Changes have been made to the Ruby project's code of conduct, which defines principles for friendly and respectful communication within the developer community, aimed at clarifying language that could be misused.
- The item defining a tolerant attitude towards opposing opinions has been removed.
- The phrase prescribing a welcoming attitude towards newcomers, younger participants, their teachers, and mentors for those who struggle to control their emotions ("fire breathing wizards") has been expanded to all users.
- The item defining unacceptable behavior (harassment) has been limited to protected categories (gender, race, age, disability, skin color, nationality, religion).
- The phrase stating that words and actions must align with good intentions has been supplemented with the understanding that intentions and consequences may differ.
The change has been made to protect against technical discussions turning into arguments over differing views and to prevent offensive remarks under the guise of an alternative opinion. In particular, the trigger for changing the code was a novice's message on the mailing list about an error in calculating the expression "Date.today +1". The author joked that such an error benefits women who do not like to disclose their true age.
In response, accusations of sexism, insults, and criticism about the inappropriateness of jokes regarding vulnerable individuals erupted. Other users felt that there was nothing special about the joke and that the offensive reactions expressed by some participants may be more unacceptable than the joke itself. It escalated to ultimatums threatening to stop using mailing lists if such jokes were deemed acceptable.
Opponents of the code change argue that the community represents diverse cultures, and it is unreasonable to expect those who are not native English speakers to know all the nuances of someone else's political correctness. There are also concerns that the changes will stifle the opportunity to express any humor, as there will always be someone who feels offended by any joke.
Source: opennet.ru
