From: Ted Faber [mailto:faber(_at_)ISI(_dot_)EDU]
That's competent rhetoric. It doesn't address the actual
state of affairs, but it reads well and is inflammatory. Nice work.
Its an effective means of making a point in a memorable fashion.
What we are arguing for here is that the IETF should choose a
communication medium that makes its point in an effective manner.
RFCs have authoritative versions for a couple reasons. Some
are the result of the IETF consensus process and the exact
wording on which consensus was achieved is important to know.
There are a significant number of cases where small changes
in the wording of an RFC or section thereof would not achieve
consensus.
Agreed, but I have yet to see an example that would be affected by the
document format.
To the extent that the internet community agrees
to abide by that consensus, the authoritative version is what
was agreed to. For these RFCs the authority due them stems
from the consensus process.
Ah here you make the mistake of thinking that the IETF community is the
Internet community. Perhaps forty years ago, but certainly not today.
The IETF does not make any effort to be representative of the Internet
community.
Now, the IETF consensus process is performed by humans, and
therefore there will be mistakes. In principle, however, it
is this process that conveys any authority on an RFC and not
some imperative handed down from an oligarchy, tyrant, or
supernatural power. I don't think your analogy to
the(?) church is particularly illuminating for that reason.
The analogy is very apt as your equation of the IETF with the Internet
community demonstrates. IETFers behave like cardinals and priests far
too often.
The lack of a pope does not damage the analogy in any way. The early
church was governed by independent bishops. The papacy was established
after an external authority (the emperor) got tired of their infighting,
doctrinal disputes &ct. Only one of the original four doctors of the
church was Bishop of Rome and the supremacy was never accepted by the
Eastern church.
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