request for comment re "contributor-covenant.org"

26 Jan 2016

      Hi cp-ers,

On the PostgreSQL database mailing list pgsql-general@postgresql.org ,
they are discussing a Code of Conduct.

A reference and discussion came up around contributor-covenant.org and
it seems many (allegedly 1000's of "open source projects" have
"adopted" it, and there appears to quite the campaign to "encourage"
the PostgreSQL project to likewise adopt that particular agreement.

The pgsql old hands appear to have rejected it. This is a rare thing
AFAICT. There are a few issues raised about the so-called "contributor
covenant" which have very clearly, and repeatedly, not been responded
to, and this has been pointed out, more than once.

Those who chaperone one or more "open source" project mailing lists
may wish to bring themselves up to speed with this so-called
"covenant" before the steamroller hits your group/ list/ community,
since it seems inevitable at this point.

Being riveted and enraptured by concepts of "enforcement",
"protection" of "the marginalized peoples" and as y'all know, my
raving crusade to further promote "political correctness", I figured I
should go and read this "covenant" to find out what all the fuss might
be about and add some scare quotes at appropriate places.

So I went and read it.

It simply, abso-firetruckingly, demands a response, and beyond what
appears to have currently been tippy toe on eggshells burped out so
far.

Here is my first draft to respond to it, I encourage others to refine
my oh-so-subtle analysis, but most importantly to bring yourself up to
speed with the PC-speak which might freight train into one or more of
your "open source" worlds in the relatively near future; informed
ahead of time may be enough to be armed against long and actually
divisive email discussions, as internet searching sadly tells.

The below is my second woeful attempt to bring some sanity to that
"covenant". It needs your improvements.

Good luck,
Zenaan

----
http://contributor-covenant.org/
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Contributor Covenant
A Code of Conduct for Open Source Projects.
Sounds reasonable.
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Open Source has always been a foundation of the Internet, and with the advent
of social open source networks this is more true than ever.
Let's hope free libre and open source software - FLOSS, stays as the foundation
of the Internet!

"social open source networks" - what?? Facebook social network??

Use of new terminology, without explaining that terminology, and
presuming it is known and well understood terminology, in a document
you are pushing as a new and additional "social contract" which others
are pressed upon to adopt and enforce, is IMHO passive aggressive.
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But free, libre, and open source projects suffer from a startling lack of
diversity, with dramatically low participation by women, people of color, and
other marginalized populations.
Those who have an interest in promoting, assisting, sponsoring and generally
facilitating "the diversity" within this particular libre software
project or mailing list,
are welcome to do so and in general, ought be supported to the extent that their
actions and words are neither actively nor passively aggressive towards any
member of this mailing list, and are actually supportive of the
technical goals of
this project.
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Part of this problem
Lack of diversity may be viewed as a problem.

Such a viewpoint is a personal, individual matter. Your personal, individual
opinion on this matter may be discussed, but in general is off topic for this
mailing list.

Speaking or writing that "lack of diversity is a problem", and even moreso,
building the presumption into the words of a so-called "social covenant", where
that presumption is almost hidden and "not up for debate", is a passive
aggressive approach to communication with others who may or may not
disagree with this position.

Passive aggressive communication is not welcome on this mailing list.
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lies with the very structure of some projects:
What is "the very structure of a project"? This phrase is too generic, and not
explained, despite the next part of that sentence which follows below, which
appears to pretend to answer (or define) the phrase - it does not.

Phrases and terminologies used out of context and having indefinite and vague
meanings, is a sign of passive aggressive communication and all
members of this mailing list are encourage to ridicule such
communication.
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the use of insensitive language, thoughtless use of pronouns, assumptions of
gender, and even sexualized or culturally insensitive names.
Although certain social niceties are encouraged on this mailing list, they are
not required and indeed firm, clear and precise languaging is valued and
encouraged.

