On Mon, Aug 1, 2011 at 12:45 PM, Margaret Wasserman <m...@lilacglade.org>wrote:
> > Hi All, > > Within the IETF, it has become common to use the term a "A Modest > Proposal..." as a title for actual proposals for process change within the > IETF. This causes some cultural dissonance for me, personally, and I want > to make sure that people are aware of the origin of this term, and the > potential for misinterpretation of proposals that are titled this way. > > It is not my intention to criticize Hadriel, or anyone else who has used > this phrase. I am sure that no one who has used this term has intended to > be offensive to me or to anyone else. I am not personally offended, and I > am not looking for an apology. I just want to make sure that people > understand how the use of this term resonates with me, personally, and > potentially with others. > > The original article by Jonathan Swift, titled, "A Modest Proposal...", > was a satirical suggestion that widespread famine and poverty in Note that he did have the sense to publish it anonymously. Marshall > Ireland could be addressed by the Irish selling their children to the > wealthy as a source of food (http://art-bin.com/art/omodest.html). This > was a very loaded article that made an outrageous proposal, clearly not one > that was meant to be taken seriously. This article has been interpreted in > many different ways, though. Despite the fact that the article may have > been intended to be supportive of the Irish cause (by satirizing England's > indifference to Irish poverty and famine), the article was, nonetheless, > highly offensive to many Irish people for a number of reasons. Although i > can't personally see it, I have also been assured that the article is > uproariously funny. Whether you find the article offensive or humorous, > though, "A Modest Proposal..." is a culturally charged reminder of a very > difficult time in Irish/English history, an > d the term is likely to evoke complex feelings in people who are still > culturally sensitive about that topic. > > So, if you are making a satirical, uproariously funny suggestion that you > do not intend to be taken seriously, but that might be misinterpreted as > incredibly offensive to all parties involved, then "A Modest Proposal.." > might be just the right title... (Although you might want to think twice > before you hit "send" :-)). > > But, if you are making a serious proposal for how to improve things in the > IETF, I would personally feel more comfortable, and therefore better > disposed toward your suggestion, if you would not use the term "A Modest > Proposal.." to describe it. > > You are, of course, free to use any title you wish for your own > proposals... My only purpose in sending this mail is to educate people who > might not be aware of the history of this particular phrase, so that they > might have a better basis for deciding whether or not to use "A Modest > Proposal..." in the titles of their own proposals. > > Thank you for listening, > Margaret > > _______________________________________________ > Ietf mailing list > Ietf@ietf.org > https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf >
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