Getting kicked off of Wikipedia for “not being notable”

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Fred Wilson got kicked off of Wikipedia for not being notable. Damn. Well, if that's the new bar, why am I still on there? I'm less notable than Fred is. That's lame. I think everyone should have a Wikipedia page. Everyone is important.

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Published by Robert Scoble

I give you a front-row seat on the future. Focusing most of my efforts now on next-generation augmented reality and artificial intelligence, AKA "mixed reality." SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER: http://clevermoe.com/scobleizer-news/ BUY OUR NEW BOOK: https://www.amazon.com/Fourth-Transformation-Robert-Scoble/dp/1539894444 "The Fourth Transformation: How augmented reality and artificial intelligence will change everything." WATCH MY LATEST SPEECHES: State of VR with Philip Rosedale (done in VR itself, very cool): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zAA1EVGUZU At GEOINT, June 2017: http://trajectorymagazine.com/glimpse-new-world/ Augmented World Expo, June 2017: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4xHILvLD8E At Leade.rs, April 2017: https://youtu.be/52_0JshgjXI +++++++++++ BIO: Scoble gives you a front-row seat on the future. Literally. He had the first ride in the first Tesla. Siri was launched in his house. He's been the first to share all sorts of technologies and companies with you, from Flipboard to Pandora to Instagram. Today he's focusing on mixed reality, AKA "next-generation augmented reality" which will include a new user interface for EVERYTHING in your life (IoT, Smart Cities, driverless cars, robots, drones, etc). That's based on his view thanks to his past experience as futurist at Rackspace. Best place to find Scoble? On his Facebook profile at https://www.facebook.com/RobertScoble He has been a technology blogger since 2000, was one of five people who built Microsoft's Channel 9 video blog/community, worked at Fast Company Magazine running its TV efforts, and has been part of technology media businesses since 1993. ++++++++ SPEAKER PITCH: Apple and Facebook now have revealed their Augmented Reality strategies, which means your business needs one too. Rely on Robert Scoble, the world's top authority on AR, to bring to your conference what businesses should do next. SPEECH ABSTRACT #1: TITLE: The Fourth Transformation: What's next in mixed reality (AR and AI) and the future of technology? Here's an example of this talk at Leade.rs in Paris in April, 2017: https://youtu.be/52_0JshgjXI Why "the Fourth Transformation?" Soon we will have phones and glasses that do full on augmented reality. Everything you look at will potentially be augmented. This world is coming in late 2017 with a new iPhone from Apple, amongst other products. Microsoft is betting everything on its HoloLens glasses that do mixed reality and the industry is spending many billions of dollars in R&D and funding new companies like Magic Leap. This future will be the user interface for IoT, Smart Cities, autonomous cars, robots, drones, and your TV. This is a big deal and Robert will take you through what mixed reality is and how it will change every business. Learn more about Robert's speaking style and contact his agent at http://odemanagement.com/robert-scoble/Robert-Scoble.html ++++++++ SPEECH ABSTRACT #2: "The Next Two Clicks of Moore's Law." Over the next four years, or two clicks of Moore's Law, a ton about our technology world will change. Scoble will bring you the best from his travels visiting R&D labs, startups, and innovators around the world. He views the world through his rose-colored-mixed-reality glasses, which will be the new user interface for self driving cars, Smart Cities, IoT, and many other things in our world. He'll send you off with some lessons for companies both large and small. ++++++++ SPEECH ABSTRACT #3: "Personalized Meaning: What is Augmented Reality For?" As we enter a far more technological world where even cars drive themselves, I predict we'll see a blowback toward the analog, more authentic world. What role does augmented reality play in both worlds? Get Scoble's insight into where augmented reality is going, see tons of real-world demos, and understand what he means by 'personalized meaning.' CONTACT: If you are looking to contact me, email is best: scobleizer@gmail.com. ++++++++ ENDORSEMENTS: IZEA Top 25 Tech Influencers: https://izea.com/2017/07/07/25-top-tech-influencers/ Time: One of the top 140 Twitterers! FT: One of the five most influential Twitterers! Inc. Top 5 on list of Tech Power Players You Need to Know: http://www.inc.com/john-rampton/30-power-players-in-tech-you-need-to-know.html Next Reality: #4 on top 50 AR influencer list: https://next.reality.news/news/nr50-next-realitys-50-people-watch-augmented-mixed-reality-0177454/

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93 thoughts on “Getting kicked off of Wikipedia for “not being notable””

  1. “…and when everyone is Super, no one will be.” –The Incredibles.

