Wikipedia:Requests for comment/Wikipedia policies and guidelines/Userbox content: Difference between revisions
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*General comment: In my experience (unless the discussion is about images), those who cite "Wikipedia is not censored" in a discussion typically are trying to put forth the idea that whatever they wish to "save" which others feel is inappropriate for "some reason", should be included despite the concerns of others, because, well, "Wikipedia is not censored". The problem with that is that that guideline deals with whether an encyclopedia may cover controversial or potentially socially "taboo" topics (or in some cases, whether it's considered encyclopedic to show certain images which may cause concern). The guideline has ''nothing'' to do with allowing [[WP:OR]] (a common usage), and neither does it have anything to do with what a Wikipedian may post on their userpage. Absolutely zero. As a matter of fact, AFAICT, everything on a userpage should either support direct encyclopedic collaboration/contribution , or indirectly support it, through community-building. And I'm having a hard time seeing how statements of advocacy do either one, except to illustrate a bias of the editor in question. - [[User:Jc37|jc37]] 11:16, 20 January 2008 (UTC)
*I've participated in a few userbox wars at MFD. In my opinion, there is no difference between making a statement in a userbox versus making the same statement in plain text, except that userboxes are easier to read. Thus, if a user makes a statement in plain text saying "I believe that suicide bombers are heroes," that would be offensive and should be removed, even though it is not a userbox. If he makes the same statement in a userbox, that userbox should be deleted. I think the fears that userboxes would spark viral transmission of radical beliefs to large sectors of the wiki population, which is what templates are designed for, has not been borne out by reality. So the only question is how offensive is the message itself. [[User:Shalom|Shalom]] ([[User talk:Shalom|Hello]] • [[Special:Contributions/Shalom|Peace]]) 03:55, 21 January 2008 (UTC)
**I dunno, I think the reason people use userboxes over plain text is the same reason they should be more regulated than plain text; and it's not just that userboxes are easier to see. People see them as badges of honor, as colorful uniform insignias that announce their rightful membership in something, and to declare their camaraderie with those who share their interests/POVs. Whether you're saying something offensive or not, plain text just can't be compared. <small style="font:bold 10px Arial;display:inline;border:#009 1px dashed;padding:1px 6px 2px 7px;white-space:nowrap">[[User:Equazcion|<font color="#000">Equazcion</font>]] [[User talk:equazcion|•''✗'']]/[[Special:Contributions/Equazcion|''C'' •]] ''04:17, 21 Jan 2008 (UTC)''</small>
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