Procedural notes: The rules governing arbitration enforcement appeals are found here. According to the procedures, a "clear, substantial, and active consensus of uninvolved editors" is required to overturn an arbitration enforcement action.

To help determine any such consensus, involved editors may make brief statements in separate sections but should not edit the section for discussion among uninvolved editors. Editors are normally considered involved if they are in a current dispute with the sanctioning or sanctioned editor, or have taken part in disputes (if any) related to the contested enforcement action. Administrators having taken administrative actions are not normally considered involved for this reason alone (see WP:UNINVOLVED).

Appealing user

Ivan Štambuk (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log) – Ivan Štambuk (talk) 13:37, 20 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Sanction being appealed

[1]

Administrator imposing the sanction

Sandstein (talk · contribs · blocks · protections · deletions · page moves · rights · RfA)

Notification of that administrator

Sandstein was notified here by EdJohnston.

I have 45 modern English dictionaries installed for Abby Lingvo and not a single one has derogatory or offensive label next to the definition of the word nationalist. nationalist is not a national epithet either (that would be Croatian or Serbian). Croatian nationalist means "They have Croatian-centric view and I do not agree with it". I asked User:Shokatz where exactly does he see personal attacks [2] but he ignored it. I'm troubled by the blocking admin not being a native speaker of English but German, and the negative connotations that the word nationalist (that also shares the root with Nazi) existing in German but not in English. --Ivan Štambuk (talk) 13:37, 20 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

1. Sandstein apparently thinks that everything not being a compliment is ipso facto derogatory. There is also another possibility that hasn't crossed his mind: neutral. No English dictionary has (derogatory) or (offensive) label next to the definition of the word nationalist. However, in Sandstein's native language the word nationalist does have a derogatory undertone. Here is the link to the definition of Nationalismus in the most authoritative German dictionary (Duden), where it has a label (meist abwertend) which translates into English as "mostly pejoratively". In German it's used as a pejorative, in English it isn't and it belongs to the neutral register. I suspect that Sandstein mixed two entirely different usage contexts for otherwise related words with the same meaning, in two different languages.
2. It was not my intention to make any kind of personal attack. If you look at my edit history you can see that my behavior has been nothing short of exemplary. I have never heard anyone complaining about being offended by calling them nationalist. More often than not, it is I who is on the receiving end of abuse which sometimes provokes abrasive responses. If someone said that they are offended I would've stopped.
3. Sandstein's condescending comment about me apparently failing to understand something (what?), justifying the "educational" component of the block by such lack of understanding is borderline insulting. Perhaps Sandstain trains his dog by taking punitive measures when puppy does something wrong, but may I remind him that we're dealing with human actors here that are not Fachidioten with blinders that only respond to Pavlovian stimuli dispensed by the master with his block stick. An administrator should not be making such comments when blocking other users. They shouldn't probably be thinking of editors as offenders that ought to be subject to corrective measures (blocks) for their infractions (policy violations), but at least they could keep it to themselves.
4. OK, let's say I crossed the line with nationalist name-calling. I didn't mean to use derogatorily, but I can accept that it is not an appropriate conduct. But what does that have to do with ARBMAC and the excessively long block? As I far I can see the guidelines on the WP:PA require posting a message on user's talkpage and seeking mediation. None of that happened. PA is a community-approved policy which takes precedence over anything ArbCom decides, or any admin "broadly interprets". A week is something that trolls and bad-faith editors get. Surely it's too excessive?
5. This whole circus is a result of content dispute with the user who submitted the enforcement request. It was not made in good faith and his ulterior goal is to remove me from editing a set of low-importance articles that are currently not in a NPOV state. He also submitted a sockpuppet investigation against me with evidence such as last-year's sarcastic comment of mine on a sister project, as well as edits that I made years ago. With all that in mind, I must say that Wikipedia community has become very effective at giving partisan editors tools to target undesirable editors - a Byzantine collection of policies which admins overzealously enforce without a second thought, and without thinking of a big picture. Admins in fact are incentivized not to involve themselves, which basically gives the enforcement gun to POV-pushers which are intimately acquainted with all the glorious details of the relevant wikilese. I urge admins to think outside the policy-enforcing request-observing mode and think whether blocking me in any way helps to resolve the pending content disputes. --Ivan Štambuk (talk) 21:37, 21 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

