User talk:Gibnews/Archive 1

Archive 1

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Archive 5

In the beginning

I discovered wikipedia some time ago, and without creating an account have been updating the pages on Gibraltar, removing the nonsense about 'institutional criminality' and incuding a section about communications, which is my particular interest.

However, it became clear that others were also editing the texts and expanding them to the level that it was becoming quite good.

For the avoidance of doubt, although I am a Gibraltarian, I am not User:Gibraltarian

Pictures

Hi Gibnews. I've seen that you're uploading photos to here, under the public domain license. Has you considered to upload them to commons? That way (and as long as they are GFDL or PD) they would be available for all the wikipedias and not only for this one. You may choose to upload photos here when they're copyrighted and therefore are provided under the fair use condition (that license is not allowed by commons). I'm currently translating the Joe Bossano article into Spanish and I can't use the Bossano's picture. Anyway, best regards. --Ecemaml 12:35, 15 January 2006 (UTC)

Yes, that is a good idea, but it took me some time to work out how to do it here and how to link them in.

Well, it's fairy simple. Just registering in commons, uploading the picture in the same way as in here and voilà!, you can link them from here simply including the tag [[Image:...]], as if the photo were locally stored here.

Not sure how to go about the commons, and my attempt to correct the Gibraltar flag there seems to be taking forever as its in a wierd format. The one shown everywhere has the wrong castle.

May I help you? What's the problem? (I'm afraid that it's related to the change to vectorial graphics in flags, isn't it? Fortunately, that decision only applies to flags and coat of arms, but it's been a weird decision (it caused a lot of discusion in es:).

All photos I've uploaded here are my origination and donated to the public domain, so feel free to copy the one of Joe Bossano. Those on my website are not PD and I keep having to complain to people who steal them.--Gibnews 09:37, 16 January 2006 (UTC)

Take it for granted. Anyway, I'll upload them to commons. It's a better way to share the pictures. --Ecemaml 10:33, 16 January 2006 (UTC)

Excellent, yes its the issue of vector graphics that are the problem - I can see advantages but spent a few hours trying to find out how they are created and gave up.--Gibnews 20:29, 16 January 2006 (UTC)

I've uploaded the Joe Bossano picture to commons. As I've told you, the vector graphics should be only used with flags and not with usual pictures, so that whenever you upload a PD photo here, I'll upload it to commons. BTW, have you got a Sir Joshua Hassan photo? I'm planning to write an article on him for es: and a picture would be nice. On the other hand, which is the issue with the current Gibraltar flag picture (you told something about a wrong castle)? If you want, I can try to convert it to vectorial graphics (I'll send you a mail upon your request to let you know my email address; you'll be able to answer me with the original picture). Best regards --Ecemaml 10:45, 17 January 2006 (UTC)

Gibraltar in Spanish

Hi, Gibnews. As far as I know, the articles are just semiprotected, so that with just a registratrion, in a few days, you'd be able to edit anything you want. Best regards --Ecemaml 19:23, 22 January 2006 (UTC)

Rewriting Gibraltar

A new user is the Gibraltar page today adding several Spanish POV statements. Astrotrain 15:39, 7 February 2006 (UTC)

• Thanks for reverting- I was too close to 3RR. Astrotrain 19:55, 7 February 2006 (UTC)

Don't know what gets into these guys, if indeed its more than one. I rather like visiting Spain, its a wonderful country and the people are generally friendly on a personal basis. Like many places there are a lot of things wrong with it - but I find no desire to write fairy tales about it on the wikipedia page about Spain.

As my chief Minister remarked at the result of the recent referendum- Spanish politicians should ask themselves why the suggestion of Gibraltar being part of their modern European nation is unacceptable.

