Re: Terminology discussion threads

[Pete Resnick <[e-mail]>]

On 13 Aug 2020, at 13:15, Toerless Eckert wrote:

> If the topic is meant to be disucssed an a gendispatch interrim, would 
> it not too be
> appropriate to ask for the discussion to go to gendispatch mailing 
> list until that
> group has decided on a better place ?

Speaking as one of the two gendispatch chairs: I supported the idea of 
bringing this topic to a gendispatch interim because I think in a 
(virtual) f2f we can probably sort out a way for this discussion to be 
had in a reasonable forum, bring that solution back to the gendispatch 
list, and then have gendispatch recommend to the Gen AD what to do with 
this work. (Which is not to say that we will definitely recommend that 
the work continue; we have a number of possible outcomes. But I think we 
can successfully have that conversation.)

However, I did not, as one of the gendispatch chairs, sign up to 
moderate the entire discussion of IETF guidance or policy around 
oppressive or exclusionary language in documents. I agree with the IETF 
Chair that the discussion on the IETF list was at least unproductively 
spinning its wheels and probably causing harm in and of itself, and that 
a pause in the conversation on the IETF list was justified. I also 
understand that having a gendispatch interim and the subsequent 
discussion on the gendispatch list in order to dispatch the topic to 
some other forum (or to reject the work item) is likely to involve some 
amount of discussion on the merits of the topic, and I'm prepared to 
moderate that level of discussion. But I'm not inclined to be given the 
task to actually bring this discussion to conclusion. It's out of 
charter for gendispatch, I don't think it will be productive on the 
gendispatch list, and it's more than a bit beyond what I'm willing to 
take on right now.

I am sorry that gendispatch was unable to have dispatched this before 
the discussion on the IETF list got this far. But we are where we are. 
I'm committed to getting an interim or two scheduled for "a few days 
plus 2 weeks" from now, and to push the list to  make a recommendation 
to the AD exceedingly quickly after that. That's all I can do.

pr
-- 
Pete Resnick https://www.episteme.net/
All connections to the world are tenuous at best