From ab1ec50a9b842dfedc9f5c5ee8c20a48de3f1347 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: nathansmith117 Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2025 04:57:56 -0600 Subject: Wrote wikipedia article --- blog/feed.xml | 114 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 114 insertions(+) (limited to 'blog/feed.xml') diff --git a/blog/feed.xml b/blog/feed.xml index 00ea328..bac460b 100644 --- a/blog/feed.xml +++ b/blog/feed.xml @@ -10,6 +10,120 @@ http://nathansmith117.beevomit.org/blog + + On the issue of wikipedia + http://nathansmith117.beevomit.org/blog#wikipedia + Mon, 31 Mar 2025 10:55:00 GMT + + +

Why do I write this?

+

+ Wikipedia is one of those things a lot of people like to shit on without really + thinking deep about the sytem as a whole. People tend to look for yes or no + answers than they should instead be trying to understand things on a dialectical + level so they can understand the why instead of just the what. + Teachers dont understand how the articles are actually editted, edge lords + like to shit on it without actually knowing the issues with wikipedia, youtubers + like to push out content shitting on wikipedia without ever going into the + actual details why wikipedia is bad... Before you start shitting your pants + I am not defending wikipedia by any means, quite the opposite actually. + I am just here to tell you like most things in life its bad but not for the + reasons you think. +

+ +

Its editted by random people on the internet

+

+ And academic books are written by a few people in fancy buildings, + documentaries are made by a bunch of nerds with cameras, research papers + are written by old dudes in lab coats... With all of those there are systems + in place to make sure its reliable and yes, wikipedia does have a system in + place its just different than what other sources use. Thats what makes those + different from fucking reddit. All of those can be equally shitty if you + just eat up whatever is given to you instead of questing where it came from. + One thing all of those systems cant stop (thats if they even try) is bias. +

+ +

On bias

+

+ No where is without bias. No matter how much they try to get rid of it its + still there. Its often more than just a different way of looking at + things, it can be full on poising to the brain and flat out demand + you close off your mind. That is why religion is dogshit. Thats why + you gotta be strong and not let that shit in. A little god and jesus than + as soon as you know it being gay is a sin, women are objects, the church + controls you... a few good opinions and sources of information aint going + to save you, building up a philosophy and lens to view the world from can + be just as much as a tool to free the mind as it is a weapon to be misused + by shitty things like religion. As much as reading helps its a journy you + can only take alone. +

+ Wikipedia's bias is not limited to just republican or democrat. Its not + communist or fascist either. It embodies the will of both republicans and + democrats, only aims to defend the status quo, and prefers to echo the words + of those with money and power. Wikipedia's bias is: neoliberal. Its + humanitarian enough to not appear as an opinion held by asses but at the + same time isnt willing to hold people in power accountable. Anything bad + america does is covered up and pushed deep into parts of the articles barely + anyone reads, anything bad enemies of america does is made much easier to + find. The most dangerous type of bias is bias that pretends its not + bias. Once something makes you believe its nonbias it can start making + you believe everything it says is the unquestable truth and slowly lock + up your mind. Yes, even I am bias. +

+ +

Those who never speak are never wrong

+

+ Lets get this out of the way, wikipedia may not be deep and analytical + but it tends to be very dense. Schools dont like that because they dont + want their students to gain new information: they want their students to + to quote fancy sounding quotes from people that went to colleges that + most cant afford. The ideal source is something that is dialectical, + analytical, and dense. Wikipedia is just dense. And the sources + schools want us to use is none of those! +

+ The more you say the more incorrect things you will say even with a + constant error rate, the more you say the more you need to fact check + which could get overwhelming increasing the error rate. How do academics + get around this? By stuffing their articles with word porn to make it + as un-dense as possible so they can say barely anything while keeping their + word count up. That is a terrible way to do things. Its better to openly + define a way of going about understanding the world so everything can be + connected and tied together while giving the reader the authority to + analyze your words instead of eating it up. When you speak you have to + risk being wrong and if you cant learn to accept that and continue + learning new things than its better to not speak at all. Wikipedia + still only goes half way, enough to scare away schools not but enough + for some topics. +

+ +

Replacing wikipedia

+

+ Wikipedia for the most part is usable not going to lie. Today I was + using it to look up information on anime. I even link to wikipedia + on my website sometimes. I am careful about what articles I link + though, not all wikipedia articles are equal. A good wikipedia + replacement does not exist. They all have the same issues: + everyone is too focused on making a nonbias source when they + should be openly announcing their bias and writing more + analytical. +

+ Get yourself a library card! While wikipedia will cover + you for quick questions your base of knowledge should be built + by reading books. Not everything can be summarized and quoted. + A good book is one that takes its time to buildup information + while still being dense enough. A book will tell you a complete + story instead of just data points. A good book opens your mind + by showing new ways information can connect. Wikipedia, news + articles... only ever serve to give you disconnected data points: + aka tell what to believe not how to believe. +

+ + + ]]> + + + Dream log 1 http://nathansmith117.beevomit.org/blog#dreamlog1 -- cgit v1.2.3