On 9/28/12, joseph.snyder@gmail.com <joseph.snyder@gmail.com> wrote:
Intention is everything, words are only part of it. If you can't determine intention and you get upset then it is you that has the problem. Ask or let it go and assume the best intentions. The world be a lot better off if we all did this.
Exactly. In protest against all the pedantry, in the selection of "neutral" terms; I suggest making a habit of doing the opposite of what pedants want.... in other words: just ignore the reaching-out-on-a-limb-and-trying-to-dictate-what-the-sky-means arguments about if-word-x-is-really-neutral. Use the neutral terms we are already familiar with, that are understood, convenient, and "natural"; If you think "Guys" is neutral, for cases where the distinction between gender isn't important, then that's how it is; it's not something that can be dictated otherwise by anyone other than the speaker. The understood part is most important, especially on mailing lists. And lo.... the OP has opened up a can of worms here on NANOG, which are crawling around, all over the place and setting up nests, creating infestations. Please kindly get every single one of the worms released, packed up immediately, reseal the can-o-worms, and ship them back to their natural habitat in the US, Washington DC, before Monday, so we can have fewer distractions from legit operational matters. Thanks, -- -JH