Talk:Military rank

Should this article be kept or deleted?

Pat, you nominated this article, Military rank, for deletion, but didn't offer a specific explanation of your concern.

There are topics that have long articles, with many references, and, for which retention seems obvious, except perhaps to J.L.

Other articles are relatively short, like this one, yet, in my opinion, should be retained, because they are linked to, and provide connections, to articles on multiple other related topics.

Armies, navies, air forces, marine corps, coast guards, and now space forces, all use military ranks. Lots and lots of individuals hold, or held a military rank. All the references in articles to rank, in those articles should link here, unless they link to a specific article, like General, but then General should link here... IMO.

IMO, it would be a mistake to try to explain what those ranks meant in each of the articles that currently links to this article, or in all of the much larger number of articles that should link to this article, but currently do not link here.

The power of an online encyclopedia, like Citizendium, and the Wikipedia, lies not in the raw information contained within, but in how that information is linked, connected, and organized. IMO, at least.

IMO, for a variety of reasons, keeping articles relatively small, and confining them, in so far as possible, to a single topic, is the best organizational system. IMO those small single topic articles should be richly linked to the related articles.

Richard Jensen was one of the official editors with authority over History. If he were still participating here, he might look at this article, or the enlisted article I just created today, and try to tear me a new one, because he thought this topic should be much longer, should start with specific references, to the specific date this term was first used. If he were still here I would say "more power to you, Richard Jensen, if you envision huge improvements to this topic." But, he is not here, and I think the current short article is perfectly adequate. Ditto with enlisted.

Pat, I have told you this a number of times, but I am going to repeat myself. I accept that you pay the lion's share of the bills, here, and hold all the most important passwords, and that Larry passed on the site to you. So, in the end, you make the key decisions.

I have told you this a number of times, but I am going to repeat myself, I am not trying to subvert your authority. I am not trying to subvert your authority covertly. I am not trying to subvert your authority through open defiance.

In the case of this article, and some other articles, I have questioned their deletion because I honestly do not understand why they were nominated for deletion. My questions are not meant to be disruptive or disrespectful. Please don't take them that way. George Swan (talk) 23:05, 7 December 2024 (CST)