It is certainly not about money as we were offered a hefty bribe to say yes and threatened with a stick if we said no.--Gibnews 01:27, 11 February 2006 (UTC)

Falkland Islands

An anon is still insisting on adding the Spanish name, even although it is already stated in the intro. You may want to have a look. Astrotrain 23:46, 1 March 2006 (UTC)

Gawd; wish I hadn't got involved in that one - but someone has to--Gibnews 12:01, 19 March 2006 (UTC)

---

I am sorry if I have offended you, as that is not my intention. However, it would seem that the case in question, involving someone repeatedly edit-warring and reverting over a place-name, would have some bearing. That you are from Gilbraltar, the place in question, was not the reason for me bringing it up. From of review of the ArbCom case, it would appear that the editor in question did not buy into the basic premise of Wikipedia -- consensus decision-making. That is the only point I am trying to make. -- Gnetwerker 09:30, 23 March 2006 (UTC)

Gibraltar infobox

The problem was not with any information about Gibraltar, it was the infobox template itself, which is less user-friendly than previous ones.

The information about it being a UK overseas territory is displayed twice (which is why I put <!-- can somebody get rid of this? -->) but when I tried to delete it, it created spaces for {{{established_events}}} {{{established_dates}}} I have no issues at all with the status of Gibraltar, or with the data contained in the infobox - in fact, I wanted to enter information for National Day being on 10th September.

Sorry for any misunderstanding. Quiensabe 16:24, 4 April 2006 (UTC)

Looks much better, thanks. Perhaps National Day could warrant an internal link, either to the generic National Day link or one specific to Gibraltar. I'll have a go. Quiensabe 15:38, 10 April 2006 (UTC)

Vandalism in progress

• Gibraltar page being targeted by an anon user insisting on POV view of the British seizure of the territory as "illegal- as Spain was not at war with England". He's already broken the 3RR, but I am at my limit. Astrotrain 15:55, 6 April 2006 (UTC)

rgr. Always gotta be one. --Gibnews 18:21, 6 April 2006 (UTC)

Infobox

• On a more positive note, I've recently created a Gibraltar topics infobox. Please add any links you think necessary. Astrotrain 23:13, 6 April 2006 (UTC)

It looks out of place and clumsy, but it does serve a useful purpose of providing links, however maybe a simple list would be better cosmetically?--Gibnews 07:58, 7 April 2006 (UTC)

I hacked it and it now looks neat.--Gibnews 23:41, 27 April 2006 (UTC)

A solution: hand it over to the monkeys

Neither British nor Spanish feel comfortable about your fucking rock. In fact, the Spanish government only speaks about this issue from time to time, as a mere remnant of irredentism (but without real interest on the matter). And the British...it´s only a headache, crowded with financial pirates...So what about the monkeys? They would be live up to be good rulers. And who wants the only european territory with monkeys?

Thank you for your comments about said 'fucking rock' please supply a name and address and I'll demonstrate its use by insertion of a large bit of it where the sun does not shine.

It seems the monkeys are popular with the millions of tourists who come every year to see them, and as you point out they are the only example of wild monkeys to be found in Europe.

As regards 'comfort' that of Spain is not my concern, but I'm very comfortable, and very British. --Gibnews 18:04, 18 May 2006 (UTC)

British? You make me laugh. Con ese asento inintelihible, no hablái bien ningún idioma. The British don´t give a damn about your magnificent rock. Nor does anyone, only you and your monkeys (which in fact cannot be distinguised clearly from the inhabitants of your tax haven). Please, remain as you´re now (away from the rest of the peninsula), but play by the rules of the EU if you want to be considered seriously. Gora tu sa bak! Txetxu.80.32.152.184 08:49, 19 May 2006 (UTC)

Clearly you care enough about it to reply and be abusive. As regards the EU Gibraltar is up-to-date with legislation and joined in 1973, long before some other states. --Gibnews 10:07, 19 May 2006 (UTC)

Tawkerbot2

Nope, its independent code, the only thing that varies from wiki to wiki is the swear word list :) -- Tawker 22:44, 24 May 2006 (UTC)

Gibraltarian

Don't worry. I'm on the job. :) Kate left Wikipedia, so I'll put Falkland Islands on my watchlist. I really wish he'd go get a hobby. :) --Woohookitty^(meow) 19:41, 28 May 2006 (UTC)

History

Hey Gibnews, I think it would be important to state that Gibraltar was the first Jewish state in history. What do you think?--Burgas00 12:08, 16 June 2006 (UTC)

Thats an interesting suggestion, perhaps you could develop the theme and also describe that inside the rock are alien artifacts and it is the secret resting place of the Holy Grail.

