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When restrictions against an editor are not done with appropriate consideration, disruptive sanctions that impede Wikipedia's core mission of creating encyclopedic content may result. Restricting an editor's ability to contribute to the encyclopedia is inherently a measure of last resort and such sanctions are not punitive measures, but preventative measures that are intended to allow for constructive work on content. The community and administrators should consider the effect a sanction will have on the improvement of content before pursuing such restrictions against another member of the community. Sanctions that do not address all conduct issues or that restrict an editor beyond what is necessary to address those conduct issues can stifle productive consensus-building, impede editors who are improving content, or drive away members of the community who become disenchanted with the process.
The idiom that Wikipedia is not about fairness, does not respect the central importance of ethical treatment in creating a vibrant and productive editing community. Fairness is important when discussing how to restrict an editor's ability to edit Wikipedia as an unfair decision can cause irreversible damage to the goal of Wikipedia. An important consideration when seeking to restrict an editor's ability to contribute is to ask if the measure can reasonably encourage productive editing without creating an unnecessary or unjustified impediment to such editing. Sanctions that fail this test should be modified or lifted as soon as possible.