I think libel suits are really bad tools for limiting speech
Especially when the punishment is not only that you may lose the suit, but also the money you have to spend on your legal defense even when you win.
That said, RationalWiki is primarily a bullying (excuse me, snarky) website that most people only consider okay because they believe that the targets deserve it. (And they often do—but the problem is, once you have a shiny powerful gun, it is too tempting to expand the scope.) When your mission is to attack people publicly, you better stick to the facts, and don’t dismiss criticism with “but it is funnier this way”, or the lawyers may have the last laugh.
Especially when the punishment is not only that you may lose the suit, but also the money you have to spend on your legal defense even when you win.
That said, RationalWiki is primarily a bullying (excuse me, snarky) website that most people only consider okay because they believe that the targets deserve it. (And they often do—but the problem is, once you have a shiny powerful gun, it is too tempting to expand the scope.) When your mission is to attack people publicly, you better stick to the facts, and don’t dismiss criticism with “but it is funnier this way”, or the lawyers may have the last laugh.