User talk:Rankefan

Please read User pages. You are using talk pages improperly. If you want to create a new article, you can create it first off-line or in a subpage, not on a talk page, which is intended for communications between users on Wikipedia-related matters. Also please read about no original research, conflicts of interest, and writing from a neutral point of view to avoid any policy issues in your writing. -- Alexf(talk) 14:06, 16 July 2012 (UTC)

Alexf: Thank you for your helpful comments. I am an complete Wikipedia "newbie", who has not yet mastered its conventions but certainly does not wish to contravene them. I obviously acted clumsily and ignorantly but also in good faith. Here briefly is what I did.

I wanted to add the website of the 'Veterans of the Battle of the Bulge' (or 'VBOB') organization to the External Links of appropriate Wikipedia articles relating to the Battle of the Bulge, to give interested readers access to little known historical accounts and information from actual Battle of the Bulge veterans.

I did not think these were 'original research' or raw 'primary source' material because they were checked and edited before being published on the VBOB website. I thought them 'reliable' and 'verifiable', because they were permanently open to correction on the website by other VBOB members and also verification through reputable Battle of the Bulge histories.

In my ignorance, I also thought that a brief description of VBOB on the User Talk Page would provide reassurance about VBOB's area of competence and bona fides, and be better than just a bare link to its website. In writing this brief description of VBOB, I had absolutely no thought of creating a new Wikipedia article or of 'promotion'.

Some of my External Links to the VBOB website were canceled as not relevant enough to the Wikipedia article. I fully accept this. E.g. 'General Courtney Hodges' and 'First US Army'. My reason for including them was that General Hodges and First US Army successfully attacked the Bulge's northern flank, leading to the junction with Third US Army and total collapse of the German Bulge offensive. Many VBOB veterans were in First US Army units and some have recorded their accounts. But I can now see that the Battle of the Bulge forms too small a part of Hodges and First US Army's Wikipedia articles, for my External Link to be relevant. However some of my External Links to the VBOB website, e.g. in the Wikipedia articles on 'Battle of the Bulge', 'Battle of St. Vith', 'Battle of Bastogne', were also canceled, although very relevant.

What should my next steps be to redeem my situation? I have not yet done anything about the changes. I can provide any further information necessary. Grateful for any advice. (Rankefan 16:04, 17 July 2012 (UTC))