But Wikipedia does not support these concepts --Gibnews 19:28, 16 June 2006 (UTC)

Between 1474-1476. For 3 years Gibraltar was ruled by Jews from Cordoba. Perhaps you should read a little about the little piece of land you live on before making such remarks...

If you need sources I will provide them for you. But I will give you the opportunity to research the matter by yourself. Or why don't you walk down to your local synagogue. I am sure the Rabbi will be happy to talk to you about the Jewish history of Gibraltar.

--Burgas00 22:58, 16 June 2006 (UTC)

Actually, Ive just noticed. Its already mentioned in the article!!! Hadnt you realised??? I have added the point on it being the first jewish state since the diaspora. I think its something you should be proud of as it makes Gibraltar even more "special";-). --Burgas00 23:09, 16 June 2006 (UTC)

I would assume that Jews from Cordoba were Spanish, and did not realise that anti-semitism was so strong in Spain anymore. Locally we all respect each others traditions, culture and religion so its not something +we+ worry about - Sir Joshua Hassan was jewish as was one of his other ministers and some others have been openly gay but our government is elected on its ability to govern and not on the basis of prejudice.

Yours says a lot about you.--Gibnews 09:49, 17 June 2006 (UTC)

Gibnews I dont understand how you manage to politicize such non-political issues. I am not attacking Gibraltar or Gibraltarians with my point or my edits. Actually I think it is something you should be proud of. Why do you need to attack Spain on this issue or on the issue of gay rights (Spain happens to be one of the few countries in the world where gays can marry legally). You dont make any sense. Since I dont consider your answer as an answer but just an incomprehensible rant on why you hate Spain, I will revert to my last version. All I am trying to do is help on the Gibraltar article on an issue which is (for once) unrelated to the Anglo-Spanish dispute. I am starting to suspect you suffer from paranoia related to this issue.--Burgas00 10:51, 17 June 2006 (UTC)

I think you need to learn English if you find my comments are 'anti-Spanish.' Your assertion that Gibraltar was a 'Jewish State' is nonsense. I see no point in discussing this matter further.--Gibnews 20:56, 17 June 2006 (UTC)

Why is it nonsense? I don't understand why something which is blatantly true and historically documented can be nonsense. Perhaps I have to take Gibraltar-English lessons but I dont understand your arguments.--Burgas00 22:10, 17 June 2006 (UTC)

You don't understand the difference between a state with Jews and a Jewish state, come to that its debatable whether Israel is a Jewish State last time I discussed this with the chief rabbi he stated Israel was a secular state, as is Gibraltar. Given the large variation and degrees of religion of Judaism that there is no 'official state version' in Israel compared to say, the standardised and official Church of England, and Church of Scotland is no surprise.

Shabbat Shalom --Gibnews 22:34, 17 June 2006 (UTC)

Don't worry I understand very well everything related to Judaism and Israel:-).

Israel is a secular state but it is also a jewish state and homeland to the jews as is enshrined by the Laws of citizenship and return.

Jews are not only a religion but a people, and different branches of the religion are of no matter.

If you want to know more about Israel please read this http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Dec_of_Indep.htmlThe declaration of independence acts as a source of Israeli Law in a similar way to a constitution.

I dont know why you brought up Israel anyways. Gibraltar was a sovereign state for 3 years run by Jews for the Jewish community. --Burgas00 00:12, 18 June 2006 (UTC)

Your source is unreliable --Gibnews 01:26, 18 June 2006 (UTC)

Thanks

I'd just like to show some appreciation for the great work you've put into editing Gibraltar and related wikipedia articles. I shudder to think how warped POV they may have been without your edits. Keep up the good work! Saluton 18:55, 24 June 2006 (UTC)

Saluton has smiled at you! Smiles promote WikiLove and hopefully this one has made your day better. Spread the WikiLove by smiling to someone else, whether it be someone you have had disagreements with in the past or a good friend. Smile to others by adding {{subst:smile}}, {{subst:smile2}} or {{subst:smile3}} to their talk page with a friendly message. Happy editing!

Thank you, please feel free to dive in and do the same.--Gibnews 19:52, 24 June 2006 (UTC)

Ok Gibnews Im going to stop giving you sh*t on the Gibraltar article. It s a waste of both of our time. But I still think you have to reconsider your position and try to be as NPOV as possible. Gibraltar will never be Spanish, or atleast not in any forseable future. For this reason you should break out of this siege mentality which pushes you to (in my opinion subconsciously) develop this bias.

