Wikipedia
Continued from page 17
“I have not engaged in any ‘Holocaust
distortion,’ on Wikipedia or anywhere
else. I am not a ‘right-wing Polish
nationalist,’” said Volunteer Marek
in a public comment on a Wikipedia
message board that was endorsed by
at least one other alleged distorter. “I
am not part of some nefarious ‘Polish
conspiracy’ on Wikipedia which seeks
to manipulate content. All of these
accusations are ridiculous and absurd.

They are particularly disgusting and
vile since they go against everything I
believe in.”
In the debate about how to handle
the case, dozens of arbitrators and
ordinary Wikipedia editors — all
volunteers — spoke of the situation
on a Wikipedia message board as
something close to an existential
crisis for Wikipedia. Not only was the
website accused of being used to
spread antisemitic propaganda, but it
was also alleged to be vulnerable to
large-scale manipulation by a small
group of bad-faith actors.

There is little confi dence in the
community that a solution is within
reach. By its own rules, the committee
isn’t supposed to decide on disputed
information. It’s more of a disciplinary
body that evaluates the behavior of
Wikipedia editors and can ultimately
decide whether to restrict their editing
privileges or ban them outright.

But fi guring out if the accused editors
have indeed evaded safeguards and
undermined Wikipedia’s integrity would
seem to require that the arbitrators
become experts on the history of the
Holocaust in Poland.

The decision to take up the case
serves to acknowledge that the
committee failed to solve the problem
when it last considered complaints
about editing related to the Holocaust
in Poland about two years ago. That
was during Roe’s tenure and he says
the committee was distracted by
another dispute at the time.

“It can’t be escalated further than it
already has in our mechanisms,” Roe
said. “The best we can do is what’s
currently happening now — just put it
through those mechanisms again, and
hope that something better will come
out on the other side.”
In explaining why the committee
must nevertheless take on the case,
an arbitrator who goes by Wugapodes
commented that the only other choice
is to kick the can down the road.

“This will not be an easy issue
to resolve, but the committee was
not convened to solve easy issues,”
Wugapodes wrote, pointing out
that the timing is right given the
attention and involvement of outside
experts and editors. “We can leverage
these resources now or wait for this
decade-long problem to get still
worse.” By a vote of nine to one on Feb. 13,
the committee decided to open the
case. The proceedings, which start
with an evidence-gathering phase, are
expected to last up to six weeks, after
which they can decide to ban and
restrict off ending editors.

Beyond that, an unorthodox last resort
option is also available. Wikipedia’s
so-called Supreme Court could ask for
help from an even higher authority: the
Wikimedia Foundation, a nonprofi t that
owns the encyclopedia. The foundation
intervened in 2021 in what some see as
a similar scenario of a far-right takeover
on the Croatian-language Wikipedia,
hiring an outside expert to disentangle
the web of obfuscation and banning a
set of editors.

Roe said that his tenure on the
committee in 2019 and 2020, which
featured related complaints about the
editing of articles on the Holocaust in
Poland, helped lead him to believe that
Wikipedia should embrace change, at
least when it comes to controversial
political topics.

“I would like to see these diffi cult and
politically charged content problems
be referred to a new body made up
of external experts, and that we don’t
insist on doing everything internally
among the community volunteers,”
Roe said.

But he acknowledged that such a
scenario is unlikely to result from the
Poland dispute.

“It’s not a popular view and it kind
of goes against the general idea of
Wikipedia,” he said. ■
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food & dining
Italian Night
Linda Morel
B ack in October, when the fi rst chill
hit the air, my family was excited by
brisket, short ribs and roasted chicken.

But by the time March rolled around,
everyone was sick of the same old winter
food. Because the weather remains raw and
cold, hearty dinners are still desirable.

But longer, lighter days call for inspiration.

I break up winter monotony by serving
international menu themes. I’ve prepared
Persian, Thai, Austrian and Chinese food.

But Italian night is my family’s favorite.

A nice-sized chunk of Parmesan
cheese is a prerequisite for Italian dining.

For an appetizer, I break it into bite-sized
pieces, which I serve with assorted olives
and sliced tomatoes, drizzled with olive
oil and coarse salt.

A true Italian meal isn’t complete
without a salad, pasta and plenty of garlic.

