Well, for example - one point reads:
“Aggression and elitism are unwelcome – knowledge is not a competition.”
The second part of this sentence is not about conduct per se, but
reads like a put-down to someone who has said something obnoxious.
Whether even in that case such a put-down is helpful is another
matter, but here I would call it a barbed aside.
The first half of the sentence also demonstrates what I mean about
tone - it is almost aggressive itself. The same information could be
put with more, or any, focus on the positive behaviour being requested
- for example, something like this (which could no doubt still be much
better):
“Be respectful and courteous to others, and help ensure everyone feels
welcome to participate, even if you disagree with them or believe that
you know more than they do.”
In my experience it creates a much better community feeling to read a
document about respect and courtesy than one about aggression and
unwelcomeness, even if they express the same thing.
Mark