Enjoy your sunday. --Burgas00 15:04, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

Most appreciated, You may have heard the first law of avoiding getting into a hole, is to stop digging. Similarly to escape from a 'seige mentality' its necessary for the aggressor to desist from engaging in a siege. Perhaps you could write to the MAE and suggest its time to stop blocking Gibraltar's telephones and participation in international sporting events, like UAFA.

Best regards --Gibnews 09:35, 26 June 2006 (UTC)

Archiving

I've just archived Talk:Gibraltar, trimming it down significantly. I left the parts of the discussion that have received comments in the last few days, so there's still a fair amount of material there, but if the discussion ends I'll archive again. For now though a 40kb talk page should be easier to deal with. --Spangineer^[es] (háblame) 14:44, 28 June 2006 (UTC)

Excellent, keep up the good work ! --Gibnews

Please assume good faith

Hi Gibnews,

I've added some feedback on the current dispute on Talk:Gibraltar. Please take a look.

I have to say I'm also a bit perturbed by your approach to dealing with the other editors, in particular the claim that they're just "slagging off Gibraltar" as you put it. Claiming that other users are acting maliciously because they don't share your POV borders on personally attacking them - you really shouldn't indulge in it. Please assume good faith in future and stick to addressing the information they provide, rather than making assumptions about their motives. Assuming bad faith just annoys people and will make it harder for you to achieve consensus about what to put in the article. -- ChrisO 20:46, 10 July 2006 (UTC)

Take a look at the evidence, its pretty clear. Its not a matter of POV its a matter of a sustained attack against Gibraltar from Spain. It does get very tiresome. --Gibnews

RfC

A request for comment has been filed against you. Please provide your input (if any) in the "Response" section. 20:57, 10 July 2006 (UTC)

Hi Gibnews:

Im sorry for starting the RfC against you. I hope you dont take it personally. But I and other users have been warning you for months over your behaviour which stifles the very basis of wikipedia: Respect, Dialogue and Consensus. Spain and Spanish media may be biased against Gibraltar, and maybe so am I and other users who contribute to the article. Bias exists on all sides of debate, including the British one. The main point is respecting all points of view as long as they are verifiable. I (and all other users it seems) respect your POV, why cant you respect those views which dont coincide with your own?

In any case you seem like a nice guy and you are certainly well educated. I dont want you banned, only that you realise that you have made a mistake in your attitude to editing in wikipeda. --Burgas00 11:59, 11 July 2006 (UTC)

On the contrary, thank you. My lawyer tells me that opinions are things that can be discussed, but facts are things which can be established. The dispute is about facts and anyone who follows the links can quickly determine the merit of what was removed. The sad thing is that you are as much a victim of the process of demonising Gibraltar and the Gibraltarians as we are. I suggest you come here and see what we are talking about and I can introduce you to the financial Services regulator and see what his views are.

--Gibnews 14:31, 11 July 2006 (UTC)

The thing is that I dont see this demonisation of Gibraltar anywhere. I have been living in Spain for a number of years and the newspapers, tv and radio rarely speak about Gibraltar. And the few times that they do it is not always in a negative light. Proof of the absence of this demonisation are the rather obscure examples conjured up by User:Rockeagle on the RfC. If a campaign against Gibraltar really existed, more blatant examples could be found.

The right and extreme right in Spain (to whom it normally corresponds to care about issues of irredentism) are much more worried about the Socialist's negotiations with ETA and the supposed involvement of the PSOE in the 11-M bombings (sad but true) than they are about the past, present or future of Gibraltar.

--Burgas00 15:43, 11 July 2006 (UTC)

ah so blocking our phones, endangering air safety and obstructing every bit of EU legislation that mentions Gibraltar has stopped ?

According to the Spanish Government Gibraltar remains its 'second most important foreign affairs issue' I really wish they would move on, you too.

Let me know when the Gibraltar Tourist office in Madrid can fly a Gibraltar flag outside its premises, as the ones elsewhere do, then the dispute is really over.

