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Re:Open Source Initiative bans co-founder, Eric S Raymond by kazinator on Tuesday March 10, 2020 @05:31PM (#22539943)
That sort of language is normal in the parliament houses of the developed world, upon which our constitutional democracies are based.

If there is some sort of evidence that the candidate in question is in fact a toxic loonytoon, by some sort of objective standard, then it's perfectly fine to use that language.

At some point, you have to call a spade a spade, and a toxic loonytoon a toxic loonytoon.

Re:Open Source Initiative bans co-founder, Eric S Raymond by iron0013 on Tuesday March 10, 2020 @05:49PM (#22540127)
Well okay, if you insist: Eric S. Raymond is a toxic loonytoon. And there’s plenty of evidence to support that assertion.
Re:Open Source Initiative bans co-founder, Eric S Raymond by kazinator on Tuesday March 10, 2020 @05:53PM (#22540160)
By the "takes one to know one" principle, we should pay attention to Raymond when the calls out another toxic loonytoon.
Re:Open Source Initiative bans co-founder, Eric S Raymond by iron0013 on Thursday March 12, 2020 @07:04PM (#22562962)
Except it obviously doesn’t take one to know one. Are we having an actual conversation or just lobbing empty rhetoric
Re:Open Source Initiative bans co-founder, Eric S Raymond by a1369209993 on Tuesday March 10, 2020 @10:49PM (#22542489)
I disagree vehemently with this moronic opinion, but am strongly opposed to any attempts to ban you for holding or expressing it.
Re:Open Source Initiative bans co-founder, Eric S Raymond by fossuser on Tuesday March 10, 2020 @06:01PM (#22540259)
I don't agree - I think you come across a lot more persuasive when you attack the ideas rather than the person and you do it with less colorful language.

Otherwise I think you only 'persuade' people that already agree with you and others that might have otherwise changed their minds are alienated.

That said, I generally like the idea of not banning people and I have a high tolerance for this kind of communication not really bothering me that much - but I still think it's generally bad form and probably does scare away others.

Re:Open Source Initiative bans co-founder, Eric S Raymond by kazinator on Tuesday March 10, 2020 @06:07PM (#22540323)
> ideas rather than the person

The CoC people will not like that any better.

Suppose you write a mailing list post which absolutely names no names, but only presents expressions of specific ideas, and then calls those ideas "toxic" and "loony", with justifications and all. That will still be equally offensive. It will be still be interpreted as an attack on the identifiable person or group behind those ideas, even though they have not been named.

Re:Open Source Initiative bans co-founder, Eric S Raymond by fossuser on Tuesday March 10, 2020 @07:12PM (#22540984)
> and you do it with less colorful language

Focusing on ideas is better, but breaking down why you think something is wrong without being an ass is really the goal.

Re:Open Source Initiative bans co-founder, Eric S Raymond by antepodius on Sunday March 15, 2020 @11:27PM (#22589542)
Is it?

I've loosely followed this stuff for a few years, and I just don't see it. I just see people trying to punish the people they hate.

Re:Open Source Initiative bans co-founder, Eric S Raymond by duskwuff on Tuesday March 10, 2020 @05:53PM (#22540168)
Calling a person a "toxic loonytoon" for the offense of trying to establish standards of acceptable behavior is ridiculous by any sort of "objective standard". If anything, it demonstrates the importance of having those standards, by serving as an example of the sort of behavior that such a standard should condemn.
Re:Open Source Initiative bans co-founder, Eric S Raymond by kazinator on Tuesday March 10, 2020 @06:00PM (#22540256)
What, like no toxic loonytoon in human history has ever tried to impose standards of acceptable behavior?