If you are overly sensitive, or in need (or desire) of an emotionally sensitive
environment, then consider another mailing list - this mailing list is likely
not for you, and if you are in need of any professional help, you are encouraged
and indeed required to seek professional medical and or psychological advice
and or support.
...
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Marginalized people also suffer some of the unintended consequences of
dogmatic insistence on meritocratic principles of governance.
There are forums and mailing lists which are suitable for those who have
learning difficulties (reference?), for those who need an emotionally sensitive
environment (be sure to check if you need professional medical or
psychological support), and for those who are beginniners in the field of
technology discussed on this mailing list.

In all of these cases, this mailing list is not for you, and you will be
encouraged to leave if we discover that any of these conditions apply to you.

Take note, we heartily welcome the opportunity to joust against your best
attempts to otherwise deceive us in regards to such conditions applying to you,
although in general in such cases, please expect derision and ridicule for
wasting our time in such circumstances.
...
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Studies have shown that organizational cultures that value meritocracy often
result in greater inequality.
This is a baseless assertion. Provide the references or go away. Such
an unsupported, unreferenced and 'plastic' attempt to dominate our
community into conforming, acting and behaving according to your
standards is unwelcome in the extreme, and grounds for the ridicule of
you.

In any case, this mailing list is for those who have a minimum intermediate
skill and understanding in the programming languages and technologies for
which it has been established, and is explicitly not for those who are overly
sensitive and need an emotionally supportive environment - we might have
a laugh, and it may be at your expense, so if you can't laugh at yourself,
this mailing list is definitely not for you.
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People with "merit" are often excused for their bad behavior in public spaces
based on the value of their technical contributions.
You may join this mailing list, but by doing so you agree to speak clearly and
assertively if you feel offended, or otherwise to respectfully leave the mailing
list, as it is unmoderated and uncensored, although discussion is generally
sought to be on topic, and for offtopic digressions to be kept short and taken
offlist or to an alternate list if they persist.

Additionally, your consideration that this mailing list is a public
space, is only partially correct. This mailing list is a list which is
open to conditional membership, and the list administrator reserves
the right to ban you temporarily and or permanently at any time, but
with prior notice and opportunity for discussion given on this mailing
list.

Take Notice further that the discussions had by members of this
mailing list are archived publicly, so to this extent the list may be
considered public, whilst it is strictly a members only mailing list
who choose to have certain public discussions, which may include
attempting to ridicule -you-, so obtain a temporary membership to this
email mailing list only after very careful consideration by you. If
you are at all unsure of your suitability to our list, we are happy to
help you decide by analysing your proposed introduction email of
yourself.
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Meritocracy also naively assumes a level playing field, in which everyone has
access to the same resources, free time, and common life experiences to draw
upon.
The sentence above is another passive-aggressive, presumption filled projected
assertion.

Such communication has no place on this mailing list, except as the target of
naming the presumptions, highlighting the passive aggressive nature and
generally tearing it to shreads and providing an opportunity for the
mailing list members to laugh like hyenas.

- >> "Meritocracy naively assumes"

Meritocracy does no such thing - it is not a person.

- >> "Meritocracy also naively assumes a level playing field,"

Meritocracy does no such thing - in fact it is the opposite - meritocracy is a
socio political agreement, contract  and or requirement that participants in the
system shall be judged based on their technical merit and or
performance. In our case, slow performance is entirely acceptable, you
are under no requirement nor expectation to make contributions
according to any schedule, only on your own free time and personal
pleasure.

Making any assertion to the contrary is passive aggressive,
manipulative, and shall be joyously and most light heartedly
attacked in words.

- >> "in which everyone has access to the same resources, free time,"

No such assumptions are made on this mailing list, and quite the contrary
- if you have very little free time for example, or a slow computer, then we
will certainly expect that your contributions may be few and far between
as compared with someone who has loads of free time or a faster computer
than you.

If you are experiencing free time and resources problems, then this list is
DEFINITELY not the place for you - you are explicitly instructed to seek
professional time management advice as well as professional financial
counselling. DO NOT bring such personal problems to this mailing list, as they
will be used as instant grounds for removal and for barring from the
list, although more likely simply as grounds for ridicule and laughing
like hyenas.

- >> "and common life experiences to draw upon."

Once again, "meritocracy" (to the extent we can personify a socio political
system), and "we" the members of this mailing list in particular, make no such
assumptions whatsoever, and we more importantly, put no such requirements upon
you.

