Re: Being excellent to one another

[Ludovic Courtès]

Howdy!

John Darrington <address@hidden> skribis:

> As I recall, their request was that I always use "singular they" and never to 
> mention other possible alternatives to anyone.  I acknowledge their request 
> and 
> recognise their every right to make it.  But I feel no obligation to comply 
> with
> their request.  Ng0's reaction to my declining, I interpreted to mean that 
> they 
> considered it not to be a request, but a demand.  If this interpretation was 
> wrong, then I apologise to them.

John, I think you’re playing on words here.

It’s as simple as Alex wrote it:

> - if you're not sure (or have forgotten), use "singular they", or ask
> - if you know someone has a preference for pronouns, use those
> - don't use pronouns when *you know* the other person does not identify
>   with them.

In this case, what matters is respecting the other participant who
explicitly asked to be referred to using non-gendered pronouns.  It’s a
very simple request; honoring it costs us nothing but it can make a big
difference to this person.

I don’t want anyone of us to make someone else’s life harder by
disregarding what they present as important to them.

Thanks,
Ludo’.

PS: It’s a non-technical discussion but one that’s important to have to
    make sure our group works correctly.