Re: Proposed GR: Repeal the 2005 vote for declassification of the debian-private mailing list
Ian Jackson dijo [Fri, Sep 09, 2016 at 03:08:27PM +0100]:
> For me the ethical basis for this is that people who have posted
> messages to -private did so (and continue to do so) on the basis of
> the policy in force at the time when they decided to send their
> message. It is the policy in force at that time which should control
> the message's declassificatioon.
>
> If a new policy is established which is less preserving of the
> messages' privacy, then posters are at least free to avoid the list
> and send private email, or limit what information they post to
> -private. But people don't have the choice to retrospectively un-post
> previously posted messages.
>
> I think the recent GR was defeated because of people's concern about
> the possibility that their own and others' previously posted messages
> might be published without their consent, and against their clearly
> expressed wishes.
Just adding a bit of what I understand to this... Not only regarding
their own messages, but regarding messages of people who have retired
from the project or passed away. A project over 20 years old as ours
sadly has many people who were important or active at different points
in time, and whose contributions or discussions might be interesting
for somebody to refer to, but who have died and are thus unable to
defend the privacy of their sayings.
> AIUI the people who voted against the GR were of the view that the
> 2005 GR effectively prevented listmaster from behaving that way, and
> that the failed GR would (if passed) have explicitly permitted it (and
> perhaps even encouraged it).
Yes. I didn't read it at first as a "we don't trust listmasters to
behave in a way consistent with what each of us expects", but it reads
clearly that way for me now.
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