Slaves to speech suppression are masters of nothing - Eric Raymond http://esr.ibiblio.org/?p=8114
Bouncing from one extreme to the other.
Python: Avoid master/slave terms
41–44 of 44 posts
Re: Python: Avoid master/slave terms
#42I'm quite taken aback by the vitriol in those comments. Programs are meant to be read by humans, and language/terminology has a huge impact. If there are cost-less replacements to words that are easy to adopt, why not adopt them? These changes are beneficial to the community, don't hurt the language, and are cheap to adopt in many cases anyway.
Well this change implies that it is not OK to use terms like master and slave. The criticism is founded in fears, that this is used as a precedent to control speech.
An Idea that is not fully unfounded.
Re: Python: Avoid master/slave terms
#43Earlier quoted context omitted.
"Socially just" alternatives that were used in this example, for other processes/programs that have to do entirely what the master process tells them to: 1. (pliant) children (they started with childs, let's just not think too much what this means about the author's intelligence) 2. workers That's just ... not offensive ? ahem > But context matters, Indeed. The context is that this is a socially acceptable way to den…
"they started with childs, let's just not think too much what this means about the author's intelligence" Considering that he's not a native speaker, and child has an irregular plural form, I find your comment very insulting.
Even for non native speakers, forgive me for thinking that not thinking through your language/grammar/spelling means that you haven't thought through your point either.
Second, let's not forget WHO is doing the asking here.
Which is the big issue with this anyway: this is being presented as an order, a dictat. This is being required of people to be taken at authority, with the justification that external people (not the person asking) find this terminology offensive. Needless to say that that by itself engenders feelings of resentment. Not least because I never agreed you had this authority. Nor did the actual group being "protected" here. But also because you're demanding effort from everyone based on your personal authority.
Let me repeat that very important point. The person asking is NOT asking for help. They are dictating that I help others on their authority. VERY different things. You are playing police officer, you are not the victim here.
Then we get that this effort is being demanded, without adequate attention placed in the question in the first place. You're playing a bored, uninterested and brutal police officer. And guess what: that doesn't engender fond feelings ... weird, no ? In other words: you're demanding I go into my code and redo it in a number of places, but you can't be bothered even to phrase your language correctly.
And by having this issue at all and me responding to it, I must agree with the implicit assumptions. Firstly, that I meant to be racist when using that terminology. Second, that I accept that you're to fix my attitude. I agree to neither of those. You are not the boss of me, and you do not have my permission to point out my flaws.
On top of all that there are many problems with the argument behind it. Is anyone actually offended ? Of course ... no mention of that at all. Why are you so extremely impolite about it ? What exactly do you think of me, and other programmers, to make this demand ? Because firstly, you must think I'm a racist, otherwise it makes no sense. Secondly, you must see yourself as the savior of the oppressed. What effort, other than misspelled orders to faraway people, have you put into actually helping people ?
The question as it is phrased, to replace master/slave terminology is a very low effort "listen to me or else" ...
And I have a simple question for you:
Or else what ?
Re: Python: Avoid master/slave terms
#44Why is this flagged?