The block was a response to personal attacks as described in my response to the enforcement request, above. WP:NPA, a core conduct policy, requires editors to not make comments about another editor's person, rather than about the content at issue. This prohibits editors from calling each other nationalists, or any other kind of -ists. This applies especially if editors do so, as Ivan Štambuk did here, in a dismissive and confrontative manner: it is clear from the wording and tone of Ivan Štambuk's comments, as cited in the enforcement request, that they used the appellation "nationalist" in a derogatory sense and certainly not as a compliment; and this was also how the term was understood by the editor at whom it was directed. Because this appeal indicates that Ivan Štambuk does not understand this, the block continues to serve the purpose of preventing similar interactions by Ivan Štambuk. The appeal should therefore be declined.  Sandstein  18:39, 21 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Since I was involved in this and the user specifically refers to me I will reply. You have repeatedly labelled me a "Croatian nationalist", while I have warned you (as have others) several times that such behavior is unproductive and personally insulting and derogatory, yet you have continued to do so even on WP:ANI. I consider it a blatant ad hominem personal attack, especially in the context and the manner in which you used it. Not only have you used "Croatian nationalist" you have also labelled me "POV-pusher" and similar other derogatory terms which clearly implies that you have meant it in a manner implying I am some extreme nationalist, impartial and unable of NPOV. If you really have 45 English dictionaries you should definitely know that the term nationalism is in modern-day context associated and synonymous with Chauvinism -> [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]. If you really think that you haven't done anything wrong then you really need to re-read some of the Wiki policies such as WP:NPA and WP:CIVIL. Shokatz (talk) 17:05, 20 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I'm familiar with Wiki policies on incivility and I always try to be civil in discussions. Your whole case on my alleged incivility builds upon the misguided interpretation of the term nationalism which is not derogatory in English language. None of the links provided define it as such. Yes it can be argued to be semantically close to chauvinism, but chauvinism is a pejorative term, nationalism isn't. There are many related terms which overlap semantically, one having pejorative connotations, other one being neutral. I've asked you where exactly do you see personal attack and you failed to respond. Ignoring Serbian POV on the article on Gundulić is POV-pushing regardless whether you perceive it as such or not. One week block is way to excessive for calling somebody a nationalist. Balkans-related talk page discussions abound in liberal usage of that word by multitude of involved editors, and no one ever felt hurt about it. What is even more appalling is the enforcing admin's inability to see the larger picture - i.e. you ignoring your fellow Croatians' provoking insults at me, while at the same time pushing for a POV in articles, and using completely unrelated policy to get me blocked. --Ivan Štambuk (talk) 17:22, 20 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Let me just state this and then I am done with this -> I am not going to discuss semantics with you, in fact I am not going to discuss anything with you since this is your appeal on the block and you should deal with that. Your issue now is with the admin who dealt with this case. I don't think it will help you in any way if you constantly try picking fights with me (even on your appeal...really?!?) and especially you implying that the admin in question is somehow involved in some grand conspiracy against you or even worse "pointing out" his or hers alleged "inability", quite the opposite. Shokatz (talk) 18:54, 20 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I haven't implying anything, let alone any kind of "conspiracy" - you're imagining things. Just like you imagined that I am a sockpuppet of PaxEquilibrium/PrvadRuss which will prove false. Paranoia is BTW a common characteristic of nationalists who see fifth columns and domestic traitors in every corner.

The only "fights" I have with you are on talkpage discussions on which you persistently push pro-Croatian POV, disregarding and belittling important Serbian sources. Of course I'm going to pick those fights with you - if I don't do it nobody will. It's a topic of minor importance - not like Ustashi or Croatian language which have high exposure - so normal editors don't care and nationalists can numerically overwhelm and push their POV into those little articles.

Yes it's either inability or disregard. In any case blocking someone for a week for calling someone a nationalist, and doing it by invoking a policy (ARBMAC) that doesn't even deal with personal conduct is a joke. If blocking admin doesn't understand that then he shouldn't be an admin. ARBMAC also seems fundamentally broken - created by a decree to give godlike powers to admins in arbitrary topics, and arbitrarily expanded in "maintenance motions" (as one ArbCom member described it). It should be repelled because it's being abused by nationalist gangs who eagerly collect "evidence" to block rare NPOV editors such as me or User:Slovenski Volk who rather take time editing articles than waste it making enforcements, sockpuppet investigations and debates where interlocutors such as yourself simply dismiss sources because they are not Croatian (or whatever). I can't even blame Sandstein, he's probably acting in best faith and "keeping order", but this block is such a travesty. --Ivan Štambuk (talk) 19:12, 20 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

The use of the term nationalist as in the supplied diffs is indeed problematic, and continues even here in this appeal: "Paranoia is BTW a common characteristic of nationalists who see fifth columns and domestic traitors in every corner". This, clearly, is personalizing the dispute. Ivan was warned here that "Any comment that attributes bad motives to an editor or otherwise insults an editor is going to draw a block". I don't know how you could receive that warning and then expect to be able to say "The problem with nationalists such as yourself is that they believe that their own particular interpretation of history is the 'truth', and the rest is pseudoscience, nationalist quackery etc." However, I disagree with Sandstein's claim that any labeling of a group with an -ist term would be problematic. It was here, but it wouldn't necessarily be. Also, I agree that Sandstein's quote from WIAPA, "national ... epithets ... directed against another contributor", is not quite relevant: a later line from WIAPA is more to the point here: "Criticisms of, or references to, personal behavior in an inappropriate context, like on a policy or article talk page, or in an edit summary, rather than on a user page or conflict resolution page. Remember: Comment on content, not on the contributor." I don't have any problem with the term in general, but Ivan was grouping people together ("They have Croatian-centric view and I do not agree with it"), ascribing negative qualities/etc to them, and using that broad generalization in a discussion about content. Don't do that. ErikHaugen (talk | contribs) 22:25, 21 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Have to agree with the above here. Ivan received a fairly clear and obvious warning, linked to above, about personalizing the dispute, and apparently did so anyway. Calling another editor a "nationalist" regarding a content dispute clearly qualifies as such. It may or may not be the case that Sandstein behaved less than optimally as well, but that is irrelevant to the matter of the block of Ivan. Based on the evidence presented, I have to say that I personally don't see what would seem to me to be the required evidence to overturn the sanction applied. John Carter (talk) 01:02, 22 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

