Fascinating. I had no idea that there even *was* such a phrase in common usage, let alone that there was known etymology for it. One learns something new every day. But I meant it quite literally: a moderate/humble/etc. proposal for Friday meeting schedule.
-hadriel On Aug 1, 2011, at 12:45 PM, Margaret Wasserman 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 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 > [email protected] > https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf _______________________________________________ Ietf mailing list [email protected] https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf
