Talk:Arkansas/GA1

GA Review

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Reviewer: 12george1 (talk · contribs) 00:02, 1 January 2013 (UTC)

I would love to pass this article, however I have several queries I noticed throughout the article. I hope you are not offended by my decision, but unfortunately I do not feel that this article should pass. You can press Ctrl F to view some of the quotations below within the article.

• In the infobox, it says that the highest point is "Magazine Mountain", but it should be "Mount Magazine"
• Also in the infobox, the political party of Governor Mike Beebe is WikiLinked (Democratic), but not Lieutenant Governor Mark Darr's party (Republican).
• "The highest point in the state is Mount Magazine in the Ouachita Mountains; it rises to 2,753 feet (839 m) above sea level." - [Citation needed]
• "although by members of the public with primitive digging tools for a small daily fee, not by commercial interests.[19][20] (near Murfreesboro)." - I am not sure that ending part is really necessary, but if it is, find a way to sentence it in that sentence.
• "Arkansas is home to a dozen Wilderness Areas totaling around 150,000 acres (610 km2). These areas are set aside for outdoor recreation and are open to hunting, fishing, hiking, and primitive camping. No mechanized vehicles are allowed in these areas, some of which are rarely visited and can provide a good experience of feeling as if you are the only person to have ever stepped foot there." - [Citation needed]
• "Snowfall is common, more so in the north half of the state, which usually gets several snowfalls each winter. This is not only due to its proximity to the plains states, but also to the higher elevations found throughout the Ozark and Ouachita mountains. The half of the state south of Little Rock gets less snow, and is more apt to see ice storms, however, sleet and freezing rain are expected throughout the state during the winter months, and can significantly impact travel and day to day life. Arkansas' all time record high is 120 °F (49 °C) at Ozark on August 10, 1936; the all time record low is −29 °F (−34 °C) at Round Pond, on February 13, 1905." - [Citation needed]
• The "Statehood, Civil War and Reconstruction", "Transportation", and "Law and government" sections are rather choppy. Is there any way that the paragraphs can be merged?
• One of Arkansas's U.S. Senators is Democrat Mark Pryor, and the other one is Republican John Boozman. The state has four seats in U.S. House of Representatives. One seat is held by Democrats: Mike Ross (map), and three are held by Republicans: Rick Crawford, (map), Tim Griffin(map), and Steve Womack(map). - All of the links to the maps are dead. Also, there is no citation. By the way, since I am failing this article, remember that Tom Cotton will be sworn-in in Mike Ross' seat on January 3, 2013, which will make the delegation 4 Republicans and 0 Democrats.
• "Obama's relatively poor showing in Arkansas was likely due to a lack of enthusiasm from state Democrats following former Arkansas First Lady Hillary Clinton's failure to win the nomination[citation needed], and his relatively poor performance among rural white voters. However, the Democratic presence remains strong on the state level; in 2006, Democrats were elected to all statewide offices by the voters in a Democratic sweep that included the Democratic Party of Arkansas regaining the governorship, and in 2008, freshman Senator Mark Pryor was re-elected with nearly 80% of the vote against Green candidate Rebekah Kennedy with no Republican opposition.[citation needed]" - Self explanatory
• Most Republican strength lies mainly in the northwestern part of the state, particularly Fort Smith and Bentonville, as well as North Central Arkansas around the Mountain Home area. In the latter area, Republicans have been known to get 90 percent or more of the vote. The rest of the state is more Democratic. Arkansas has only elected two Republicans to the U.S. Senate since Reconstruction, Tim Hutchinson, who was defeated after one term by Mark Pryor and John Boozman, who defeated incumbent Blanche Lincoln. The General Assembly has not been controlled by the Republican Party since Reconstruction and is the fourth most heavily Democratic Legislature in the country, after Massachusetts, Hawaii, and Connecticut. Arkansas was one of just three states among the states of the former Confederacy that sent two Democrats to the U.S. Senate (the others being Florida and Virginia) during the first decade of the 21st century. - [Citation needed]
• "Although Democrats have an overwhelming majority of registered voters, Arkansas Democrats tend to be much more conservative than their national counterparts, particularly outside Little Rock. Arkansas' Democratic congressman is a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, which tends to be more pro-business, pro-military, and socially conservative than the center-left Democratic mainstream. Reflecting the state's large evangelical population, the state has a strong social conservative bent. Under the Arkansas Constitution Arkansas is a right to work state, its voters passed a ban on same-sex marriage with 75% voting yes, and the state is one of a handful with legislation on its books banning abortion in the event Roe v. Wade is ever overturned." - [Citation needed]
• "In Arkansas, the lieutenant governor is elected separately from the governor and thus can be from a different political party." - [Citation needed]
• "Each officer's term is four years long. Office holders are term-limited to two full terms plus any partial terms before the first full term. Arkansas governors served two-year terms until a referendum lengthened the term to four years, effective with the 1986 general election. Statewide elections are held two years after presidential elections." - [Citation needed]
• "Some of Arkansas's counties have two county seats, as opposed to the usual one seat. The arrangement dates back to when travel was extremely difficult in the state. The seats are usually on opposite sides of the county. Though travel is no longer the difficulty it once was, there are few efforts to eliminate the two seat arrangement where it exists, since the county seat is a source of pride (and jobs) to the city involved." - [Citation needed]
• "Article 19 (Miscellaneous Provisions), Item 1 in the Arkansas Constitution is entitled "Atheists disqualified from holding office or testifying as witness," and states that "No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify as a witness in any Court." However, in 1961, the United States Supreme Court in Torcaso v. Watkins (1961), held that a similar requirement in Maryland was unenforceable because it violated the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the US Constitution. The latter amendment, per current precedent, makes the federal Bill of Rights binding on the states. As a result, this provision has not been known to have been enforced in modern times, and it is understood that it would be struck down if challenged in court." - [Citation needed]
• The URL on reference #1 is a deadlink. It is also missing the accessdate.
• Why is there no accessdate for reference #16?
• The URL on reference #26 is a deadlink. Also, it should simply say "2000. Retrieved October 26, 2007" rather than "Published 2000. Last Retrieved October 26, 2007."
• The publication date for reference #49 should be October 26, 2011, as that was the date in which the source was last updated.
• The URL for reference #51 is a deadlink. There is also no information about things such as the publication date/year, author and/or publisher, and accessdate.
• There is no accessdate for reference #56.
• Reference #65 has no date/year of publication, accessdate, or publisher.
• Last time I checked, you cannot use Wikimedia as a source (reference #98).

Again, no offense, but I am going to have to fail this article. There is simply too much above for this to be considered a Good Article. After all of the queries are fixed and addressed, you may re-nominate this article. Regards, --12george1 (talk) 00:02, 1 January 2013 (UTC)