User:Sebwite/Stablestar

A stable star is a proposed award that would be given by consensus to an editor for some accomplishment. Unlike a barnstar, which any editor can award to any other editor, a stable star could only be awarded by consensus. The name "stable star" is not intended to be the real name of the award. This name is only being used during the proposal stage. One of the elements of the award that is intended to be discussed is a possible name. The discussion is open to any and all suggestions.

Types of stable stars
Stable stars can be awarded for achieving any two following accomplishments:
 * Article creation: The creation of one or more really good articles
 * Article expansion: The addition of good information to one or more existing articles
 * Article cleanup: Improvement to the appearance of an article either fixing problems or enabling the removal of an issue template
 * Citation: The addition of references where needed
 * Article rescue: Fixing articles to solve the problems necessary to save an article from deletion
 * Categorization: The organization of articles into a more organized set of categories
 * Template creation: The creation of a really useful template
 * File uploading: Providing useful multimedia, such as photos or videos
 * Miscellaneous: For any reason not listed in any available star for which one may be deserving

The awarding process
A stable star would be awarded following a discussion. A discussion would start after a user is nominated for a stable star. A user could be nominated by any editor, including himself.

Once a nomination has begun, Anyone would be welcome to comment in the discussion, either supporting or opposing the nomination. Nominations would generally be closed after no more than seven days, but if it is clear what the consensus is, the discussion could be closed sooner, even possibly on the same day it started. Since it is possible that there could be numerous proposals, if there is a backlog, it is encouraged that discussions with a clear consensus early on be closed early as soon as the consensus is obvious.

Any autoconfirmed user who did not participate in a discussion could make the decision whether or not an award should be issued if the consensus is clear. If the consensus is unclear, only a more experienced user should make the decision. If a decision made by anyone is opposed by another user, it is then voided, and only an administrator could make the closing decision.

A user who nominates oneself could withdraw the nomination at any time. A user who nominates another user could withdraw the nomination if it appears clear that the award will not be issued.

The award
Once the award has been issued, it could be displayed either on one's user page, user talk page, a special page in one's userspace, or more than one of these by selecting the option to display stable stars on either or both of these pages. Additionally, users could select which stable stars they wish to display and which ones not on each page. Administrators would have the ability to add or remove awards from any user other than themselves. The stable star would not be displayed via a template. This would be done to prevent fake stable stars from being displayed.

Status
The stable star award would be nothing more than an honor for others to see, and to show others what a great contributor you are. It provides no special rights or privileges to the user. It would not allow one have it one's own way, assert authority over others, or otherwise have any special status.

Revoking a stable star
Generally, a stable star could not be stripped from a user, even if the original nominator or any commentator changes his/her mind about the recipient deserving the award, it is for one or more articles that are later deleted, or if the user later engages in any type of disruptive behavior that violates Wikipedia policies. A stable star could only be stripped from a user if the method by which it was obtained was fraudulent. For example, if it is found that a user engaged in sock puppetry or canvassing in order to effect the outcome of a discussion leading to a star, the specific award that was obtained via the violation could then be removed. Such action could still be appealed.

If a user feels that a stable star must be revoked, s/he could bring up the issue on the appropriate page for the type of violation in question. If it is shown the violation did occur, the award would then be removed. A user who wishes to have his/her own star removed could simply uncheck it in his/her user settings, and it would not be visible.