After reading Ivan's appeal text, and having been caught in irritating arbitration processes before myself, I read all of the diffs referenced critically. My clear and honest impression is that Ivan does seem to be working towards NPOV, making constructive arguments, as evidenced in his primary statement (regarding the lack of primary evidence for a writer's self-identification as Serbian or Croatian, and the fact that the modern political geography did not yet exist and therefore categorization either way is rather ridiculous, and that dual categorization is a viable alternative to bickering). If the cherry-picked complaint diffs cannot succeed in giving a more negative opinion, then I think this is an essentially frivolous accusation and his appeal is valid. The root of this whole issue appears to be the use and interpretation of the term nationalist, where in fact replacing this term with the Wiki-ese word 'partisan' would remove the offense and generally clarify the comments that appear to lie at the root of the offense here. As someone writing a history book, I think the entire argument about national identification of a dead person before one or more of the modern states even existed is ridiculous - the person should be identified with the policial state in which they lived at the time, and bracketed statements like (located in modern Country) are the full extent of post-facto national referencing that would appear to be useful or defensible. Capiche? prat (talk) 11:31, 25 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Nope, using partisan instead of nationalist does nothing to remove the offense: "Paranoia is BTW a common characteristic of [partisans] who see fifth columns and domestic traitors in every corner"—that's not any better. It's not constructive to talk about others you disagree with like this during a content dispute, even if you're right. Simple use of the word nationalist isn't really a problem, you are missing the point. I'm glad you've found that Ivan is generally working constructively toward NPOV/etc, but this kind of thing is not OK. 1 week might be excessive, but you're missing the point if you think the simple use of the word nationalist is the only problem here. ErikHaugen (talk | contribs) 20:59, 26 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This section is to be edited only by uninvolved administrators. Comments by others will be moved to the sections above.

• I'm not seeing any case for unblock here. Ivan's effort to justify his rhetoric is unconvincing: "I am getting overrun on this article by several Croatian nationalists." The underlying issue is whether Ivan Gundulić, a famous 17th century poet who lived in the Republic of Ragusa, should be called Croatian, Serbian or anything else. The article has been fully protected by User:Callanecc per a complaint at ANI which is evidence that the dispute is serious. Ivan Štambuk's personalization of the dispute appears to be battleground editing. EdJohnston (talk) 03:39, 22 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]
  • I think Ivan wasn't personalizing the dispute, just talking about it in ways that other people interpreted perhaps differently to his intent. I can't see any deliberately non-constructive comments or edits here, only discussion using the term nationalist where perhaps partisan would have been more wikippropriate. I really can't believe there's even a discussion on this issue, as it's blatantly obvious to me as a historian that the entire underlying issue is absurd and the list of supposedly inappropriate edit diffs clearly shows Ivan sharing this perception and pushing for real evidence. I see no cause for enforcement and in fact I would rather suggest the accuser should be put in place for raising obviously frivolous arguments about name-calling on a ridiculous issue in a language with which they are not natively familiar. prat (talk) 11:34, 25 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]
    • By way of example, we could draw a parallel to the similarly geographically located issue of whether Marco Polo should be viewed and categorizaed as Italian or Croatian. Factually, he was neither (neither yet existed), but could be viewed from certain circles as both. The current Marco Polo page re-asserts the popular and factually incorrect simplification that he was 'Italian'. Well, I guess from that logic I am from Gondwanaland. prat (talk) 11:42, 25 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

      The content issue is 100% irrelevant. ErikHaugen (talk | contribs) 21:09, 26 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

    Prat, how is this not personalizing the dispute: The problem with nationalists such as yourself is that they believe that their own particular interpretation of history is the "truth", and the rest is pseudoscience, nationalist quackery etc. (here) Does changing nationalist to partisan even help, at all? I'm not seeing it. ErikHaugen (talk | contribs) 21:09, 26 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

• Can this appeal be closed now as moot? Ivan's one-week block has expired. EdJohnston (talk) 13:45, 27 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This request may be declined without further action if insufficient or unclear information is provided in the "Request" section below.
Requests may not exceed 500 words and 20 diffs (not counting required information), except by permission of a reviewing administrator.

