There is a well-known notion that "if its on wiki, then it must be true"
This is irrelevant to my point. Teaching people to trust nothing is the goal, whether it be wikipedia or the God almighty himself (not really, but hopefully you'll allow the exaggeration). It is Trust that is the problem. Read the link I provided in the previous post.
I wouldn't call it a "great" resource simply because of its progressive bias.
In the search for the truth it is impossible to find anything without bias. Everything is biased, even those things that pretend not to be. Even a thing such as data itself is biased, because it is dependent on the machine that took the measurements (choices went in to making the machine), the person who took the data (even if it is a computer for the same reason as previous), etc. EVERYTHING is biased. You not liking one particular bias has nothing to do with the process of getting closer and closer to the truth in investigation.
Wikipedia is a good resource because it cites its sources extremely well. This allows a researcher to track down why people say what they say. It is one of the best resources out there for this reason. Most places don't let you know why they are saying what they say. Everyone spins it, but without direct access to the source of their statements it takes a lot more digging to figure out why.
This is very important because if you are investigating something, you need facts
Facts are not "truth", they are reports of an event. A report is not truth, it is a biased observation. Always.
Highlighting wiki as biased and not trustworthy is no more than pointing at MSM
The huge difference, which I am trying to explain to you, is that MSM et al doesn't generally give direct access to their full sources like wikipedia does. What any particular place says is less relevant than having immediate access to the inspiration (in all its original context) that made them say it. To appreciate what I am saying, you must start from the position of trust nothing (which I am trying to explain to you).
Ultimately it all boils down to if a platform can be influenced politically, financially and moderated towards certain bias.
ALL sources have the "influenced" problem, at least potentially. And Everything is biased.
very intent of Elon and this post is to alert people of biasing, which they may not have been aware of so far.
I agree that Elon pointing out bias on Wikipedia is a good thing. I agree that teaching people that wikipedia is not to be trusted is a good thing. Not only was that not my protest, I agreed with it wholeheartedly from the get go. My protest was with regard to your title which stated explicitly that people should not use wikipedia as an information source for facts. I disagree completely. Wikipedia is one of the single best sources on the internet for facts. It just isn't a good place for all the facts.
Just because wiki gives the sources doesn't mean make it any more reliable than MSM
I assert that no source is reliable. Thinking that any source is reliable will never be part of the path to the truth and will only get you into trouble if your goal is understanding it.
If the reporter itself is not credible, I have no interest in digging sources.
I suggest this is a huge problem if your goal is understanding the truth of a thing. The vast majority of the time people tell the truth (by "truth" I mean they give the facts in earnest). However, people almost never tell the whole truth. Bias is not generally in lies, but in the important parts left out. Pretty much everyone leaves out important parts. Only if you allow yourself to see others "truths" (the facts they present) can you ever hope to get closer to the actual (whole) truth of a thing.
This is irrelevant to my point. Teaching people to trust nothing is the goal, whether it be wikipedia or the God almighty himself (not really, but hopefully you'll allow the exaggeration). It is Trust that is the problem. Read the link I provided in the previous post.
In the search for the truth it is impossible to find anything without bias. Everything is biased, even those things that pretend not to be. Even a thing such as data itself is biased, because it is dependent on the machine that took the measurements (choices went in to making the machine), the person who took the data (even if it is a computer for the same reason as previous), etc. EVERYTHING is biased. You not liking one particular bias has nothing to do with the process of getting closer and closer to the truth in investigation.
Wikipedia is a good resource because it cites its sources extremely well. This allows a researcher to track down why people say what they say. It is one of the best resources out there for this reason. Most places don't let you know why they are saying what they say. Everyone spins it, but without direct access to the source of their statements it takes a lot more digging to figure out why.
Facts are not "truth", they are reports of an event. A report is not truth, it is a biased observation. Always.
The huge difference, which I am trying to explain to you, is that MSM et al doesn't generally give direct access to their full sources like wikipedia does. What any particular place says is less relevant than having immediate access to the inspiration (in all its original context) that made them say it. To appreciate what I am saying, you must start from the position of trust nothing (which I am trying to explain to you).
ALL sources have the "influenced" problem, at least potentially. And Everything is biased.
I agree that Elon pointing out bias on Wikipedia is a good thing. I agree that teaching people that wikipedia is not to be trusted is a good thing. Not only was that not my protest, I agreed with it wholeheartedly from the get go. My protest was with regard to your title which stated explicitly that people should not use wikipedia as an information source for facts. I disagree completely. Wikipedia is one of the single best sources on the internet for facts. It just isn't a good place for all the facts.
I assert that no source is reliable. Thinking that any source is reliable will never be part of the path to the truth and will only get you into trouble if your goal is understanding it.
I suggest this is a huge problem if your goal is understanding the truth of a thing. The vast majority of the time people tell the truth (by "truth" I mean they give the facts in earnest). However, people almost never tell the whole truth. Bias is not generally in lies, but in the important parts left out. Pretty much everyone leaves out important parts. Only if you allow yourself to see others "truths" (the facts they present) can you ever hope to get closer to the actual (whole) truth of a thing.