User:Bicycle Wheel/RationalWikiWiki IJ

IRC channel

The RationalWiki IRC channel on Freenode is an odd little pocket community of RationalWiki. And by "pocket" we mean "nearly completely disjoint from the wiki". Of the regulars, most have accounts, and these are all inactive. Our Phantom Hoover (enterprising reporter) has surmised from the locals that Human and Cracker were present some time ago, but the only active RationalWikians to have visited recently are him and Electrified mocha chinchilla.

It is therefore clear that they are in fact the true leaders of RationalWiki.

Trial of Human

In May 2011, during the fallout from the Trial of Human, several RWians invaded the peaceable channel to try and hash out new policies. While they swiftly left, most of the channel members were shocked that 17 people were there, all talking. Ty decided to stick around and chatted with the strange persons there.

Just like Conservapedia

The latest trend among critics of RationalWiki (yes - such people do exist, unfathomable as it is) seems to be to claim that RationalWiki is, or is becoming, Just Like Conservapedia.

Usually, the spoken or unspoken premise is that the select banning of certain members, the dislike of unregistered IPs or the supposed existence of a Cabal which may or may not secretly rule the Wiki from a hidden base deep in the Carribbean forum somehow equals the the massive oppression taking place at Conservapedia.

While it may seem counterintuitive at first, this claim is in fact Obviously True^TM. A simple comparison of e.g. the block logs of Conservapedia and RationalWiki, and even more telling, the lists of current blocks (CP; RW) shows this to be the case. Truly, RationalWiki is Just Like Conservapedia.

Jerboa or goat?

The Goat vs. Jerboa controversy is an ideological conflict that ran on RationalWiki and its forums for several months, approximately since early December of 2007. The Jerboabite faction is, for reasons that remain unclear, opposed to the current benevolent reign of the goat Heidrun as mascot and first among equals of RationalWiki. Instead, they propose giving that exalted position to an obscure little creature known as a Long-eared jerboa.

The Jerboabites had only limited success with their campaign, as Heidrun is close to the hearts of most RationalWikians. Their influence is currently confined mostly to their stronghold, the jerboa article itself, and to occasional minor guerilla attacks.

It should be noted that this conflict was preceded by a brief appearance of ferret-related terrorism on the forums, which died out again pretty quickly, however.

Nowadays, no one seems to care about it. The goat won, though Jerboas crop up occasionally.