User who is submitting this request for enforcement

EtienneDolet (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log) 22:07, 21 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

User against whom enforcement is requested

Kafkasmurat (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log)

Sanction or remedy to be enforced

Wikipedia:AA2#Standard_discretionary_sanctions

Diffs of edits that violate this sanction or remedy, and an explanation how these edits violate it

Kafkasmurat is a denier of the Armenian Genocide and displays a disruptive editing pattern that is overtly nationalist. Although the user is entitled to his opinions about 1915, he has nevertheless spilled his WP:POV all over Wikipedia articles.

The user has a long history of disruption dating back to 2007. In his first three edits as a Wikipedian, the user blanked the entire Armenian Genocide article with an edit-summary that calls it an "unnecessary article" and has edit-warred over it bypassing the WP:3RR limit (DIFFS: [8][9][10]). Surprisingly, the user was only given a 3RR warning.

After taking a break, the user has returned in December of 2013. He continued his disruption even after he receives a formal warning:

Removes sourced information on the Armenian Genocide

• 17 February 2014 Edit summary: "Controversial subjects with bad intentions"
• 17 February 2014 Removes external link of Armenian Genocide on the Genocide article page with an edit-summary "Irrelevant Link..."

Incivil and racist remarks:

• 21 February 2014 "All of this users' edits are anti- Turkish editions."
• 17 February 2014 "Deletion is an ill will. You should stop harming Turkish related articles."
• 18 February 2014 "You always contribute anti-Turkish additions."
• 26 December 2013 "Article consists of hate speech by Armenians."
• 23 December 2013 "Armenians stop manipulating Wikipedia"
• 23 December 2013 "Any matter offenses to Turks ( even terrorism) gets support by the user"

Copying and pasting information about genocide denial in numerous articles to make a WP:POINT:

• 26 December 2013
• 26 December 2013
• 29 December 2013
• 29 December 2013
• 31 December 2013

Misuse of sources to make a WP:POINT

• 21 February 2013 Complete misuse of source. Adds that Soghomon Tehlirian was 'a terrorist in public opinion' even though the source makes no such conclusion. In the talk page of the corresponding article, Kafkasmurat repeatedly says, "When did terrorists become assasins?" and "How can you make a hero from a psychopath?" (DIFF: [11]). Clearly, this recent edit was guided by his personal convictions. The source itself is highly questionable since it appears to be an essay of an undergraduate student given to his professor as a class assignment. To top it all off, there is no edit-summary.

P.S. The FORUM-like edits on the talkpage were reverted by Drmies with an edit-summary by him stating "language not really appropriate for talk pages of articles". If this language is inappropriate for talk pages, I could safely assume it is inappropriate for articles as well.

Diffs of notifications or of prior warnings against the conduct objected to (if required)

1. Warned on 23 December 2013 by Drmies (talk · contribs)

Additional comments by editor filing complaint

The disruption the user has caused the past month is considerable. Although he has already been blocked for his conduct, he continues to disrupt Wikipedia extensively. Most of his edits are driven by his own personal opinions and often times fall contrary to the general consensus Wikipedia has instilled. I propose that Kafkasmurat be banned from all topics related to Armenia and Turkey.

@Kafkasmurat: I advise you to remain WP:CIVIL in your conduct towards me and to remember WP:NOTTHEM. My edits are not "black propaganda edits" and neither are they "anti-Turkish". I have already advised you awhile ago to stop saying that I'm anti-Turkish. You continued immediately after and now you're continuing to do it again.

@EtienneDolet: I remain nice to every thing. It's up to your perception. I've been contributing for 9 nears(especially tr.wiki). Political attitudes like yours, kept me away from En.wiki. I don't harm any information. I don't want to ban or forbid anything. We need to tell possibilities for reliability.--Kafkasmurat (talk) 13:37, 22 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

@ErikHaugen: All the diffs I provided are actionable since they were made after the warning on December 23. There are, however, an exception of two diffs (the ones of 23 December) which were made minutes before the warning. I provided them nevertheless to show that the user disregarded the warning and continued his uncivil remarks towards his fellow editors. I am also very well aware that the 2007 diffs in the introduction of the report are non-actionable. I provided those diffs to show the consistency in his disruptive editing pattern from past to present. Étienne Dolet (talk) 03:43, 22 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

@Kafkasmurat: I have already advised you not to use phrases like "Political attitudes like yours" towards your fellow Wikipedia editors. So please stop lashing out on me. Remember WP:NOTTHEM and WP:CIVIL. As for harming of information, we will have to let the admins decide that. Étienne Dolet (talk) 18:05, 22 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

@EtienneDolet: Lashing out? :D You've rummaged everything about me, complained, reverted and i am the lashing one. Congratulations on your discoveries. --Kafkasmurat (talk) 18:23, 22 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Notification of the user against whom enforcement is requested

[12]

Statements must be made in separate sections. They may not exceed 500 words and 20 diffs, except by permission of a reviewing administrator.
Administrators may remove or shorten noncompliant statements. Disruptive contributions may result in blocks.