    I think a threshold of press/blog coverage should apply for Wikipedia inclusion. Biographical articles about people who fall below a threshold should move to a sister “Who’s who” sort of site.

    (There’s already a similar movement to move articles that are basically definitions of obscure terms to the dictionary sister-site, Wiktionary.)

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  2. “…and when everyone is Super, no one will be.” –The Incredibles.

    I think a threshold of press/blog coverage should apply for Wikipedia inclusion. Biographical articles about people who fall below a threshold should move to a sister “Who’s who” sort of site.

    (There’s already a similar movement to move articles that are basically definitions of obscure terms to the dictionary sister-site, Wiktionary.)

    Like

  3. I guess one has to die to become notable. Michael Bartosh had a page constructed the day after he fell off a balcony to his sudden death. There was a similar discussion about his page being deleted for notability. His was “voted” to stay.

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  4. I guess one has to die to become notable. Michael Bartosh had a page constructed the day after he fell off a balcony to his sudden death. There was a similar discussion about his page being deleted for notability. His was “voted” to stay.

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  5. Everyone is important? Hmmm… seems to contradicts your recent posts about how you are important while others just need to know how important you are…

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  6. Everyone is important? Hmmm… seems to contradicts your recent posts about how you are important while others just need to know how important you are…

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  9. You’re right on the mark there Robert! He who is important today might not be tomorrow; but that’s the beauty of the age we’re living. Progress is made by small steps taken by a multitude of individuals. Our evolutionary path is not steered by a few colossal corporates anymore – it pushes incrementally forward from the contributions made by everyone involved – that’s you and me and him and her. Can wiki run out of space? Should wiki ebb and flow or should it forever expand to tell the full, unabridged story of our time?

    BTW, good luck with the new venture. Change is good – and necessary.

    All the best

    Tom

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  10. You’re right on the mark there Robert! He who is important today might not be tomorrow; but that’s the beauty of the age we’re living. Progress is made by small steps taken by a multitude of individuals. Our evolutionary path is not steered by a few colossal corporates anymore – it pushes incrementally forward from the contributions made by everyone involved – that’s you and me and him and her. Can wiki run out of space? Should wiki ebb and flow or should it forever expand to tell the full, unabridged story of our time?

    BTW, good luck with the new venture. Change is good – and necessary.

    All the best

    Tom

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  11. wikipedia has a challenge to protect its content from being diluted, manipulated, kidnapped, etc. but i don’t think Fred Wilson falls into any of these categories.

    i guess they should enable a mechanism to allow for multiple wikipedia pages for the same term, and then just display the most popular/high rated item by default.

    this will let Fred keep his page and help his hurt ego.

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  12. wikipedia has a challenge to protect its content from being diluted, manipulated, kidnapped, etc. but i don’t think Fred Wilson falls into any of these categories.

    i guess they should enable a mechanism to allow for multiple wikipedia pages for the same term, and then just display the most popular/high rated item by default.

    this will let Fred keep his page and help his hurt ego.

    Like

  13. I think its because he created the original content himself. Robert, why dont you create a wikipedia page for him? I like the idea of a who’s who wiki a lot.

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  14. I think its because he created the original content himself. Robert, why dont you create a wikipedia page for him? I like the idea of a who’s who wiki a lot.

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  15. I’ve never really understood the need for a notability requirement on Wikipedia. Without the size constraints of a paper encyclopaedia, surely there’s no problem with anybody being profiled on there? If somebody isn’t notable, they won’t get linked from any other page and won’t get searched for. And if they suddenly become notable for some reason, the content is there.

    Seems like old media thinking.

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  16. I’ve never really understood the need for a notability requirement on Wikipedia. Without the size constraints of a paper encyclopaedia, surely there’s no problem with anybody being profiled on there? If somebody isn’t notable, they won’t get linked from any other page and won’t get searched for. And if they suddenly become notable for some reason, the content is there.

    Seems like old media thinking.

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  19. Some communists even removed the link to our commercial CMS from the CMS overview page.

    Wikipedia seems to get/be the place for people that fought against each other on the Usenet in good old days.

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  20. Some communists even removed the link to our commercial CMS from the CMS overview page.

    Wikipedia seems to get/be the place for people that fought against each other on the Usenet in good old days.

