User:CybJubal/WikiOpinions

These are my tenants/opinions regarding Wikipedia, these are the rules I will follow (unless Wikipedia's guidelines state otherwise) when editing. If you want to know more about me and my edits, see my user page here, for other pages about me that might interest you, see my directory.

Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar

Spelling: Despite being born in Australia, I have spent most of my life in the United Kingdom, meaning I have grown up speaking British English. I reflect this in my editing on Wikipedia by using British spelling (e.g. "humour" instead of "humor"), unless it is indicated to use another dialect of English in the notes of an article when viewed in the source editor. If I have made a mistake, which is very likely, just fix it and maybe leave a reminder on my talk page (be gentle though, I have quite a bit of anxiety).

Punctuation: I have a hard time understanding the rules of correct comma usage and similar punctuation rules (possibly related to me being autistic but I'm not sure), so I often make mistakes in this area when writing or modifying sentences for articles. If you see me make this mistake please just correct it. You can leave a message on my talk page if you wish but it's very unlikely I would learn anything from it due to my learning difficulties.

Grammar: Another thing, once again related to me being autistic, is the way I naturally write compared to how I write on Wikipedia. Due to the need to be grammatically correct on this website, I have had to modify my natural writing style. When I write handwritten notes, I capitalise the first letter of every word, regardless of whether it is grammatically correct to do so (e.g. "I Went To The Beach" rather than the grammatically correct "I went to the beach"). Obviously, on Wikipedia, I cannot do that, so I have changed the way I write online to accommodate this. I might still occasionally slip up so please leave a reminder on my talk page if I do!

Older is not wiser!

I'm sure most of us have heard the proverb "the older, the wiser." Well, I heavily disagree with that.

Something I am seeing more often is elitist attitudes from editors who have been on the site for a long time. What I mean by that is that they assume they can do no wrong and that if someone tries to correct them, the other person is wrong simply because they have not been on Wikipedia for as long as them. So let me make it clear: Editors who made their accounts years ago can still make unconstructive edits and new editors can correct people when there has been a breach of Wikipedia policy. Even administrators can make unconstructive edits, the case of Neelix makes that clear.

I have been on the receiving end of an older editor's elitism, when I corrected them on changing someone's pronouns to she despite them identifying with they/them pronouns, which is a breach of WP:GENDERID and MOS:GENDERID. This scared me away from Wikipedia for a while and since I suffer from anxiety and low self-esteem, I really struggled to regain my passion for editing. At one point I couldn't even look at Wikipedia without feeling awful. I luckily managed to heal but think what this could do to other new editors. WP:5P4 states that all editors should treat each other with respect, being elitist and acting out when you are corrected does not follow this policy.

So one last time: Older does not equal wiser.

Your opinion is not fact!

Another thing that is unfortunately finding its way onto Wikipedia is those who believe that every article must fit their opinion. For example, those who refuse to use the singular they for other users or for biographical articles. These people like to hide beneath the veil of "correcting grammar" however breach Wikipedia's Manual of style for biographies of living persons articles in the process. It annoys me as a friend of a transgender non-binary person and as a member of the Wikiproject LGBT Studies Person Task Force.

So I will state it here: Your opinion is not fact, you have to follow Wikipedia's guidelines.

Respectfulness

As stated in WP:5P4, all editors are to treat each other with respect. I follow this rule as much as I can, though sometimes I can come off as rude even when that isn't my intention (thanks autism). However, I may become more aggressive if I am not treated with respect in return, although I try to stop this from happening.

Assuming good faith

As Wikipedia policy states, always assume good faith unless there is clear factual evidence that the edit was malicious. If I see an unconstructive edit, I will give the user a light warning and only increase the severity of the warnings if the behaviour continues.