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| | Until recent years, any discussion of RationalWiki was forbidden on Conservapedia. RationalWikians maintain many sleeper [[sockpuppet]]s in [[Conservapedia]], some who advanced in Conservapedia's [[meritocracy]] and are members of various civility associations. | | Until recent years, any discussion of RationalWiki was forbidden on Conservapedia. RationalWikians maintain many sleeper [[sockpuppet]]s in [[Conservapedia]], some who advanced in Conservapedia's [[meritocracy]] and are members of various civility associations. |
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| − | ===RobSmith desyopping as an alleged "useful idiot of an atheist website" and later re-syopping===
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| − | [[File:Image-Alexa-cp-22-May-2011.png|right|300px|thumb|[[Conservapedia]] started out ahead of [[Rationalwiki]], but things really went to [[hell]] after Rob's de-sysoping.]]
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| − | In August 2011, [[Conservapedia]] Administrator [[User:RobSmith]] was desysopped for allegedly being "a useful idiot of an atheist website". The charge was made by [[User:Conservative]]. Years later, as [[Andy Schlafly]]. [[User:Conservative]], and [[User:Karajou]] realized an error had been made, [[user:RobSmith]] was invited back and his admin powers reinstated. The specific reason he was asked was the same reason RationalWiki editors asked Rob to contribute to the [[Hillary Clinton]] article in advance of the [[2016 presidential election]]. A consensus appeared on both sites that none of the active editors on either site seemed to have the interest, knowledge, or time to devote to the subject.
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| − | On election eve, Rob's hit piece on Hillary Clinton reached #16 on [[Google]], with the first 15 results largely being cut n paste mirror copies of Hillary's own website and [[propaganda]] campaign.
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| − | But the question remained, "Why was Rob so dishonorably discharged under false pretenses in 2011?" The reason apparently was quite simple: in the toxic environment between Conservapedia and Rationalwiki editors, Rob was able to maintain an aire of [[civility]]. Rob was willing to discuss serious differing points of view on subjects he was knowledgeable of, and did not engage in senseless, meanspirited food fights and [[edit war]]s as such discussions between opposing editors always seemed to degenerate into. There was even somewhat of an aire of respect between Rob as a worthy opponent and his antagonists. For this reason - because Rob could engage in civil discussions with adversaries, he was de-sysoped. The immediate cause was when a RationaWiki editor at the RationaWiki website asked Rob if he thought User:Conservative was "[[mentally ill]]". As per Conservapedia Guidelines and its Administrator's Guide page outline, Rob did not respond. Indeed, Rob viewed it as just another [[provocation]] and didn't hold an opinion on the subject.
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| − | But it didn't end there. User:Conservative, fearing that "word would get out" what others who had extensive interactions with him and knew his editing practices much better than Rob did, retaliated against the rumors by attacking Rob for his civil engagement with RationalWiki editors. Rob had collaborated with User:Conservative on a few pages in 2007 and saw how Rob's research had been misused and User:Conservative's pointless, silly interaction with RationalWiki editors. Rob withdrew from any further collaboration and limited interaction in the future. The record of [[leak]]ed emails of the private Conservapedia sysop group (leaked by User:TK and hacked by User:AceMcWicked) show virtually no interaction between Rob and User:Conservative between 2008 and to 2015. User:Conservative, in fact, was not a member of Andy Schlafly's original "brain trust" in 2007, as other sysops commented that he seemed a bit odd.
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| − | So to prevent the consensus view among RationalWiki editors, who mostly had been blocked from the Conservapedia webserver by 2011, from supposedly appearing on Conservapedia, one is led to believe User:Conservative invented the false and negative charge (and violation of [[Conservapedia:Guidelines]] against [[personal attacks]]) that RobSmith was "a useful idiot of an atheist website", ignoring Rob's four year record of [[civility]] and abiding by written guidelines. Why would Rob engage in a pointless smear campaign against another editor? There is no record of him doing so either at [[Conservapedia]] or at RationalWiki. In the smear campaign against Rob, User:Conservative evidently invented it to save himself from the embarrassment of what others who knew him well, and interacted him regularly, thought of his behavior.
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| − | The criticism ultimately has to be laid at the owner of the website for not enforcing [[CP]]'s own [[civility]] guidelines against [[personal attacks]], and ignoring suggestions to allow creation of a dispute resolution process. Decisions seem to be made on a whim, suggestions ignored, and [[invective]] tolerated. The site originally founded as a [[meritocracy]] has not functioned as one ever since.
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| − | Rob was eventually booted off RationalWiki in January 2021 at the insistence of [[GenZ]]ers for expressing sympathy toward [[J6]] "insurrectionists".
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| | == RationalWiki and web traffic == | | == RationalWiki and web traffic == |