Talk:Will Ferguson

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[edit] Limited viewpoint tag

I assume the so-called limited viewpoint being referred to here is the monarchy quotation. In fact, the author is a well-known anti-monarchist who has commented more than once in his books about his views. I could have also placed another quotation from his Canadian History for Dummies but I figured just one was enough. He's also been quoted in the media specifically about this subject many times, notably: New Canadians Magazine, Fall 2004 and the St. John Telegraph-Journal Oct 5, 2002. He's been interviewed about the monarchy on radio talk shows as well, including 980 CJME Regina's Murray Wood Show. If anything, his views on the monarchy are the one thing aside from his writing that he's notable for. So it's entirely appropriate to have at least one quotation to show this part of him. Incidentally, the instigator here (G2Bambino) is a well-known editor of the Wikipedia monarchy pages. I suspect, as a monarchist, that it isn't the style or format he's concerned about here, it's the presence of negative views about the queen. - MC Rufus (talk) 09:10, 14 February 2008 (UTC)

Please stick to the actual dispute; Ferguson's anti-monarchical leanings are not in question. Despite the fact that quotations are not generally part of biography articles, the point is that countless quotations of Ferguson could have been inserted, but one was chosen specifically to highlight one particular political viewpoint; one is limited, and there's an obvious agenda behind it's insertion here. There are enough sources to support the assertion that he's a republican, and the book from which the quote is taken is one of them, but there's no valid rationale behind the inclusion of a direct quote that only points to one minor aspect of Ferguson's life. --G2bambino (talk) 14:47, 14 February 2008 (UTC)
It's not a "minor" aspect of his life. In addition to his writing, he's a republian activist who is regularly quoted and interviewed about his views on the monarchy. The quotation is therefore quite relevant. - MC Rufus (talk) 03:40, 18 February 2008 (UTC)
I'm sorry, you'll have to find more evidence of that. --G2bambino (talk) 03:42, 18 February 2008 (UTC)
I gave more than enough evidence above. - MC Rufus (talk) 03:49, 18 February 2008 (UTC)
No, you did not. You said there was supposedly other evidence, but did not present it. --G2bambino (talk) 03:54, 18 February 2008 (UTC)
??What are you talking about?? Get your facts straight. I said I could have added another quotation but one was enough. You bitched on the other pages where you stalk me that my quotations should be in the body and not separate so I made this one part of the body. I've compromised enough. Again, my evidence that he's a republican spokesperson is sound. - MC Rufus (talk) 04:16, 19 February 2008 (UTC)
He's an outspoken critic of the monarchy; why do you need quotes to support this, when a cite is all that's necessary? There aren't quotations to support any of the other claims about him here. Plus, you haven't provided one single shred of evidence that he's a republican "spokesperson." --G2bambino (talk) 04:44, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

What are you afraid of, someone is going to read something bad about the Queen? Get over it. The guy is known as a republican, and he's a writer. I don't see the problem with supporting that with something he wrote about republicanism. Jaye Peghtyff (talk) 20:34, 19 February 2008 (UTC)

Of course you don't see a problem; you see an opportunity to promote your political cause. This is made clear when one looks at the very obvious fact that a quote isn't necessary to prove Ferguson's republican leanings. Wikipedia uses only reliable sources as support for its content, not quotations. Quotations aren't even encouraged:
From WP:QUOTE:
  • "Editors should try and work quotations into the body of the article, rather than in a stand alone quote section."
  • "When editing an article, a contributor should try to avoid quotations when: a summary of a quote would be better. This may be due to lack of importance, lengthy articles, etc. On lengthy articles, editors should strive to keep long quotations to a minimum, opting to paraphrase and work smaller portions of quotes into articles."
The quote you two insist belongs here is simply an embelishment whose sole purpose is to draw extra attention to some negative commentary about the monarchy. If you have issue with this, start the dispute resolution process. --G2bambino (talk) 16:06, 20 February 2008 (UTC)
If there's a concern about Jaye Peghtyff's identity, one can get somebody to run a Checkuser on him. Personally, I think JP an MC should both become registered users, so as to end such suspicions. GoodDay (talk) 21:28, 19 February 2008 (UTC)
I am a registered user. And how does that put a stop to the suspicion? - MC Rufus (talk) 05:48, 20 February 2008 (UTC)
Oh, your red name, threw me off. GoodDay (talk) 15:44, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] End of debate on Will Ferguson: republican

I've added four media references that refute G2's claim that Ferguson's republicanism is a "minor aspect of subject." I know of several more but these are the only ones I could provide reference links for. Therefore, the quotations are quite appropriate here. In the face of this glaring evidence, I expect G2 will refrain from another provocation of edit warring by reverting this entry again. - MC Rufus (talk) 17:53, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

They don't in any way refute my claims; they just back up that his one book is quoted sometimes in the media. So what? --G2bambino (talk) 18:32, 20 February 2008 (UTC)