> Am 19.07.2016 um 09:43 schrieb Brent Royal-Gordon via swift-evolution 
> <[email protected]>:
> 
> We need to be bold and take a chance. If it doesn't work out, we can undo it. 
> But if it does work out, we'll be better for it.
It's hard for me to associate a proposal that is grounded on fear with the word 
"bold", yet the essence of the message is correct — but Imho it is another "in 
a perfect world" statement:
In reality, nobody will measure the effect of this change, and those in favor 
of the proposal might even call the absent of a horrible catastrophe a "proof" 
for their opinion.
So, what could this catastrophe actually be? Supporters of 0117 educated us 
that forking is a good thing, and that's about the worst thing I can imagine 
(exorbitant pessimism left aside)…
We won't have a "free" Swift and a "restricted" Swift to check what people 
actually prefer, and even if we had, there would be those saying that their 
opinion is the only truth, no matter what the majority thinks.

The bad effects of the proposal are no obvious danger, like a wild crocodile 
that threatens you — it is more like a swarm of mosquitos that feasts on your 
blood and dampens your mood.
I'm am convinced this change will be a source of constant annoyance, but people 
are very good at accepting constant annoyance (they have even a noticeable 
track record in accepting things that are much worse than annoyance: It took us 
hundreds of years to realize that burning old ladies with a talent for 
leechcraft might not be the smartest idea...).

Despite claims by others, this is not about proofs or facts at all, it is just 
about attitude, and attitude is hard to change. This article 
(http://martinfowler.com/bliki/DirectingAttitude.html) was a big help for me to 
understand the underlying motives which were absolutely alien to me, and 
convinced me that there is no merit in discussion anymore:
It's misfortune for our party that those who decide the default belong to the 
other camp, but that's life, and we have to accept it.

So, regarding the problem of wether subclassing and overriding should be 
discouraged, we have two contrary positions, and Swift clearly discarded the 
"enabling attitude"… for those who share this point of view, it is a 
frustrating decision after a frustrating debate on a frustrating topic, so 
please be patient with us who walk the narrow path between cynicism and 
resignation ;-)

Swift is a new language and a projection surface for those taking part in the 
discussion here, and it is unavoidable that there will be situations that are 
disappointing for parts of the community*.

- Tino

* although I think that asking an ornithologist for counsel on the choice for 
the name could have saved us from some irritation... "Cagebird" sounds nice as 
well, and it is a much better fit for the goals of of 0117, which really don't 
match with the characteristics of its eponymist ;-)
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