--Gibnews 21:14, 12 July 2006 (UTC)

I think they do that just out of inertia than anything else. It has always been official policy and no one has thought about questioning it. No one really cares or talks about Gibraltar (except in the context of broken down nuclear submarines), I assure you. It is rather naïve on your behalf to really believe that Gibraltar could be the second, third, 6th or even 20th most important foreign affairs issue for the Spanish government.--Burgas00 17:29, 13 July 2006 (UTC)

Ah so now you speak for the Spanish Government, then perhaps you could answer the question about when the Gibraltar office in Madrid can fly its flag, and when they can call home using the 350 telephone code on their mobiles.

Clearly 'nobody in Spain cares about Gibraltar' which is why you have wasted countless hours trying to rewrite things to your POV.

I see, said the blind man. --Gibnews

I care about Gibraltar! But then again, I am a British citizen so I should care..

By the way your edits are getting really silly. Gibraltar advertises as an International Finance Centre (we learnt that from that link you gave us which talked about the importance of changing the name). The stuff about the Report on Spanish claims is useless since there are no such claims on the article. (It would be useful if we started writing about drugs and money laundering, thats not the case). And why do you say "prior to 2000" have you not read the links to the IMF webpage???? Whats going on????

--Burgas00 18:16, 13 July 2006 (UTC)

Please refrain from being abusive. --Gibnews

Re sockpuppets

Hi. I believe you confused me w/ someone else [1]. When did i assert some are the same? Could you please provide a reference "me saying that"? -- Szvest 21:42, 18 July 2006 (UTC)

Explained. Cheers -- Szvest 21:51, 18 July 2006 (UTC)

3 revert warning on Talk:Gibraltar

You are in danger of violating the [[Wikipedia:|three-revert rule]] on a page. Please cease further reverts or you may be blocked from further editing. -- ChrisO 20:18, 22 July 2006 (UTC)

OK, you were warned. -- ChrisO 22:57, 22 July 2006 (UTC)

1. I did not see your warning.

2. Posting large amounts of text in Spanish amounts to vandalism.This policy does not apply to correcting simple vandalism.

3. If you have blocked me I trust you have also blocked Burgas00 who initiated this edit war.

4. At least one of my reverts was to restore my comments removed by Burgas00

5. My last edit removed the Spanish text, but inserted a link to the page, that is not a 'comment' by another user but a large chunk of material in an inappropriate foreign language, I have not deleted his comments.

6. You do not have an email registered to respond to.

--Gibnews

Posting Spanish text and asking people to translate it is plainly not vandalism - please see WP:VANDAL for definitions. Anyway, I think I've made my point, so I'm unblocking you; please don't do it again, and please avoid making personal attacks on other users or their ethnicities. -- ChrisO 08:40, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

That was not what was done, or what happened. I will be making a complaint about Burgas00 as he is not contributing anything useful and simply trying to provoke a dispute.

I note as at this time I am still blocked. --Gibnews 11:19, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

I'm neither Gibraltarian nor Spanish, so I don't have an axe to grind on this issue. But I have to say that your approach has on a number of occasions been quite xenophobic - you seem to assume that "because the government of Spain is hostile to Gibraltar nothing any Spaniard or Spanish source says can be trusted". This kind of crude "all Spaniards are liars" isn't that far from the line being pushed by the banned Gibraltarian. Please think about what you say before you say it, and if you haven't already read Wikipedia:Civility please do so.

As for the block, I'm puzzled; according to the log you've definitely been unblocked (see [2]). What message do you get when you try to edit outside of your user talk page? -- ChrisO 11:38, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

Its gone now. The message I got at the time logged was the same as previous telling me that my IP was blocked. As regards good will from the Spanish Government towards Gibraltar, when I see some I will believe. Sadly its citizens are as much a victim of its propaganda as we are. Given the gross lies that are circulated, for instance EU Commissioner Lola de Palacio trying to blame the MT Prestige disaster on Gibraltar, or Spain making a complaint against the UK for enfranchising Gibraltar in elections for the EU Parliament, its hard to form a different view. Quite what Burgas00 is trying to achieve by defaming our finance center by the use of the pejorative term 'tax haven' or posting long Spanish excerpts in the talk pages when he says he is bilingual is another matter. I see just see abuse. --Gibnews 12:21, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

Nope the ban is still lurking, on trying to edit the page about Europa Point I get

Your user name or IP address has been blocked from editing.