Hey, i lost hope on Wikipedia with a 24 hour block: because of saying something at talk page. After that i tried to make minor adjustments while reading. Everything i did have trusted references. The user who complained about me, Étienne Dolet, has hundreds of black propaganda edits. All of this users' edits are anti- Turkish editions. That's meaningful. I should remind that blocking or humiliating users don't prevent anything. Only break down the hope. Thanks for objective reviews.--Kafkasmurat (talk) 22:35, 21 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This section is to be edited only by uninvolved administrators. Comments by others will be moved to the section above.

"Sanction or remedy to be enforced" just links to the arbcom case, I'm assuming Wikipedia:AA2#Standard_discretionary_sanctions is meant. I'm not seeing much of anything recent in these diffs; i.e., since the warning in December. Maybe the "You always contribute anti-Turkish additions" line, but I'm not sure there's anything we can act on here in this forum. ErikHaugen (talk | contribs) 22:34, 21 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

There's also the "Article consists of hate speech by Armenians" comment on December 26. That's a bit stale, but together with the response to this request, which alleges "black propaganda" on the part of the complainant without evidence, I get the impression of a WP:BATTLEGROUND attitude. Considering also that the response is so poorly written as to be almost incomprehensible, I get the feeling that Wikipedia won't lose many good contributions if we enact a topic ban. (Disclaimer: I have made content edits about the topic of the Swiss court cases concerning Armenian genocide denial in the German language Wikipedia. I don't think that makes me involved here, as I've never interacted with either party, but I'm mentioning it just as a matter of transparency.)  Sandstein  18:45, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Yambaram is blocked for 24 h by Heimstern Läufer.  Sandstein  18:36, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]
The following discussion has been closed. Please do not modify it.
This request may be declined without further action if insufficient or unclear information is provided in the "Request" section below. Requests may not exceed 500 words and 20 diffs (not counting required information), except by permission of a reviewing administrator. Request concerning Yambaram User who is submitting this request for enforcement Sepsis II (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log) 00:57, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] User against whom enforcement is requested Yambaram (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log) Sanction or remedy to be enforced WP:ARBPIA : Diffs of edits that violate this sanction or remedy, and an explanation how these edits violate it [13] First revert on Palestinian political violence [14] Breaks 1RR on Palestinian political violence, uses blog to present fringe view as equal to mainstream view - the blog even states what the mainstream is, though it seems Yambaram skipped that part [15] Third revert on Palestinian political violence [16] First revert on Naftali Bennett [17] Breaks 1RR on Naftali Bennett, as well as taking terrorist out of quotes in violation of NPOV Diffs of notifications or of prior warnings against the conduct objected to (if required) Warned on 25 Oct 2013 by EdJohnston (talk · contribs) Additional comments by editor filing complaint The editor is also engaging in tendentious editing at Talk:Israel and the apartheid analogy, and was the subject of an ANI thread last week - Wikipedia:Administrators' noticeboard/IncidentArchive828#Yambaram must stop with his bad behaviour. Notification of the user against whom enforcement is requested [18] Discussion concerning Yambaram Statements must be made in separate sections. They may not exceed 500 words and 20 diffs, except by permission of a reviewing administrator. Administrators may remove or shorten noncompliant statements. Disruptive contributions may result in blocks. Statement by Yambaram There are so many wrong things here. EdJohnston, I'm afraid you may be confused because this wasn't a warning - you just told me to write my thread in a different place. You said: "Hello Yambaram. Your complaint at WP:ANI seems to fall in the domain of WP:Requests for arbitration/Palestine-Israel articles. To be sure that you have the full story about that arbitration case, I'm leaving you the WP:ARBPIA notice." How can that possibly be considered a warning? Now, Sepsis says that here I broke the 1RR - which is not true - I did not revert him there, I added new information. And the same thing goes for this edit, it was not a revert as I only added part of the information back. Please check the history page to see for for yourselves [19]. On the Naftali Bennett page, again, I did not break the 1RR here like Sepsis claims - I only added new information! I even said it in the edit summary: "adding info. you can't just tell a part of the story. it's called pov-pushing". Please see the page's history for yourselves [20]. Lastly, how is politician Naftali Bennett part of Wikipedia:ARBPIA? And how is Palestinian terrorism part of Wikipedia:ARBPIA when it's not mentioned and doesn't even have a link in the main Template:Israeli–Palestinian conflict and any of its sub-templates? Sepsis must be embarrassed now by this completely false report. I would like to know what are the sanctions an editor gets for wrongly reporting another user. Thanks -Yambaram (talk) 02:12, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] Statement by EdJohnston Yambaram said "EdJohnston, I'm afraid you may confused because this wasn't a warning", but my post to his talk page in October was in fact the required notice of discretionary sanctions under WP:ARBPIA. It was generated by Template:ArbCom-Alert. Anyone can verify that this is a DS notice by careful reading. It contains a large white box with a standardized notice inside it, which is hard to miss. I also logged this notice in the case (you can search the case for Yambaram's name to verify this). EdJohnston (talk) 03:06, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] Statement by Nishidani I'll take just two of these, which highlight what is problematical about Yambaram's editing generally. No 4.here. The edit summary is ostentatiously false, i.e.WP:Undue. A major statement, one that Bennett repeated and defended and which got extensive press coverage, is not undue. Yamabaram simply cancelled uncomfortable information, which was widely and reliably reported, while rigging up an ostensible policy justification. No.5 here. Yambaram makes no defense of the WP:Undue argument he had previously adduced, and thus implicitly accepts that the statement he eliminated is due, but contextualizes it. He adds:- 'However, Bennett was widely condemned for these words, and Chief Rabbi of Israel David Lau said bennett's remark was just a joke.' (Larry Derfner, 'Israel's Everyday Racism — and How American Jews Turn a Blind Eye to It,' at The Jewish Daily Forward, August 12, 2013.) In the source, (a) No mention is made of of Bennett being 'widely condemned for these words', a wording that implies some general cross-community blanket condemnation. 