Re: New-comers

[Randy Presuhn <[e-mail]>]

Hi -

On 2021-04-16 10:43 AM, Ole Jacobsen wrote:
...
> If newcomers risk being "snarled at" it is only due to our own
> culture and abusive behavior and not due to their lack of preparation.
...

Over the years I was able to arm-twist several coworkers into attending
IETF meetings.  All were sharp people with plenty of clue, and I took
pains to describe IETF culture and norms in advance.  In general, their
reaction prior to the actual meeting was "it can't possibly be that
bad."  They all made it through the meetings without being attacked too
badly, but the attacks and generally uncivil behavior between *other*
participants led them to become quite reluctant to ever attend
another IETF meeting.  The common post-meeting reaction was "you
should have warned me - it was so much more awful than you described."

It was only because our business depended on it that I was able to
get them to go to any subsequent meetings, but it also led me to
conclude that IETF meetings can be painful experiences for anyone
with a shred of empathy.  One needn't be the object of the
unpleasantness to find the unpleasantness unpleasant.

Randy