Perhaps it sounded like I was defending deletionism, but I meant to do the opposite. I was trying to say we lack the appropriate tools and policies. This is a huge problem. Zed is right to be exercised, even enraged about it.
As someone who thinks about this problem all day, and who works with people who think about this problem all day, I resent the implication that I'm part of a deletionist conspiracy. This is the polar opposite of what everybody at the WMF that I know is trying to do.
However, as I pointed out, there also are constraints on what the central organization can do (or ought to do). We need more people willing to fight these negative tendencies in the community, to set new norms and policies.
I understand that Zed and others may feel it's a bit weird to give money to the WMF because of the good parts of Wikipedia, but then for the WMF not to take responsibility for the bad. It's a strange relationship, for sure -- really the WMF just keeps the lights on, and maintains the software, and the community writes the encyclopedia. The community, for its part, doesn't want to be taken over by some central administration either. But the WMF can allocate resources. (My feeling is you'll see more and more resources allocated specifically to combat these usability and community interaction problems.)
In the meantime, I don't feel bad for calling attention to the ways that others can help out.
> Lastly, don't give into Zed's crazy alpha-male hierarchy dominance thing.
You're right. I got angry and did not represent my point well. I apologize to HN.