User:TimidGuy

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I'm primarily here to help create a better article on Transcendental Meditation. I appreciate all the hard work that's been done on it, and the infinite patience of the Administrators.

However, I can't help but feel that it simply doesn't sound like an encyclopedia entry. To me it sounds more like journalism, but maybe that's within the scope of Wikipedia.

I wrote the original entry on TM, which was posted by a colleague. I was surprised to return and find that the entry has become so diffuse and now covers so many topics. It seems like some of those, such as Ayurveda, Sthapatya Veda, and the TM-Sidhi program, could be separate Wikipedia entries. They simply aren't aspects of meditation.

My dream is that the article on TM be better organized, and I'd like to see both points of view represented throughout, so that the article represents a neutral point of view. Many of the criticisms are unanwered, and often there's a clear point to be made.

I doubt that I'll have much time, though. And, as my username suggests, I don't have the stomach for slugging it out on the discussion page. But maybe I can contribute in a small way. In any case, my goal is to work harmoniously with the other editors. I hope we can improve the entry. I accept and appreciate fair criticism.

I've been skimming some of the Guidelines. This whole Wikipedia phenomenon fascinates me. Ths is an amazing community. I loved Surowiecki's book The Wisdom of Crowds.

[edit] Emergence

I just finished reading Steven Johnson's Emergence. What a great book. And of course, I think Wikipedia is a quintessential example of this phenomenon. I've been here a couple months now. And my fascination is only growing. I'm hoping to add something about Wikipedia to the article on emergence, which is excellent.