I don't care about Torvalds's intentions one way or another, or whether or not he's had a true change of heart. I'm a social justice warrior, not a social virtue warrior, and I am not yet celebrating results that may or may not come one day. I just ask one question: When a man who symbolizes a certain behavior that has led to unjust outcomes professes he was wrong, is that something that, at this point in time, is in the service of a greater or lesser justice? As I didn't see any wink in his statement suggesting that he's doing it only because he's been made to, I think that until it is shown that this is just a PR stunt to whitewash and preserve the status quo, it is an action that serves justice even if it is only symbolic in itself.

My mom is German. I was just helping out a "fellow German" (so to speak) with a little translation.

Also, this is my original comment above, where I make it clear that I don't really care about the code of conduct per se, but I'm thrilled to see Linus deal with the man in the mirror.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18001323