Mutually-assured destruction is inherent in Wikipedia. People who want to push an agenda end up having to write “for the enemy” rather than to those who share the same bias. Most people are pretty reasonable, but you don’t get that sense from TV where they put up two people on opposite sides. Most people are in the middle and aware of pros and cons of issues.
We are really strongly focused on consensus. One criticism of Wikipedia is that the majority rules. But majority is not the right way to describe it. We strive for consensus rather than majority rule. If you are in a group of five or ten people working on an article, if 30 percent of those working on the article dissent, then continue to write the article until all but the most unreasonable agree. Those who continue to disagree are typically exhibiting non-collaborative, and sometimes abusive, behavior.
