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Re: discussion style and respect

2015-06-11 05:19:26

On Jun 11, 2015, at 1:09 PM, Tim Chown 
<tjc(_at_)ecs(_dot_)soton(_dot_)ac(_dot_)uk> wrote:

On 11 Jun 2015, at 06:46, Yoav Nir <ynir(_dot_)ietf(_at_)gmail(_dot_)com> 
wrote:

On Jun 11, 2015, at 12:58 AM, Michael StJohns 
<mstjohns(_at_)comcast(_dot_)net> wrote:

Let me try this again.

1) Is my description of the IETF process reasonably close to reality?  E.g. 
does the consensus process contribute to "Standardization by Combat”?

Perhaps. But the best tactic for winning this kind of combat in the IETF is 
not to shout louder than others. The best tactic is to get a small group 
around you (preferably not all from the same company), insist on your 
position and refuse to budge. Then wait it out until your opponents grow 
tired and walk away.

It is up to chairs to prevent this kind of outcome. I mean, we think of 
tenacity as a good quality but it shouldn’t override all others. One way is 
to encourage reaching consensus quickly. Long discussions tend to favor the 
tenacious.

Perhaps we need more coin tosses.

Or basketball tournaments. These have the advantage of disqualifying anyone who 
can’t get 4 other people to support their idea.

Yoav