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  27. i dont get the fascination with Wikipedia.. i really dont. especially when anyone else can go and edit your page to put false info on it..

    wikipedia is like post counts; neither of them mean a damn thing, but there is that certain group of people who thinks they are better than everyone else cause they have an entry on wikipedia and 60,000 posts on the Tivo forum .. and then call everyone else a “noob” …
    strange…

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  28. i dont get the fascination with Wikipedia.. i really dont. especially when anyone else can go and edit your page to put false info on it..

    wikipedia is like post counts; neither of them mean a damn thing, but there is that certain group of people who thinks they are better than everyone else cause they have an entry on wikipedia and 60,000 posts on the Tivo forum .. and then call everyone else a “noob” …
    strange…

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  31. If it’s the “Encyclopedia Galactica” they are trying to create at Wikipedia, they really ought to have a page for everyone on the planet. What’s notable to a handful of elitists actively maintaining Wikipedia is hardly a representation of worth across the broad swath of the world population. Someone’s small contribution to a local community might have a far reaching impact if it was documented in a place like Wikipedia where other people could find and learn from it.

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  32. If it’s the “Encyclopedia Galactica” they are trying to create at Wikipedia, they really ought to have a page for everyone on the planet. What’s notable to a handful of elitists actively maintaining Wikipedia is hardly a representation of worth across the broad swath of the world population. Someone’s small contribution to a local community might have a far reaching impact if it was documented in a place like Wikipedia where other people could find and learn from it.

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  33. I have twice written an entry on the company I started and sold to Vodafone on wikipedia’s english edition. It has twice been removed. This was a big sale to the world’s largest mobile provider (8 digit € amount).

    It is not me tooting me own horn — I didn’t even mention my name in the article.

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  34. I have twice written an entry on the company I started and sold to Vodafone on wikipedia’s english edition. It has twice been removed. This was a big sale to the world’s largest mobile provider (8 digit € amount).

    It is not me tooting me own horn — I didn’t even mention my name in the article.

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  35. I got kicked off Wikipedia too. This whole “notable” distinction is a relic of limited-space paper encyclopedias, incompatible with Long Tail thinking.

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  36. I got kicked off Wikipedia too. This whole “notable” distinction is a relic of limited-space paper encyclopedias, incompatible with Long Tail thinking.

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  37. Pingback: Information Narcosis

  38. Where does Wikipedia get off? I mean, My mom always told me I was important. And my grandma alway told me I could be anything I wanted to be. Leave it to the folks at Wikipedia to shatter people’s dreams

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  39. Where does Wikipedia get off? I mean, My mom always told me I was important. And my grandma alway told me I could be anything I wanted to be. Leave it to the folks at Wikipedia to shatter people’s dreams

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  40. Maybe Fred isn’t notable. And maybe you aren’t. But at least you did make BBC headline news. Fred didn’t – that I am aware of. Maybe he really isn’t noteable? Could it really be? Reading his re-added entry, I would certainly agree with the Wikipedia editors.

    I think the world would be a much better place if everybody was a little more critical of themselves and stopped thinking they were so very important. 99% of the people who say it of themselves really are not.

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  41. Maybe Fred isn’t notable. And maybe you aren’t. But at least you did make BBC headline news. Fred didn’t – that I am aware of. Maybe he really isn’t noteable? Could it really be? Reading his re-added entry, I would certainly agree with the Wikipedia editors.

    I think the world would be a much better place if everybody was a little more critical of themselves and stopped thinking they were so very important. 99% of the people who say it of themselves really are not.

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  46. Hey, they have guidelines:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Notability_%28people%29

    It states:
    This guideline is not Wikipedia policy (and indeed the whole concept of notability is contentious). However, it is the opinion of many Wikipedians that these criteria are a fair test of whether a person has sufficient external notice to ensure that they can be covered from a neutral point of view based on verifiable information from reliable sources, without straying into original research (all of which are formal policies). Failure to meet these criteria does not mean that a subject must not be included, meeting one or more does not mean that a subject must be included. Many Wikipedians oppose the use of this guideline.

    so its a difficult subject, even to wikipedians.

    Then again, I don’t see why some asshat VC should have his own page, or why everyone on the planet should have one.

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  47. Hey, they have guidelines:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Notability_%28people%29

    It states:
    This guideline is not Wikipedia policy (and indeed the whole concept of notability is contentious). However, it is the opinion of many Wikipedians that these criteria are a fair test of whether a person has sufficient external notice to ensure that they can be covered from a neutral point of view based on verifiable information from reliable sources, without straying into original research (all of which are formal policies). Failure to meet these criteria does not mean that a subject must not be included, meeting one or more does not mean that a subject must be included. Many Wikipedians oppose the use of this guideline.

    so its a difficult subject, even to wikipedians.