'The media, the left and the Arabs' are a restricted and predictable community, outside of which no one complained. ('The media, the left and the Arabs made a big deal out of it, nobody else. Bennett defended what he said, and so did countless talkbackers and Facebookers'.) and (b) David Lau is reported as saying no such thing in defense of Bennett. The reference to a 'joke' is a defense of his own distinct and racist remark, one of several cited by the Forward article. I.e., 'Two days later the newly-elected Ashkenazi chief rabbi of Israel, David Lau, was seen on a video telling an audience of yeshiva boys that they shouldn’t watch European basketball games in public. “What difference does it make,” Lau said, “if the kushim who get paid in Tel Aviv beat the kushim who get paid in Greece?” Kushim, especially when used in a dismissive context like Lau did, is a well-understood derogatory term for blacks. Again, the media, the left, some Ethiopian Jews and presumably some African refugees were outraged. But Lau defended his words, blaming the media, saying “they made a big deal out of a joke.” Who else defended his remarks about “kushim”? Bennett: “The media are pouncing on him for a joking, insignificant remark”.' It is obvious Yambaram grossly twisted or distorted the source twice, after first trying to delete the quote. Lau defending his own comments re kushim (niggers) is made out to be defending Bennett's words about the need to liquidate Arab "terrorists" when you capture them. The source says Bennett defended Lau, not, as Yambaram has it, Lau defended Bennett. Contexts where Israeli politicians talk of shooting Palestinians ('“I have killed lots of Arabs in my life – and there is no problem with that.”) obviously comes under WP:ARBPIA and Yambaram has been around enough to know that.Nishidani (talk) 11:36, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] As for the assertion I'm part of an anti-Israeli lynch mob, I actually try to stay away from these cases, and only thought I'd make a comment to correct what a rapid glance suggested to me was an incorrect dismissal of the The Jewish Daily Forward as a blog, and not as a first-rate newspaper. When I began then to look closely I realized I was confused, not Sepsis, on this, and since I'd in the meantime taken the trouble to read all the links, realized Yambaram had really done something far more devastating to wikipedia neutrality than a mere 1R infraction (which in my view should be handled by editor page notification rather than administrative appeal - we all slip up). Since no one had remarked on it, I thought it best to use the material I'd gathered, rather than binning it. For the record, Yambaram here definitely altered sources to falsify wikipedia (something he excoriated me and Zero for putatively doing in October 2013 at this or the other board). As long as he apologizes I'm fine with the 24 hr sanction. No, I'm fine with the sanction, apologies or no. But he needs a warning added to the suspension, that takes cognizance of the last part of Sepsis's evidence. Nishidani (talk) 16:47, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] Statement by Ravpapa I saw this request this morning, shortly after it was created. I had been mulling it over, thinking if I want to contribute a comment, when, to my surprise, I found that action had already been taken. Without expressing an opinion about the merits of the decision, I feel that a bit more time for editors to comment would have been appropriate. --Ravpapa (talk) 12:56, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] Okay, explanation accepted, and sorry for writing in the administrators' section. --Ravpapa (talk) 14:14, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] Statement by Sean.hoyland I'm curious what would have happened if this case had been filed based on Nishidani's evidence rather than Sepsis II's and there had been no 1RR violation. Sean.hoyland - talk 13:55, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] Probably in that case the usual anti-Israel lynch mob of editors (some of the usual 'enforcers' here) would have got lucky and managed to topic ban another editor whose views don't fit into the Wikipedia anti-Israel mindset. And you all would celebrate another victory in the ongoing Wiki-war against Israel. Ubie the guru (talk) 15:13, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] Yeah I know. I hate those guys. All their post-lynching celebratory noise, overflowing ashtrays and red wine stains on the furniture. Animals. And the Electronic Intifada Secret Mailing List office cleaner only comes once a week. Cheapskates. So you think that evidence presented alone here would have probably resulted in a topic ban. I don't think that would be the case, or at least only a very short topic ban because the editor hasn't been blocked before. The reason I asked however is because AE tends to focus on technical violations, I guess because they are bright line/easier to deal with, so I was just curious about what would happen here without the 1RR. Sean.hoyland - talk 16:04, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] Result concerning Yambaram This section is to be edited only by uninvolved administrators. Comments by others will be moved to the section above. Contrary to Yambaram's assertions, the 1RR violation at Palestinian political violence is clear, as both the first two diffs linked by Sepsis show him reverting "Palestinian terrorism" back into the article. So I've gone ahead and issued a 24-hour block per the usual practice for a first offence. Heimstern Läufer (talk) 12:12, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] Ravpapa, in general I do allow more, but for a 1RR violation, which generally leads to a 24-hour block, this would defeat the purpose, as it would fail to be preventative by the time the discussion concluded. It's also not really necessary in clear-cut cases, any more than it is to wait for more input at the edit warring noticeboard. Heimstern Läufer (talk) 13:38, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] Statement by Yambaram Hi, I read your comments above and would like to respond now, since I was almost immediately blocked and didn't have a chance to say anything. EdJohnston, even you didn't call that notice you left on my talk page a "warning", you wrote "notified" as can be seen at WP:ARBPIA on October 2013 and that's why I think it's a bit