Anyway, Btphelps' COI editing was brought up on the COI noticeboard recently over his seeming promotional editing in topics relating to Big Sur, California. The reaction to the report was less than positive. Btphelps questioned the evidence and said:
Evrik (T-C-L) stated:Please refrain from further preemptive, rogue edits and cease your attempts to smear my character, my many years of reliable contributions to WO, and attacks on my reputation. This unnecessary report of a COI and unfounded attack on me along with your rash deletion of content without discussion are in part why so many good editors leave WP.
Graywalls (T-C-L), the user who had made the initial report, then opened a second topic on the COI noticboard. This one was about White Stag Leadership Development Program (T-H-L) and one of its founders Béla H. Bánáthy (T-H-L). Graywalls nominated White Stag for deletion, calling it "Advertising or other spam without any relevant or encyclopedic content". Their website just happens to be owned and operated by Brian T. Phelps. He even has a bio there where he proudly states that he's sold over 2000 copies of his self-published books.I've worked with @Btphelps: for a while now. I'm looking at the accusation being made here, and those at Béla H. Bánáthy. This is baffling. Unless I see actual evidence, I feel that a good, and long-time user, is being smeared. --evrik (talk) 02:34, 21 March 2024 (UTC)
Of course, the deletion of that article set off another round at the COI noticeboard. Btphelps stated:
So if you don't make any money from it (perhaps apart from selling your own books), it's fine, I feel like that's exactly the defense used recently by Thmazing. And since Béla H. Bánáthy is dead, apparently that's not a COI, either.I first wrote that I was co-director of White Stag in 2008 on WP here. That position lasted for two years. The content on my WP user page that you cite lasted much longer than my volunteer position. I was never employed by that non-profit. It did not then and does not now have any employees. The idea that I might somehow benefit financially from it is laughable.
Graywalls has stated that they have emailed off-wiki evidence to some Wikipedia email, but we all know what a waste of time that is. More to follow...WP:COI's def is so broad and vague that it can be easily capitalized on by someone with an axe to grind. Saying there is a COI on someone who has been dead since 2003 is certainly outside the intent of wp:coi. North8000 (talk) 16:00, 25 March 2024 (UTC)