    Then again, I don’t see why some asshat VC should have his own page, or why everyone on the planet should have one.

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  48. i figured that since there were multiple Wikipedia entries with my name in them that linked to a politician in Ontario, i should correct that with a page about me.

    but i am fine with wikipedia taking my page down. it’s their sandbox, not mine.

    Some Asshat VC 🙂

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  49. i figured that since there were multiple Wikipedia entries with my name in them that linked to a politician in Ontario, i should correct that with a page about me.

    but i am fine with wikipedia taking my page down. it’s their sandbox, not mine.

    Some Asshat VC 🙂

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  54. Wikipedia is run by a bunch of egotistical morons who take great delight in deleting pages people have spent a long time on. Their greatest achievement is stating that they don’t need to reply to reasoning on why a page shouldn’t be deleted. I congratulate that. I know many people who’ve tried wikipedia and then left because they were either called a “sock puppet”, told their article was not notable and a myriad of other trivial reasons. They gave up after that. It seems, to have an article accepted you need to make about 1000+ minor edits and then they’ll let you into their group of Wikipedians.

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  55. Wikipedia is run by a bunch of egotistical morons who take great delight in deleting pages people have spent a long time on. Their greatest achievement is stating that they don’t need to reply to reasoning on why a page shouldn’t be deleted. I congratulate that. I know many people who’ve tried wikipedia and then left because they were either called a “sock puppet”, told their article was not notable and a myriad of other trivial reasons. They gave up after that. It seems, to have an article accepted you need to make about 1000+ minor edits and then they’ll let you into their group of Wikipedians.

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  56. if Wikipedia took all criteria out, what would we be left with? – a google search. If someone wants to know about you, they’ll google you. I’ve edited at least three Wiki articles because they were just WRONG and was able to link to a “real” encyclopedia or the OED to prove it. Of what use will wiki be if it becomes even more unreliable? There’s enough misinformation presented by the media already and i am inclined to congratulate the wikipedians for having standards. Who’s project is it anyways? If you don’t like it – DON’T USE IT!

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  57. if Wikipedia took all criteria out, what would we be left with? – a google search. If someone wants to know about you, they’ll google you. I’ve edited at least three Wiki articles because they were just WRONG and was able to link to a “real” encyclopedia or the OED to prove it. Of what use will wiki be if it becomes even more unreliable? There’s enough misinformation presented by the media already and i am inclined to congratulate the wikipedians for having standards. Who’s project is it anyways? If you don’t like it – DON’T USE IT!

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  62. That’s why one has a user page over at Wikipedia. 🙂

    I agree with comment #28 up there. It does also seem like folks have different views of the rules, especially with external links. While fansites for something like a television show aren’t allowed on certain pages, they are for others.

    I gave up on them a long time ago. I run my own copy of Wikipedia (and DMOZ, another site with mucked up rules) and edit it to my hearts content.

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  63. That’s why one has a user page over at Wikipedia. 🙂

    I agree with comment #28 up there. It does also seem like folks have different views of the rules, especially with external links. While fansites for something like a television show aren’t allowed on certain pages, they are for others.

    I gave up on them a long time ago. I run my own copy of Wikipedia (and DMOZ, another site with mucked up rules) and edit it to my hearts content.

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  64. Hey, I enjoy Fred’s blog… it’s interesting and he has great taste in music. But he’s not notable. Frankly, very few bloggers are… notorious, maybe, notable? Not so much.

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  65. Hey, I enjoy Fred’s blog… it’s interesting and he has great taste in music. But he’s not notable. Frankly, very few bloggers are… notorious, maybe, notable? Not so much.

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  66. “everyone should have a Wikipedia page”

    At least some search engines could increase their index size in a truly manner. 6 billion docs is pretty good.

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  67. “everyone should have a Wikipedia page”

    At least some search engines could increase their index size in a truly manner. 6 billion docs is pretty good.

    Like

  74. I once written an article about a topic in my blog and in the WIki page on that topic, on the external link, I included a link to my entry which was. Then it was removed by an editor who has no track record about that field. This is perhaps one of the reasons why Wikipedia has not become credible.

