🧠 Rule 15: Be Wrong Responsibly

Being wrong happens. It’s part of learning, experimenting, and troubleshooting. But persistently spreading incorrect information, especially when corrected and unwilling to engage, violates Rule 15. We’ve all seen it — the stubborn, the smug, the “helpful” know-it-all leaving a trail of bad advice and confidently broken takes.

🚫 Violations of Rule 15 include:

Dismissed Correction
Giving bad advice and resisting correction.
Asked-and-Argued
Asking for help, then rejecting every valid answer.
Unsolicited PSA
Publicly declares something is broken “for the good of others,” while refusing questions or help — there’s nothing to discuss, it’s just fact.
Unverified Citation
Cites support replies or forum posts they can’t find — but insists it’s true because they can reproduce it.

💬 Examples

Dismissed Correction
You’re hitting basic issues no one else can reproduce. You don’t want help — just a bug report link. You won't show your config, your logs are inconclusive, and your firmware’s two years old because “latest didn’t fix it, and nothing in the changelogs covers this.”

Asked-and-Argued
If you already knew the answer, why’d you ask? If you didn’t, why are you arguing? Pick one — or kindly show yourself out (see: free to go, probably won’t).

Unsolicited PSA
“I’m not here for help or discussion, just here to pass along that it’s broken and walk away.” That’s not a contribution. That’s a vibe post with delusions of utility disguised as a universal truth.

Unverified Citation
“It was in a thread… and a reply from support… and maybe from the CEO. I don’t need to prove it — I can reproduce it. Trust me, bro.”

✅ Rule 15 does NOT apply if you:

Made an honest mistake and accepted correction
Asked questions in good faith
Are engaged in nuanced or debatable issues

💡 Taglines to Remember

"It’s okay to be wrong. It’s not okay to be uncorrectable."

"Bad advice happens. Rule 15 is for when it stays bad on purpose."

"One more rule than Reddit's toughest — and way more useful."

📢 Add Rule 15 to Your Community

If you run or moderate an online community, consider adding Rule 15 to your posted guidelines. It's a simple way to keep discussions constructive, protect users from bad advice, and encourage technical accuracy without ego.

Copy, remix, and adapt it for your Discord, subreddit, forum, or GitHub repo — just keep the spirit of the rule intact: wrong is okay, uncorrectable is not.

Rule 15 isn’t about gatekeeping. It's about promoting truth, accountability, and healthy discussion. If someone can't handle being corrected, they’re free to go — but probably won’t.