Talk:Lawrence Lockman

Latest comment: 1 year ago by Grayfell in topic BLP Issues

BLP Issues edit

Okay, there are a lot of problems here, mainly involving WP:BLP.

The easiest problem to deal with is that I don't think Issue Hawk is a reliable source, especially not for a BLP, and so I've removed it.

More complex is the characterization of Lockman as being "pro-rape". There was a statement in the article attributed to him where he said "why shouldn't a man be free to use his superior strength to force himself on a woman?" Yes, it's a horrid argument, and a nonsensical comparison, but since he was comparing rape to abortion, which he is opposed to, his statement cannot be taken as a literal endorsement of rape. Using this statement as a rationale for describing him as "pro rape" is not acceptable.

There's more to it, as well: The statement is attributed to a editorial letter published in a local newspaper in 1995.[1] That's not a WP:RS, and while the quote has been republished in a few other places, there's no clear indication given where he originally wrote the statement. As far as I can see, he hasn't even confirmed that he did write this. At the very least, any mention of the quote needs to make that perfectly clear.

Wikipedia isn't a WP:SOAPBOX. Cherry-picking his most outrageous quotes in series, and deliberately phrasing things to make this person look bad are violations of Wikipedia's policies. Grayfell (talk) 23:00, 17 December 2014 (UTC)Reply

It also isn't hide all a politicians worst moments. Motheradverts (talk) 15:36, 10 May 2023 (UTC)Reply
@Motheradverts: You're responding to a comment I made nine years ago, when the article looked different from how it does now. If you have a proposal for how to improve the current article, make it. Grayfell (talk) 21:12, 10 May 2023 (UTC)Reply

response to blp issues edit

Why did you take out the criminal behavior part of the title? Not paying state or federal income taxes is a crime, as is encouraging others to do the same. A lot of people have gone to prison for that. You substituted in the words tax protesting, but people can protest in ways that don't involve breaking the law. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Jiminyjillickers (talkcontribs) 23:30, 17 December 2014 (UTC)Reply

It's about clarity and neutrality. I'm sure most reliable sources would agree that tax protesting is illegal, but simply saying that he was performing criminal activity without any further explanation is loaded. "Tax protester" is a specific label that has a clear and narrow meaning, which we can (and do) wikilink for additional context. "Criminal" is a broad term which could imply almost anything, and is lurid, but not very informative. WP:LABELs like that should be avoided when more specific terms can easily be substituted. Grayfell (talk) 23:49, 17 December 2014 (UTC)Reply

BLP source is probably not adequate edit

Iffy source - I am removing the information related to this source. It is quoting another article, which I wasn't able to find the information in the quoted article. We need a stronger source for this type of BLP. --VVikingTalkEdits 16:14, 15 September 2018 (UTC)Reply