Dessert is easy. I fi nish off the meal
with a fruit platter and biscotti. If I don’t
have time to bake biscotti, I buy it in a
bakery. Espresso or any dark coff ee adds
a nice touch.

“When are we having Italian night
again?” my granddaughter asked.

“Soon,” I said. “What do you like best
about it?”
“The ziti,” she said. “And the chocolate
chips in biscotti.”
Italian Salad Dressing | Pareve
Yield: ¾ cup of salad dressing
denio109 / AdobeStock
½ ¼
2 ½
½ ½
½ ¼
cup extra-virgin olive oil
cup balsamic vinegar
cloves of garlic, minced fi nely
teaspoon dried basil, crushed
teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
teaspoon dried parsley
teaspoon kosher salt
teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Place all of the ingredients in a jar.

Screw on the top, and shake the contents
until the ingredients are well combined.

This can be served immediately or
refrigerated until ready to serve. Bring it
to room temperature, and shake again
before serving.

Garlic Bread | Dairy
Approximately 15 slices of bread
1 loaf of Italian bread (the type
that resembles a baguette)
¼ pound sweet (unsalted) butter at
room temperature
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
Kosher salt to taste
2 teaspoons fl at-leaf parsley,
tightly packed, chopped
Aluminum foil for wrapping
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the bread on a board. With
a sharp knife, partially cut the bread
into ½-inch slices. Cut each slice about
three-quarters of the way through,
leaving the bottom crust intact. Reserve.

In a small bowl, mix the remain-
ing ingredients with a fork until well
combined. Using a dinner knife, spread
the butter mixture on both sides of
each slice of bread. Tear off a length
of aluminum foil a little longer than the
loaf of bread. Wrap the bread in the
foil, cinching the ends but keeping the
top of the bread exposed.

Place the bread in the oven, and
bake it for 15-20 minutes or until the
butter is melted, the bread is warmed
through and the top crust is a bit
crunchy. Remove the foil, and place
the bread on a narrow platter. Serve
immediately. Tuna and Tomatoes | Pareve
Serves 4-6
1 pound pasta, such as penne or
ziti 2 medium-sized onions
3 tablespoons olive oil, or more,
if needed
4 thick tuna steaks
(about ½ pound each)
Kosher salt to taste
Freshly ground pepper to taste
3 tomatoes, cut into wedges
8 ounces of mushrooms, sliced
2 teaspoons capers
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons Nicoise black olives
2 teaspoons parsley, chopped fi nely
Pasta Start the water for the pasta boiling,
and follow the directions on the pack-
age for making it. While preparing the
pasta, make the tuna.

Tuna Peel and slice the onions. In a large pot
or wok, heat the oil on a medium-low
fl ame. Place the onion slices in the pot.

Sauté, stirring gently, until the onion
slices break into rings and caramelize
to golden in color.

Sprinkle the tops and bottoms of the
tuna steaks with salt and pepper. Move
them to the skillet, raise the fl ame to
medium and sear the bottom of each
steak. Then fl ip them over and sear the
tops, too.

Add the tomatoes and mushrooms
to the pot. Spoon in the capers. Sauté
until the vegetables wilt and the
tomatoes give off some sauce. Add
the garlic and olives. Stir until the garlic
is fragrant. If the pasta isn’t ready, then
remove the tuna pot from the fl ame.

When the pasta is ready, drain it in
a colander. Move it to a large pasta
bowl. Arrange the tuna around the
bowl on top of the pasta. Spoon the
tomato sauce from the pot over the
tuna and pasta. Sprinkle the parsley
over the top, and serve immediately.

Sautéed Escarole | Pareve
Serves 4
1 4
head of escarole
tablespoons olive oil, or more if
needed Kosher salt to taste
5 cloves garlic, minced
Cut off the remains of the escarole
stem, and discard it. Break off the
escarole leaves. Rinse them under cold
water. Drain the escarole in a salad
spinner or on paper towels. Cut each
leave in half horizontally.

In a large pot, heat the oil on a
medium fl ame. In batches, add the
escarole leaves to the pot. Sprinkle
each batch with a little salt.

Once the escarole starts to wilt, sprin-
kle in the garlic. Stir until the garlic
is well distributed. When the escarole
is wilted but not overcooked, serve
immediately. ■
Linda Morel is a freelance food writer.

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