Hello everyone, As you all may know, I was recently removed from TinkerPop for the crime of “being a Nazi troll.” When arguing I’m not a Nazi, I was told I “violated social norms.” Assuming I violated social norms, I inquired as to where such social norms are specified as I never signed anything when providing TinkerPop to Apache that mentioned ’social norms'. Moreover, if the crime of violating social norms is in fact how Apache wishes to judge people for the sake of removal by committee, then I believe this statute should be applied fairly and equally. Thus, please review the following “social norm violations” made by people in Apache and on Apache TinkerPop. Given that social norms are not specified anywhere, I offer simply what I believe fall within this fuzzy category.
1. Roy Fielding stating I’m a Nazi troll. When asked for evidence of me being part of the Nazi party, none was presented. As far as I know, the Nazi party dissolved post WW2 and seems to exist as a word use by modern folk to remove people they dislike from their positions. The question: is libel a violation of social norms? 2. Sam Ruby in the past had threatened me with physical violence. If threat of violence is not breaking social norms then that seems like a break from social norms in and of itself. Thus, was Sam Ruby removed from his position in Apache? The question: is threat of violence a violation of social norms? 3. danielfb@ is the mysterious character that had access to our private@tinkerpop mailing list and said that a picture I made in photoshop of one of my chickens in WW2 regalia was “offensive” to him (I assume ‘him' given the name ‘daniel’). My response was initially to joke (as I do), but then continued with (I paraphrase) “let’s talk more as I think you will find me to be a jokester.” That man was never heard from again. The question: is allowing seemingly random people on our private mailing list in order to entrap me a violation of social norms? 4. Roy Fielding was unhappy with the fact that no one on the TinkerPop PMC cared about danielfb@’s allegation of me being a racist. In fact, Jorge said (I paraphrase) "that’s not racism, he’s just being silly.” He went on to note organizations that Apache could get behind that help fight racism — unfortunately, that fell on deaf ears. Instead, Roy Fielding went ahead and ignored the PMC's brush off saying (I paraphrase) “I know you are friends and its hard to punish people you’ve worked with.” This seemed odd to me because the email prior I had said “no one ever stands up for me because most people never understand the point I’m trying to make with my craft.” (I consider much of the work I do ‘art’). Thus, Roy Fielding pushed an agenda placing thoughts/emotions in colleagues that did not exist. The question: is baiting the group so they do his 'dirty work' not a violation of social norms? 5. Stephen Mallette and I have worked together for over a decade. It came as a shock to me that he said nothing in favor of my person when I was deemed a “racist” and a “nazi.” The question: is not standing up for a friend who has been there for you for many years not a violation of social norms? 6. Stephen Mallette knows what I was “charged with” was just some social ploy using the rhetoric of the times to restructure power by removing those individuals that don’t tow some party line which I was never made aware of. While I assert these are whimsical and without merit, you know what real charges you have against yourself, Stephen, and I won’t get into those, but I believe you would feel much better (less social stressed) as a person if you were to say: “letting organizations condemn people so they can steal prestige or money from them is not right and I take my stand against it.” As such, the question: when a person living in a glass house throws stones, is that not a violation of social norms? 7. Stephen Mallette knows very well the quality of Josh Shinavier’s contributions and the hollowness of his promises as over the years we have joked many times about it. So why would he be put on the PMC right after I was removed as you and I both know he is a “do-nothing” (says but never does). Was this a way for you to slow down the project as for many years you have been pushing off TinkerPop4 for reasons I’m unsure of (aging? corporate force?). Regardless, the question: is using an unsuspecting (arguably socially inept) person as a pawn in a social game to secure an outcome for yourself not a violation of a social norm? If the 7 points I made above are all considered legitimate behaviors that do not violate Apache’s unspecified “social norm” statute, then I believe this statute should be revised given the composition of this organization — in particular, lifelong programmers typically lack the sophisticated circuitry necessary to comprehend and thrive in socially nuanced environments. If the argument is that not having such mental circuitry is their fault and thus, deserve the wrath wrought by violating social norms, then may you hear my retort: them not having such abilities may be because they are too busy coding (creating the environment for those mingling in social norms to have jobs) to be concerned with the ‘flavor of the day’ words/jokes/etc. @Stephen, as PMC Chair, I ask that you consider my argument and, in good faith, argue it to the board given that Roy Fielding never responded to any of my emails — simply decreed and went about his life. Worse, had me removed from mailing lists so I couldn’t make my argument. If there is other information you need from me, please don’t hesitate to ask. If more “social violation norm” examples in Apache are necessary, I can provide them. Many individuals in our society have been attacked in recent times and I feel it is a great social injustice and to allow it to continue would be detrimental to the creative spirit that allows great open source software to flourish. Thank you, Marko A. Rodriguez
