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Throwing in the towel is, in boxing terms, an acknowledgement of defeat.
Wikipedia usage
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On Wikipedia, sometimes it is hard to work collaboratively and to build consensus. On occasion there will be times when an issue seems of vital importance, but the consensus is building slowly or is going against you. Sometimes there may be only two of you involved in a dispute. In situations like this, it may only need one person to throw in the towel for the issue to move on. Throwing in the towel doesn't necessarily have to mean you are defeated, only that your argument hasn't carried the day as of yet. Instead it may mean you recognise that consensus has not formed around your position, or that the issue is of lesser importance to you.
It may also be worth considering when the consensus is forming against you. An early recognition of this may be beneficial to the encyclopedia, as it may help a consensus form more rapidly, and it may help you form a consensus closer to your position. Especially in deletion debates, it may be that a difficult decision needs to be made, and it could perhaps be better to accept the outcome earlier and move the discussion onto the implementation of the discussion itself.
Translation: Sometimes, when editing on Wiki, you just have to give up (I.E. Throw in the towel).
See also
edit- Wikipedia:Assume good faith
- Template:Towel for throwing it in