You were blocked by ChrisO for the following reason (see our blocking policy): Autoblocked because your IP address has been recently used by "Gibnews". The reason given for Gibnews's block is: "Violation of WP:3RR, deletion of other users' contributions to Talk:Gibraltar". Your IP address is 212.120.225.2

--Gibnews 13:20, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

--Gibnews 19:41, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

What you talking about? I did not (at least willingly) erase any of your comments. I simply posted a section from the article in es:wikipedia on the talk page which I thought might be a contribution. In your usual manner, you promptly erased it. It does not say anything bad about Gibraltar it simply is better written and uses better sources. I think you should reflect about your xenophobia and about your aversion to anything related to Spain and the Spanish language.

Especially considering it is the vernacular language of your territory. I have a number of Gibraltarian friends and they all speak in Spanish to their parents. None of them share your hatred towards Spain nor do they feel harassed by their neighbour. One thing is having respectable political opinions another thing is this negative and aggressive attitude you are conveying in wikipedia. --Burgas00 11:41, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

Congratulations on getting me banned after the debacle of your attempt with Rfc; Again you are trying to put words in my mouth about a 'hatred of Spain' where none exists, however posting long Spanish texts in an English language discussion group amounts to abusive behaviour. Your Gibraltarian friends don't seem to express their views on Wikipedia or around town and all sensible people do recognise that the Government of Spain harasses Gibraltar in the ways I have listed, which you edited out.

Everybody wants good neigbourly relations, however in the referendum 18176 voted representing 87.9% of the electorate. 17,900 voted against any involvment of the Spanish Government in Gibraltar's affairs.

There are good reasons for that.

--Gibnews

Of course. None of the Gibraltarians I know want Spain to be involved in the affairs of Gibraltar. But none of them share your discernable hostility and paranoia that Spain and the Spanish people are all out to get them.

And I have NOT got you banned. Please take responsibility for your own actions. --Burgas00 12:11, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

Oh I do, just complimenting you on your success. Again you are trying to plant hostility on me where there is no evidence. I find abusive behaviour annoying. --Gibnews

Thanks. I made a couple of calls to the Spanish secret services. You are now classed as a dangerous element and a national security risk. We are considering sending over a hit squad to Gibraltar and taking you out.;-) --Burgas00 14:51, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

I've tried re-blocking you for 1 minute in the hope that that'll clear it. Did it work? -- ChrisO 15:57, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

Per a post on unblock-en-L there may be an issue with the dynamic IP address itself (most recently 212.120.225.2). I have asked Gibnews for further info on the mailing list. Georgewilliamherbert 21:28, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

my two cents

If one of the edits "removed the Spanish text, but inserted a link to the page", it can not be considered a real revert, so 3RR should not have been applied... -- Jokes Free4Me 09:13, 1 August 2006 (UTC)

Gibraltar pound

I have interpreted "Since 1927, Gibraltar has issued its own banknotes and, since 1988, its own coins, although British coins and banknotes continue to circulate and are widely accepted; Euros are also accepted by most of the high-street stores." as to mean that you can use (and buy) GIP, especially if i am given the "Current GIP exchange rates". I think you would better change that page first, and then the main Gibraltar page... -- Jokes Free4Me 09:12, 1 August 2006 (UTC)

OK I will change the 'British' to UK. Its an area of continued confusion, but looking in my wallet there are no notes denominated in GIP and you cannot open a bank account in that currency as it does not exist. --Gibnews

Well, if it does not exist, then i would think you'd need to change a lot more than just "the 'British' to UK". Like: "For some time since 1927, Gibraltar has issued its own banknotes and, since 1988, its own coins, although today only UK coins and banknotes are officially circulating and being accepted; Euros are also accepted by most of the high-street stores." or some such - the current text says nothing of the GIP being deceased. -- Jokes Free4Me 16:52, 1 August 2006 (UTC)

