikimedia wiki). See the discussion page for details. ?—Eloquence 22:48, Feb 28, 2004 (UTC)
::There's also the boilerplate discussed at Wikipedia talk:Transwiki log which could be used. Angela. 23:21, Apr 1, 2004 (UTC)
<nowiki>{{inclusion}}</nowiki> dead
Just to confirm the above: Is the
:If the consensus is that
::The notable template is deleted and the category is empty. I think you got your wish. --ssd 15:47, 2 Oct 2004 (UTC)
The Inclusion dispute page indicates this policy was rejected by concensus. Can we therefore remove the tag from all the pages that still have it? --ssd 15:46, 2 Oct 2004 (UTC)