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SQLite Adopts 'Monastic' Code of Conduct (sqlite.org)
Having been encouraged by clients to adopt a written code of conduct, the SQLite developers elected to govern their interactions with each other, with their clients, and with the larger SQLite user community in accordance with the "instruments of good works" from chapter 4 of The Rule of St. Benedict. This code of conduct has proven its mettle in thousands of diverse communities for over 1,500 years, and has served as a baseline for many civil law codes since the time of Charlemagne.
Not everyone has found SQLite's attempt informative or funny (though many did). A developer wrote, for instance, "So is the SQLite CoC thing a joke or not? If it's not a joke, f*ck this. If it is a joke, that's even worse. Your CoC should be taken seriously." A security researcher, chimed in, "This sort of stunt will make actual code of conduct discussions harder. It's not funny, helpful, or wise."
It's not bad. Rule 69 (ironic) is to "love the juniors". Which is a little offputting in the modern Catholic Church. But it's right after "respect the seniors" and is clearly trying to set up a mentor/mentee situation.
That said, there's a lot of pro-catholic theology in it that would be pretty offensive if it was explicitly added to a CoC. And it's anti-sexual harassment policy is "love chastity".
It's a really short read. 72 commands that are usually a sentence fragment.
A public domain religious text? Let me help with that. Note, that's a link directly to chapter 4.
http://www.gutenberg.org/files...
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You can find the Rule of St Benedict here, it is not specifically monastic, but rather outlines general Christian ethical ideals of piety, humility, charity, forbearance and chastity.
You could probably omit piety and chastity, but a lot of the rules do make sense for any community: not to nurse a grudge; to bear wrongs and insults patiently, don't be a grumbler or detractor, settle personal disputes quickly and peacefully, avoid mocking or depraved speech, and to keep a sense of perspective (see rule #47, chapter 4).
Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
Shibboleths are things that are useful for identifying distinct groups of people. A good example is the bar scene in the Tarantino film Inglorious Bastards. One of the characters is an Englishman pretending to be a German Officer and he does an okay job, especially given the tense situation and everyone is fooled. However, the hand gesture he makes when ordering drinks is improper and immediately betrays him as a spy.
The word itself comes from an old Hebrew word that has an unrelated meaning to the present use, which springs from a Biblical story, where the word "Shibboleth" was used as a modern shibboleth because it was pronounced differently between two warring groups and could be used to tell if a person was a foe attempting to pass themselves off as a friend. There are plenty of other examples of this being employed throughout history. For example, if you're traveling in warn torn parts of the Middle East, you may want to memorize a few passages from the Quran as that's a common shibboleth used by militants to determine if someone is actually a Muslim since it's often impossible to know based on appearance alone.
The link to the CoC is in the summary, but here it is again: SQLite Code of Conduct.
It is OBVIOUSLY a joke. I don't find it particularly funny, but I don't see any harm either. It is clearly ridiculing some of the over-the-top CoCs, and in many cases that ridicule is well deserved.
The people taking this seriously need to eat more fish or, if they are vegan, some omega-3 supplements, to help their brains work better.
Quite simple: There's a lot of folks out there, unfortunately, who like to be cunts and then use the "But what's the rule against being a cunt?" canard when called out on it. These are the people who don't know how to fucking behave around their peers, much less their co-workers and colleagues and frankly, are the ones who ruin everything for everyone else. Treat people the way you want to be treated and life would be a much better place. Sounds great. Reading through the comments here is proof-positive that some folks can't fucking get it through their heads that they're cunts. So, here we are.
The text is on SQLite's website: Code of Conduct.
It's actually a pretty decent code of conduct; if you ask only that developers govern their interactions with others according to the code.
I am guessing the objections are that the code contains religions admonitions such as:
Rule 1. First of all, love the Lord God with your whole heart, your whole soul, and your whole strength.
A majority of developers will likely be of some religion that can identify with that statement; However, the statement could disturb
atheists who might participate in the project, when the CoC references particular individual practices they disagree with.
On the other hand it's also true that the code doesn't mention any consequences for failing to follow specific rules on individual conduct. .... the SQLite developers elected to govern their interactions with each other, with their clients, and with the larger SQLite user community in accordance with the "instruments of good works" .... This rule is strict, and none are able to comply perfectly. Grace is readily granted for minor transgressions. All are encouraged to follow this rule closely, as in so doing they may expect to live happier, healthier, and more productive lives. The entire rule is good and wholesome, and yet we make no enforcement of the more introspective aspects. ....
it particularly says:
SJW is the abusive narcissist's derogatory term for "person stands on the side of decency."
SJW is a mental disease.
This code of conduct has been up for quite a while https://web.archive.org/web/20.... So clearly, all who were actually contributing to SQLite did not have a problem with it, as they would undoubtedly caused a stink at the time if they did.
Maybe this is a good way to weed out those who don't really want to contribute and should be ignored.
Besides, it is clear that is is partly tongue in cheek and partly just providing suggestions for how to build a community, particularly the bits like:
9. Do not do to another what you would not have done to yourself.
22. Do not give way to anger.
23. Do not nurse a grudge.
24. Do not entertain deceit in your heart.
29. Do not return evil for evil.
66. Do not love quarreling.
Check out the Twitter feed of that Coraline person. It's full of stuff that is prohibited by the code of conduct she (it?) promotes:
The use of sexualized language or imagery and unwelcome sexual attention or advances
Trolling, insulting/derogatory comments, and personal or political attacks
Public or private harassment
So that person is a hypocrite, definitely NOT an inclusive person, and definitely NOT the example anyone should follow.
All the things in that code of conduct are either common sense and are already in many other codes of conduct, or they are pure political bullshit and don't need to be in a code of conduct at all - like mentioning gender identity.
Open source is about the code so keep the conversation about the code, not people.
And people aren't perfect so interaction with people won't be perfect so if you can't handle that, maybe you need to contribute through a safety organization that will filter all communication to take out anything that triggers you. Maybe even replace it with compliments.
Definitely don't go to conferences because you will be shocked at how wild the real world is, or maybe go but wear a burka so nobody will recognize you or comment on your body parts they can't see.
There are ways to solve this problem without adopting political codes of conduct for open source projects, but those ways do not lead to more authority for the SJW so they are rejected.