So sleep tight, it's all alright, we won't hold your differing life
experiences against you, in fact we may be intrigued, but if a
particular experience you share starts to cause an extended off topic
discussion, take notice that we reserve the right to calmly let you
know this so that we can get back to the topics intended for this
mailing list.

This list may be a platform, but at most only for those robust enough
to hold their own on the topic they make a post about.

If you join this mailing list, you are strongly encouraged to communicate your
personal concerns and problems, needs and requirements at the earliest stage
possible, preferably in in your introduction email with a well
identified subject
line.

Then we will be able to readily assess whether this mailing list is
suitable for you or whether you need to find another, more appropriate
environment in which to express yourself and or to find a "contribution
space" which is suitable for your needs.

If you are unsure, then you are welcome to introduce yourself in this way,
and we will respectfully assess your suitability to the mailing list as best
we can.

Take notice that we are not professionals in any field, indeed we are
amateurs that might be in your personal medical or other interests to
NOT associate with, and that if you require any professional advice,
medical or otherwise, then you are required to seek such advice from
suitably certificated professionals in your area - we on this mailing
list cannot help you in such circumstances and if you fail to inform
us of any such problems and or issues you may have that you consider
we would otherwise be responsible for, then you may be in breech of
the legislation in your jurisdiction - deceive the members of this
mailing list at your own legal liability.

On this mailing list, robust communication is a prime valued
contribution - if you are actively wanting to improve your emotional
robustness, this mailing list could possibly be a suitable place for
you - feel free to ask us about this specifically in relation to you.
...
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These factors and more make contributing to open
source a daunting prospect for many people,
If your emotional strength, your social and or communication capacity, and or
your psychological needs are an issue in any way, you are not welcome on this
mailing list and we require you to seek professional medical advice.
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especially women and other underrepresented people. (For more critical
analysis of meritocracy, refer to this entry on the Geek Feminism wiki.)
If you have any trigger words, emotional weaknesses and or sensitivities which
may cause you to have any reaction whatsoever, you are required to inform the
members of this mailing list in an introduction email if you do join the list,
and if you are required to do so, you must seek professional medical and or
psychological advice and support - this mailing list is most likely an
inappropriate place for you to join, and we continue to encourage ourselves
to not hold back in reminding you this.
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A Small Step Forward
An easy way to begin addressing this problem
You may have some problem, and this mailing list not the place for you to fix
your problem. Only technical matters related to the technical topic of this
mailing list are appropriate problems for fixing in discussions on this
mailing list.

Seek professional advice when you need it, including professional
advice regarding the technical topic of this mailing list if that is what you
require - this mailing list is for non professionals with at least moderate
technical competence, all members are volunteers, all members participate at
their own discretion and with no obligations upon them and with no obligations
whatsoever to you, including courtesy which is valued, but not
required - enter at your own risk.
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is to be overt in our openness, welcoming all people to contribute, and
pledging in return to value them as human beings and to foster an atmosphere
of kindness, cooperation, and understanding.
This we agree with - we, the members of this mailing list, proclaim our
intention to welcome all people to contribute, and to value each member as a
human being. We encourage each other to foster an atmosphere of kindness,
cooperation and understanding, and robustness in communication -
passive aggressive communication, despite the best intentions of the
one making such passive aggressive communication, has no place in our
community.