Its something that does cause confusion. There is an ISO code for the Gibraltar Pound, however the currency notes issued by the Government of Gibraltar are actually Sterling, ie GBP. As far as I know you cannot open a bank account in GIP. Think of it in the same way as Scottish notes, which are issued by Scottish banks but are Pounds Sterling. Looking in my wallet I see a UK note issued by the Bank of England and a Gibraltar one issued by the Government of Gibraltar, both are British and both are GBP. The GIP is not deceased, but perhaps like the Norwegian Blue, its resting. --Gibnews

RfC, My Comments

Gibnews, do understand that I am not trying to do anything that amounts to Reductio ad Hitlerum. I am simply saying you didn't do anything bad. You just took a side, that's it. We all do that. However, please make sure you don't act controversially on a controversial topic. That doesn't bode well for anyone. Arbiteroftruth 17:09, 4 August 2006 (UTC)

Didn't I see something on your page about 'being bold with editing' :)

I admit to being biased towards presenting the truth and not baseless Spanish propaganda, the truth shall set us free or so say the CIA. It took me six months to get their factbook cleaned up in relation to Gibraltar, but its now pretty accurate. The only thing I regret about the same exercise on Wikipedia is the damn thing is now ahead of my website in Google.

--Gibnews

Farrell

That too. Sadly so many did not because many of her comrades were more successful, usually on their parents but, as we saw at Omagh, on children too. What a terrible waste on all is war. Fergananim 19:26, 12 August 2006 (UTC)

'Neutral Zone'?

Hey, Since you live on the Rock, I've got a question. On maps of Gibraltar such as this one [3], i've seen an area in Spain called the 'Neutral Zone'. What is this about? Thanks for your help. - Thanks, Hoshie 04:16, 8 September 2006 (UTC)

Its a historical relic and although it is shown on the maps it no longer exits; its origin was as a DMZ to prevent the Spanish sneaking up on the rock.

read its history here

--Gibnews 07:46, 8 September 2006 (UTC)

Thanks, man! The BBC has announced that the European Court of Justice has rejected the lawsuit by Spain over the vote you guys and gals on The Rock earned for EP elections in 2004; see [4]. - Thanks, Hoshie 17:51, 12 September 2006 (UTC)

ARA San Luis

Hey- would you like to take a look at ARA San Luis- I've just been banned for 24 hours for removing an incorrect and unnecessary Malivnas addition by an Argentine user. Any comments would be welcome on the talk page. Thanks Astrotrain 00:40, 1 October 2006 (UTC)

Been there and done that, given that the UK has always been a leader in ASW, from necesity, they are lucky to still have a submarine. --Gibnews

Re Gibraltar

Hi Gibnews,

(rv - Please discuss before deleting things)

Apologies not to state the following (as intended): "rm template (not a country) per discussion here onward."
Are you aware of the other work on this page that you reverted?
Regards, David Kernow (talk) 22:52, 29 October 2006 (UTC)

Follow-up

Please read

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Country

Its a term without any precice meaning, and Gibraltar would

seem to qualify on most counts; We are recognised by ISO

as having a country code and an internet tld .gi - we elect

our own Government and have our own legal system.

Although it suits the Spanish Government to portray the

place as a 'British Colony' that would be far from the reality

and its more a country than anything else, albeit a small one

I've reverted you change on that basis and am very happy to

discuss this further with you should you feel it necessary.

The current disambiguation link at the top of the Gibraltar article indicates that Gibraltar is a "United Kingdom Overseas Territory", while the opening sentence states that Gibraltar is a British overseas territory... Are either or both these incorrect...?  Please advise.

Meanwhile, a {{Dependent and other territories of Europe}} template should be arriving in (hopefully) the not-to-distant future. Regards, David (talk) 10:33, 30 October 2006 (UTC)
PS Have restored other work not indicated in edit summary.

...{{Dependent and other territories of Europe}} now in situ. Best wishes, David (talk) 14:38, 30 October 2006 (UTC)
PS The links in {{Gibraltar topics}} seem overly small; how about a makeover...?

Apologies if I trashed some of your other work with a rv I only noticed the 'country' bit.

I usually scan a diff just in case, but, as above, I forgot to alter the edit summary, so your action understandable.

The current term seems to be 'UK Overseas territory' per the FCO website. The term 'colony' is no longer fashionable or appropriate and 'Dependent territory' was dumped quickly in case anyone asked for money. I rather liked 'British Overseas Territory' but that was also obsoleted, I suspect because of the EU.

