Re: Proposal to delay the decition of the DPL of the withdrawal of the Package Policy Committee delegation
On Thu, 26 Oct 2006 16:08:48 +0100, Ian Jackson <ian@davenant.greenend.org.uk> said:
> Manoj Srivastava writes ("Re: Proposal to delay the decition of the
> DPL of the withdrawal of the Package Policy Committee delegation"):
>> On Thu, 26 Oct 2006 12:28:51 +0100, Ian Jackson
>> <ian@davenant.greenend.org.uk> said:
>> > The TC could decide to make a new person the maintainer of the
>> > policy package.
>>
>> You are correct, the TC could delegate their powers to any one.
> No, I mean according to the constitution 6.1(2) the TC is empowered
> to
> Since the TC is empowered to transfer a package between developers,
> the DPL is _not_ empowered to do so unless it's urgent. See s5.1.
That is only when there is a dispute between developers about
who is the maintainer. Having the TC initiate such a process to strip
away a package from a developer is over reachin itself.
>> However, the people who maintain the policy package are still the
>> maintainers -- and while they cannot make normative changes to
>> policy,
> The people who maintain the policy package _are_ empowered to make
> normative changes to policy. I don't see how any other reading of
> 3.1(1) is possible, whether or not the policy maintainers are
> Delegates.
When changing policy, the technical decisions being made
affect far more than their own work. So no, I don't think that it
applies to the policy package, and that is an exception to the rule.
> You might say that only the TC has the power to make normative
> changes to policy (is that what you're saying?) but this is
> obviously absurd given 6.3(6):
> Technical Committee makes decisions only as last resort.
That, indeed, is true, as also borne out by experience. But
unless the DPL or the TC delegate away modification of policy, policy
will change only as a last resorrt, or if the issue is brought before
them. So, in effect, the developers can, in a new policy process,
bring each proposal before the TC, which can rule on it and elect
change, or not change, the policy.
> So the TC's power to determine policy is to overrule the policy
> maintainers, not to stand in for them. The TC is far too cumbersome
> for use as the first-line of decisionmaking.
That is not what the constitution says.
> Also, if you think that according to the constitution only the TC
> has the power to make normative changes to policy, what makes you
> think the defined `policy process' has any legitimacy ?
It has none.
manoj
--
The difference between a career and a job is about 20 hours a week.
Manoj Srivastava <srivasta@debian.org> <http://www.debian.org/~srivasta/>
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