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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 86.0.84.33 (talk) at 20:24, 12 January 2009 (→‎Errors in the summary of Today's featured article on the Main Page). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

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Errors in the summary of Today's featured article on the Main Page

Could you change "the British Isles" to "Britain, Ireland" in the summary? British Isles is ambiguous, especially given the subject. I've changed the original use in the article, thanks. Dickdock (talk) 05:21, 12 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Please change "King Arthur is a legendary British leader" to "King Arthur was a legendary British leader". Ahem. Ericoides (talk) 16:13, 12 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]
Since he's a legend, it makes sense to keep it in the present tense. Would you say "Oliver Twist was the protagonist of Charles Dickens' novel Oliver Twist"? 84.71.181.127 (talk)
Nonsense; Oliver Twist and Alfred constitute utterly different scenarios. To take your legend example, wouldn't you say "Zeus was the husband of Hera" or "Theseus was the founder of Athens" or "Perseus beheaded Medusa"? And the article itself has 'was' in the introductory line. "Arthur is" sounds ridiculous. Ericoides (talk) 18:02, 12 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]
'is' is correct because Arthur continues to be a legendary British leader.

Errors in In the news

The 'Dakar rally' headline is overlinked - there's no value to linking Europe and Africa. Colonies Chris (talk) 12:50, 8 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Russian state-controlled supplier Gazprom cuts off gas deliveries to Ukraine

Yeah, "state-controlled". Wink-wink, nudge-nudge. Not an error, more like an underhanded POV. GregorB (talk) 20:10, 9 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

It is neither, but rather a simple statement of fact. Algebraist 20:32, 9 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]
...implying that the Russian government's ulterior political motives are behind this move. I can't see why the fact that Gazprom is state-controlled would otherwise be of importance here. GregorB (talk) 22:29, 9 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]
I think the problem is that "State-Controlled" seems to have negative connotations in the English language for some, but none at all for others. It is my opinion that is this particular situation, Gazprom is a Publicly owned State corporation, and that is indeed fact (as utilities are state owned in Russia). It is quite clear that Gazprom does take direction in it's actions (perhaps indirectly) from Moscow. Therefore it is "State-Controlled". In the likely event that the story develops further and the Ukrainian Government confronts the Russian Government, state involvement in the situation is important to the reader's understanding of the situation. But those are only my thoughts. Davidyz (talk) 15:04, 11 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]
I agree that the negative connotations of "state-controlled" do play a role here. It may well be that the cutoff is purely politically motivated; it also may well be that it is merely a consequence of unpaid debt - we don't know (and don't care) which is true. In the latter case, the fact that Gazprom is state-owned is of marginal importance, while in the former it is of crucial importance. This is why "state-controlled" - especially with the connotations it has - looks like a finger pointing to Russia as a culprit. That said, this already is a political confrontation involving many governments - but this is a matter for the article proper. GregorB (talk) 15:38, 11 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]
I think the term "state-controlled" is important here because if Gazprom were not state-controlled (which many would assume if the term were removed) the story would be not nearly so notable. One would merely wonder why Ukraine doesn't switch energy suppliers to a different Russian utility company. As it is state-controlled, we are to understand that no significant Russian gas is reaching Ukraine. If the removal of the term is necessary, I suggest a term like "monopoly" instead. 129.67.127.65 (talk) 18:48, 11 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]
Monopoly and state controlled are quite different terms. While state controlled companies are often monopolies, they don't have to be and many aren't. And there are a lot of monopolies that aren't state controlled. While arguably both monopoly and state-controlled are important, it seems to me people are more interested in the state-controlled bit Nil Einne (talk) 07:48, 12 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]
I concur, major POV issue here. It may be that majority of the shares are publically owned (which is true about many other companies in mixed economies), but that to say that it is "state-controlled" implies that every day to day activity is at the behest of Moscow 75.110.215.146 (talk) —Preceding undated comment was added at 13:19, 11 January 2009 (UTC).[reply]

I don't concur. The fact that Russia can cut off the supply at will is a weapon that Moscow is fond of using against the Ukraine. And as Davidyz says, if you don't understand that, you miss the point about the relationship between Russia and its former Soviet Republican neighbours.Executeur (talk) 15:33, 11 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

What I understand or don't understand is not a matter for Wikipedia. If you have a proof that Russians are lying when they say Ukrainians owe them money, please share it with us. Otherwise, our own private conclusions should not enter the picture. GregorB (talk) 18:50, 11 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I think 129.67.127.65's argument settles it. –Howard the Duck 05:52, 12 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Golden Globes

Slumdog Millionaire won the award for Best Motion Picture - Drama. The Golden Globes give out two awards for best picture, one for drama and one for comedy or musical. They don't give an overall Best Picture award. Tomdobb (talk) 18:58, 12 January 2009 (UTC) Template:In the news/Next update/Time[reply]

Errors in Selected anniversaries/On this day

The insulin picture is not computer-generated, so remove that (it is from NMR). Narayanese (talk) 02:48, 11 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Reporters: please first correct the regular version.

Errors in Did you know?


Follow-up and old items

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