And take notice - persistent bad behaviour, 'bad' by the assessment of
the members alone and discussed publicly on this mailing list, shall
be cause for temporary and or permanent banning from this mailing
list.
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The Contributor Covenant can be one way to express these values. Pledge your
respect and appreciation for contributors and participants in your open
source project by adding an explicit CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md to your project
repository.
Respect, kindness and cooperation are good things, but this
"http://contributor-covenant.org/" "contributor covenant" to which we hereby
respond, is in no way or shape getting into our project's repository without
this our response.
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The Contributor Covenant uses semantic versioning for revisions so all URLs
are permanent. Previous versions are available here: 1.0, 1.1, and 1.2
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Using the Contributor Covenant
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We recommend that you add the Markdown or text version of the Contributor
Covenant to your source code repository at the root level.
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Thanks to Simon Vansintjan there is an automated way to add Contributor
Covenant to your project. Assuming that you have node installed, simply run
the following two commands from your project folder:
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npm install -g covgen
    covgen your_email_address
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You may want to add language similar to this to introduce your code of conduct:
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Please note that this project is released with a Contributor Code of
    Conduct. By participating in this project you agree to abide by its
    terms.
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You may also use the permalinks given above to reference from your project
home page.
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Important! You must add a contact method to the placeholder in the document
so that people know how to report violations.  Enforcing the Contributor
Covenant
This above paragraph does not quite feel right. If the members of this mailing
list are so anti-social that genuine "social problems" cannot be resolved on the
mailing list itself, then this "community" of members is quite likely beyond
repair without substantial work by robust individuals with a passion to heal the
community - if you are not such an individual, then you best leave that job to
comeone who is, and take yourself to a kinder, gentler happy place.
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Do not simply add the Contributor Covenant to your project and assume that
any problems with civility, harassment, or discrimination will be solved. As
a project maintainer you must be committed to enforcing the code of conduct.
There may be a time and place for banning members from this mailing list,
temporarily and or permanently, but such discussions shall continue to be
public, on the mailing list itself and open to discussion and
contribution by all members. No duty is incumbent upon any member,
including the "project maintainer" - if the community can't work out
its problems, it is unfair to place such a burden upon such a one
individual.
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A code of conduct without enforcement sends a false signal that your project
is welcoming and inclusive, and can create a dangerous situation for
marginalized people who participate.
"Marginalized people" who are not competent to contribute on some
technical level (which includes documentation writing, testing as well
as programming), are not welcome - we the members of this mailing list
are volunteers and, on this particular mailing list, are not willing
to tutor those who have special needs - do not join the mailing list
in such circumstances, there are other, appropriate forums, mailing
lists and learning institutions which you ought apply to.

Genuinely anti-social communication is actively discouraged, and this includes
those who communicate deceptively regarding their own needs and or social
environment requirements, as well as those who communicate in a passive
aggressive way. If you this any of these types of communication may apply to
you, then be prepared to suffer the consequences should you join this mailing
list - we shall roast you in words, with glee!
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Adding the Contributor Covenant to a project places responsibility on the
project team that must not be taken lightly.
Since the archives of this mailing list are public, should you have even the
smallest concern regarding your own robustness in public communication, then you
are invited to browse those archives and make an assessment as to whether you
are a suitable candidate to join this mailing list. If you do decide to join,
you are required to make your first email an introduction, which introduction
includes a reference to your assessment of the archives as well as any needs you
feel that the members of this list ought be able to meet.
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Before adopting the Contributor Covenant take the time to discuss and decide
how to deal with problems as they emerge. Document the policy and procedure
Oh, we've taken the time, and "problems as they emerge" shall be
handled publicly, on this mailing list! To the extent we the members
of this maliing list consider you a problem, passive aggressive or
otherwise, we WILL handle you, publicly, with the one caveat that all
members are in general expected to show respectful consideration in
respect of all private or "off-list" communications.

If you are uncomfortable with this policy, you are encouraged to find a more
suitable community to join.
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for enforcement, and add it to your README or in another visible, appropriate
place. Consider if your project team has the willingness and maturity to
follow through on your enforcement procedures.
A "community" that requires any significant policing, particularly
clandestine policing, has lost its way - the tyranny of the majority
is not the healthiest way, in the opinion of some members - speak
clearly, speak the truth, and seek a fair response; if you don't
receive a fair response, another community might be much less work for
you, even if it provides less opportunities for emotional growth for
you.

Zenaan Harkness

mo

Georgi Guninski

grarpamp

Jason McVetta

grarpamp

Peter Tonoli

Zenaan Harkness

Rayzer

Cari Machet

Cari Machet

dan＠geer.org

Ted Smith

Cari Machet

Rayzer

Ted Smith

Jason McVetta

Steve Kinney

Ted Smith

Tom

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participants (12)