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  75. I once written an article about a topic in my blog and in the WIki page on that topic, on the external link, I included a link to my entry which was. Then it was removed by an editor who has no track record about that field. This is perhaps one of the reasons why Wikipedia has not become credible.

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  76. Consiser wikipedia as a resource for what it is — a simple resource NOT A DESTINATION like they would have us believe. There are better and more substantial places on the Net to be noted by. Personally, in my circles the wikepedia is one of the LAST places we refer or point others to for reference.

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  77. Consiser wikipedia as a resource for what it is — a simple resource NOT A DESTINATION like they would have us believe. There are better and more substantial places on the Net to be noted by. Personally, in my circles the wikepedia is one of the LAST places we refer or point others to for reference.

    Like

  78. Pingback: The Eclectic Geek » Fred Rogers also thinks I am important

  79. I think that the elitism and filtering itself is a more important cultural artifact than any particular entry, so for that reason alone it should trump individuals. And yes, Robert, you are much more notable than Fred (sorry, Fred). I’m as far from a geek as it is possible to get, but even I have heard of you. I never heard of Fred before I came across the controversy of him not being notable enough for Wikipedia.

    I would certainly automatically disallow (if such a thing were possible) entries about people posted by themselves. If you cannot inspire or convince one person on Earth to write about you, you really don’t have any pull at all.

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  80. I think that the elitism and filtering itself is a more important cultural artifact than any particular entry, so for that reason alone it should trump individuals. And yes, Robert, you are much more notable than Fred (sorry, Fred). I’m as far from a geek as it is possible to get, but even I have heard of you. I never heard of Fred before I came across the controversy of him not being notable enough for Wikipedia.

    I would certainly automatically disallow (if such a thing were possible) entries about people posted by themselves. If you cannot inspire or convince one person on Earth to write about you, you really don’t have any pull at all.

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  81. Recently I just finished my first book (by recent I mean yesterday) and I always went to wiki first. Not because its so accurate but because the quick synopsis it provides at times really is enough (imagine if you knew all the general info of wiki!!!) & they give AMAZING links to other sources that are garanteed to be what your looking for. Often those links have lead me to others and others etc.
    At McGill University, I noticed that the porfessors there turn to the site a lot which suprised me. ESPECIALLY the science department. Saying that it was a great first step to gather the necessary vocab to properly serch the term elsewhere.
    It’s a little lame that they would dump off Fred’s bio though. If their intention is to be information gatherers then they should be content with HAVING the information available. Once, I looked up Max Stern and was so suprised that they actually had something on the guy! That was the moment they got my loyalty – they’ll be losing some others for that. Sorry to hear it.

    vgiovanna@gmail.com
    brainwashcafe.blogspot.com

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  82. Recently I just finished my first book (by recent I mean yesterday) and I always went to wiki first. Not because its so accurate but because the quick synopsis it provides at times really is enough (imagine if you knew all the general info of wiki!!!) & they give AMAZING links to other sources that are garanteed to be what your looking for. Often those links have lead me to others and others etc.
    At McGill University, I noticed that the porfessors there turn to the site a lot which suprised me. ESPECIALLY the science department. Saying that it was a great first step to gather the necessary vocab to properly serch the term elsewhere.
    It’s a little lame that they would dump off Fred’s bio though. If their intention is to be information gatherers then they should be content with HAVING the information available. Once, I looked up Max Stern and was so suprised that they actually had something on the guy! That was the moment they got my loyalty – they’ll be losing some others for that. Sorry to hear it.

    vgiovanna@gmail.com
    brainwashcafe.blogspot.com

    Like

  85. what the hell?
    get a life and stop complaing about being blocked from wiki, its really really sad that you care so much! and why the hell do you have a quote from the incredibles on this site? grow up and get a life! what is this ‘freds bio thing anyway? I think wikipedia is great so stop being such arseholes.

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  86. what the hell?
    get a life and stop complaing about being blocked from wiki, its really really sad that you care so much! and why the hell do you have a quote from the incredibles on this site? grow up and get a life! what is this ‘freds bio thing anyway? I think wikipedia is great so stop being such arseholes.

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  87. While I see your points, I’m going to have to go with Wikipedia on this one, because the whole “let’s give everyone a page” idea has been tried, and it’s called urbandictionary.com *shudder*

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  88. While I see your points, I’m going to have to go with Wikipedia on this one, because the whole “let’s give everyone a page” idea has been tried, and it’s called urbandictionary.com *shudder*

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