Wikipedia:Patent nonsense
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Wikipedia writers and editors contribute a lot of brilliant prose, but occasionally some patent nonsense (here "patent" is used as a synonym for "obvious"). This falls into two categories:
- Total nonsense - i.e. text or random characters that have no assignable meaning at all. This includes things like "903a84as43(usar(&^a", where random keys of the keyboard have been pressed.
- Content that, while apparently meaningful after a fashion, is so completely and irredeemably confused that no intelligent person can be expected to make any sense of it whatsoever.
[edit] Not to be confused with...
The following, while often regrettable, are not patent nonsense. Check the Deletion policy for information on how to handle these things.
- Copyrighted content or works (nonsense or not)
- Poorly written content (See How to copy-edit)
- Partisan screed, or opinion masquerading as fact
- Religious excogitations.
- Incompetent and/or immature material
- Flame bait entries
- Obscene remarks
- Vandalism is not necessarily the same thing as patent nonsense and not all patent nonsense is vandalism. Sometimes, patent nonsense may be a mistake rather than intentional disruption.
- Text translated or written by someone who is not a native English speaker (see Wikipedia:Pages needing translation into English)
- Hoaxes (excluding pages on real, notable hoaxes)
- Fictional story material (characters, settings, etc. which are only interesting to fans)
- Libelous, defamatory, or slanderous comments.
[edit] Dealing with patent nonsense
There are various ways to deal with total nonsense - use your good judgement to decide which is most appropriate:
- Replace it with brilliant prose.
- Move it to the latest Bad Jokes and Other Deleted Nonsense page.
- Move it to the article's talk page.
- Move it to the user's talk page.
- Remove it from the article if there is anything left in the article after that.
However, if anybody objects, because they believe that the content is not total nonsense, then it's best to discuss the issue with them and to try to reach a consensus. In particular, if someone says that they think they can rework the "nonsense" into something worthwhile, then please give them some time and space to do so.
If an article contains nothing but patent nonsense, use your good judgment to decide whether to:
- list it on Wikipedia:Articles for deletion
- delete it straight away (only if you are an administrator)
- add the tag {{Db-nonsense}} or one of its shortcuts {{nonsense}} and {{db-g1}}, which automatically lists it on Category:Candidates for speedy deletion