misleading. Since it turned out to be a warning, and in order to prevent other misunderstandings in future times, I just ask that when you leave such notice messages on editors' talk pages, please tell them it's no less than a warning. I also find it relevant to note that apparently Sepsis II had been notified/warned 3 times at WP:ARBPIA before some action was finally taken against him on his 4th violation and he was blocked for 24 hours. Overall, Sepsis is mentioned in WP:ARBPIA 6 times, but has never been blocked for more than two days. In addition to that, what's surprising the most is the fact that somehow the sanctioned he received on his 6th offense changed from this serious restriction to that much softer one. To Nishidani, yes, I thought that statement by Naftali Bennett was under WP:UNDUE, and when I realized it was a major one, I didn't revert again but instead added more information to balance to the report, which is the proper way of doing that. I then glanced at that The Jewish Daily Forward article and accidentally misused that "joke remark" quote wrongly (mistakes happen when one edits hundreds of pages - should I remind you of some of your mistakes?). Believe me, besides the principles I have as a person that would restrict me from telling false information like that, why would I risk doing that? It just wouldn't be worth it in so many aspects, and I'm glad it's fixed now. Regarding your second point, I wrote that "Bennett was widely condemned for these words", well, because he was widely condemned for these words. I personally watched him being condemned and criticized on Israeli TV. It was reported in various news websites, and that condemnation is clearly proved by articles such as this Jpost article titled Bennett under fire for comments about killing Arabs, or this Call to prosecute Bennett for killing Palestinians. I would expect an experienced Wikipedia editor like you to know that a source given at the end of the paragraph doesn't have to explicitly say (in this case) "he was widely condemned for these words" in it, as long as it's implied in the article and other sources show this. Furthermore, as a side note, Bennett claims that he never said those exact words and denies these allegations against him ([21] that's the article, it's in Hebrew but you could use Google Translate. I tend to believe him, since there're always records of what they say in the Knesset so why would he want to lie like that). And to the last part - what should I apologize for? That report about you and Zero0000? Some users, maybe even admins, agreed with what I wrote there, should they apologize too? In fact, I'm sure a few of them think they deserve an apology from you. Ravpapa and Sean.hoyland, thanks for your comments, I guess, and to Ubie the guru, in this forum I prefer to refrain from saying what I think about what you said... - Yambaram (talk) 00:25, 25 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Warned. Heimstern Läufer (talk) 02:24, 25 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]
The following discussion has been closed. Please do not modify it.
This request may be declined without further action if insufficient or unclear information is provided in the "Request" section below. Requests may not exceed 500 words and 20 diffs (not counting required information), except by permission of a reviewing administrator. Request concerning Summichum User who is submitting this request for enforcement IRISZOOM (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log) 14:39, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] User against whom enforcement is requested Summichum (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log) Sanction or remedy to be enforced WP:ARBPIA Diffs of edits that violate this sanction or remedy, and an explanation how these edits violate it 18:34, 21 February 2014 Summichum had 20 minutes earlier changed from "Shi'a Islamic militant" to "Shi'a terrorist". This got reverted by a user, who also told about the policy about this. So Summichum came back and reverted it, now adding sources more sources to that it is a "terrorist" group (while it is still not acceptable, it is not what is the topic here). 16:50, 22 February 2014 I reverted him and then he reverts again, saying that I should take it to his talk page. I said to him why this is not the correct way. I also said to him that he has violated 1RR and that I would report him if he did not self-revert now. He did not self-revert but got reverted by another user. He did not respond to my message there and obviously thinks it is more important to impose the "terrorist" label. Today, he reverted again. See below. 06:06, 23 February 2014 Here is his latest revert. He changed it from "Shi'a Islamic militant" to "alleged Shi'a terrorist". Additional comments by editor filing complaint In addition to what I have explained in the number 2 of the Diffs section, I want to add that the Hezbollah article has this notice: Template:Editnotices/Page/Hezbollah. So it is very clear that the article is under ARBPIA. Okay. Then he should be issued a warning about it. Good that he has learned why the wording is unacceptable. --IRISZOOM (talk) 23:49, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] Notification of the user against whom enforcement is requested Yes. Discussion concerning Summichum Statements must be made in separate sections. They may not exceed 500 words and 20 diffs, except by permission of a reviewing administrator. Administrators may remove or shorten noncompliant statements. Disruptive contributions may result in blocks. Statement by Summichum I had updated to "alleged Terrorist Organisation". Is it not true?. This allegation comes as an official decree from multiple major countries like USA, EU, Canada and Gulf ? O I just checked other articles on AlQaeda etc , even they are not written as Terrorist, hence I accept the claim by IRISZOOM and also I am a new user and was not aware of that Arab-Palestine protection tag. Statement by (username) Result concerning Summichum This section is to be edited only by uninvolved administrators. Comments by others will be moved to the section above. The request lacks the required diff of a warning per WP:AC/DS#Warnings.  Sandstein  18:35, 23 February 2014 (UTC)[reply] This is the closest I could find to a warning; however, it lacks a link to the arbitration decision, and does not explain the term "1RR", so it seems insufficient. So I've left one that clarifies this. I think that's all we can do here for now. Heimstern Läufer (talk) 00:20, 24 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This request may be declined without further action if insufficient or unclear information is provided in the "Request" section below.
Requests may not exceed 500 words and 20 diffs (not counting required information), except by permission of a reviewing administrator.