I don't know what the official description might be – I'd've assumed the latter – or even how many "official" descriptions there might be...

...There is a lot of tidying up needed on wikipedia to bring all this in line.

Amen!

Meanwhile, are you (and do you think fellow Gibraltarians (sp?) would be) happy with the article's current status quo...?  Sometime in the (probably distant) future I'll see how {{Gibraltar topics}} looks...

Yours, David (talk) 18:53, 30 October 2006 (UTC)

"UK"/"British"

Was just trying to make the references to Gibraltar as an "overseas territory" within the infobox consistent and have now recalled your saying "UK overseas territory" is the official description (yes..?). The link I put in place, however, was to British overseas territory; is there a substantive difference between the two...?  If so, apologies and I'll amend the infobox accordingly. Yours, David (talk) 14:18, 1 November 2006 (UTC)

Deleted Article

Gibnews, please do not disrupt the undeletion procedure by requesting speedy deletion. A number of administrators have requested access to a copy of the article before they can vote on undeletion. It is on my userpage for that reason.

Thanks --Burgas00 16:05, 18 November 2006 (UTC)

The article has been deleted, reposting it is abusive hehaviour, admins can see deleted articles so you are wrong. --Gibnews

Many people make this mistake. Spain doesnt recognize dual nationality but double nationality is possible. The distinction is subtle but you could, as many people do, have both Spanish and British nationality. You could not use your British nationality, however, to avoid legal duties and obligations within Spain. Btw, you can do an AfD on Original inhabitants of Gibraltar. The name was unfortunate and I will also vote for deletion. --Burgas00 18:03, 22 November 2006 (UTC)

If the labour Government in the UK continues devaluing British Nationality, as they have in the case of the Natwest Three, I may consider applying for a Spanish passport. I'm safe from being invited to do military service :) if they still have conscription. --Gibnews 22:06, 22 November 2006 (UTC)

Gib Airport/Iberia

Someone's added to the airport article saying Iberia are going to start flying between Gib and Madrid- can't find any sources for this- you heard anything on the Rock about this? Astrotrain 12:06, 23 November 2006 (UTC)

Yeah its all set for 16th December 2006 see Here

My view is that Wikipedia should reflect things that ARE and I would have included it after the event. Its handy as otherwise one has to drive to Malaga and there are some useful connections in MAD. Perhaps I can go and visit my pal BURGAS00 for the weekend, or he can come here and see what Gibraltar is really like ;) --Gibnews 15:05, 23 November 2006 (UTC)

I dont live in Spain unfortunately. Ill send u a mail next time I go to Gibraltar though. :-)--Burgas00 21:58, 23 November 2006 (UTC)

OK let me know and I'll buy you lunch (and not at a sushi bar) --Gibnews 09:25, 25 November 2006 (UTC)

Pictures of Iberia practising their landings --Gibnews 21:52, 26 November 2006 (UTC)

Why not a sushibar?--Burgas00 20:51, 27 November 2006 (UTC)

Because of this tapas don't glow --Gibnews 00:28, 28 November 2006 (UTC)

Gibraltar topics temp

It seems that the "hide" option has been enacted. It can be shown in full if you click the link on the top right hand side. It seems to be policy to hide templates now- though I don't agree with that for these kind of templates.

I may need to add Scottish Gaelic translations for all the Gibraltar names in the future the way things are going round here... Astrotrain 10:35, 6 December 2006 (UTC)

Vandalism of the Gibraltar entry

Hi,

We need keep an eye on recent vandalism stating for example that Gib is a Spanish overseas territory? The users are making correct edits in between vandalism edits to make it harder to revert the article without losing accurate information. Many Thanks! Alexander-Scott 13:17, 6 December 2006 (UTC)

Ok ill give a hand watching the page...--Burgas00 17:34, 6 December 2006 (UTC)

How strange, a gibtelecom user claiming its a Spanish territory, thats grounds for deportation :) --Gibnews 19:13, 6 December 2006 (UTC)

Are you serious???  :-)--Burgas00 19:26, 6 December 2006 (UTC)

This is the standard response --Gibnews