User who is submitting this request for enforcement

Hablabar (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log) 03:08, 27 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

User against whom enforcement is requested

Interfase (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log)

Sanction or remedy to be enforced

• Wikipedia:Requests for arbitration/Armenia-Azerbaijan 2

Diffs of edits that violate this sanction or remedy, and an explanation how these edits violate it

• 25 February 2014 Unfounded accusations in vandalism while having full knowledge what vandalism is not because Interfase was warned by Sandstein (and put under sanctions) not to use frivolous accusations in vandalism [22]

• 25 February 2014 Continued unfounded accusations in vandalism, disregarding a reminder to review what vandalism is not

• 26 February 2014 Continued unfounded accusations in vandalism and displayed battleground attitude, disregarding a reminder to review what vandalism is not [23]

History of warnings and sanctions:

• Put under indefinite 1RR in AA2 16 October 2014 by EdJohnston (talk · contribs)

• Warned on 25 February 2014 by Hablabar (talk · contribs)

Additional comments by editor filing complaint

User:Interfase has a long history of edit warring and unfounded accusations. As of late he was in dispute with me, User:Divot and User:Roses&guns, among others. On October 16, 2014, not so long ago, Interfase was put under sanctions for his conduct [24] through a complaint filed by User:Yerevantsi. Among reasons to enact sanctions administrators cited unfounded and repeated accusation in vandalism. User:Sandstein explained to Interfase what is vandalism and what vandalism is not [25]. The sanction has apparently had zero effect on Interfase. He continues disregarding WP:NPOV, fails to meaningfully engage with other editors, and above all continues to accuse his discussants in vandalism. Plus, his latest edit displays a battleground attitude ("Go and put this warning on your talk page …).

Notification of the user against whom enforcement is requested

[26]

Statements must be made in separate sections. They may not exceed 500 words and 20 diffs, except by permission of a reviewing administrator.
Administrators may remove or shorten noncompliant statements. Disruptive contributions may result in blocks.

This section is to be edited only by uninvolved administrators. Comments by others will be moved to the section above.

It looks like the request has merit. The background is apparently that Interfase introduced content to Azerbaijan on 17:06, 24 February 2014. Hablabar undid this addition with an edit summary indicating neutrality concerns. Interfase undid that removal on 11:39, 25 February 2014 with the edit summary "WP:VANDALISM. Don't delete information based on reliable sources". Then there were some more back-and-forth reverts by others, and the talk page discussion mentioned in the complaint.

Considering that the previous warning to Interfase not to refer to content disagreements as vandalism (see WP:NOTVAND) was not successful, and that inaccurate accusations of vandalism are personal attacks (see WP:NPA), I am of a mind to impose a topic ban regarding Azerbaijan on Interfase.  Sandstein  10:26, 27 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

• I began reviewing this before seeing Sandstein's comment. I came to the conclusion that this appears actionable. Interfase's accusations of vandalism are false, which constitutes battleground behaviour. Futhermore, Interfase has been duly warned. This is sufficient for a sanction to be considered. As the 1RR already in place hasn't solved the problem, I think a topic ban is probably the only way to go. Heimstern Läufer (talk) 12:13, 27 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]

• Just as a clarification that the OP's reference to October 2014 is meant to be 2013 instead. But yes, I agree there's merit here and we probably need to go to 0RR and/or topic ban. - Penwhale | ^{dance in the air and follow his steps} 17:41, 27 February 2014 (UTC)[reply]