[iucg] [Idna-arabicscript] Re: Punycode Mixed-case annotation

[jefsey]

Jean-Michel,
Please, let keep it cool.

Mark is a linguist using English based/biased (not pejorative) 
digital computers as they are, and feeding them with "pre-data" 
(Unicode, CLDR) in order to permit them to work correctly in an 
English+languages+scripts context. He must be thanked a lot for that.

Now, we are confronting him with a new technical challenge, because 
the "computers" we consider are very different. They are networked, 
virtual (in many ways), with semiotic interface, semantic and 
neuronal, and interactive with distant humans (heterarchic context).

So, he is fully correct in challenging the sense of what we say. This 
is not because I say something that I am right against the entire 
world. He just overdoes it a little in starting with a conclusion 
("this is nonsense") and too quick in his thinking (he associates the 
whole of what we say, only with French language related details).

However,
- challenging what we say on linguistic grounds is not an IETF issue. 
As the IETF we are not here to oppose the specs and direct the users.
- discussing French language will always be opposed, as for the 
Arabic Tatweel: are you sure everyone agrees with you? We do not want 
to go by a single gopel but by the diverse and sometimes opposing people ways.
- we certainly are interested in making sure that the technology we 
want to add will make the best out of his Unicode, and his inputs are 
very welcome. As well as his comments when we want to use Unicode and 
some "meta-data" we have to enrich it.
- we also are very interested in his command of English and French 
and his love of the French language, because he may better perceive 
what is pragmatic (context dependent) and semantic (meaning related) 
in what we consider. Moreover when we consider the French, English, 
Chinese, etc. languages not only as a human languages but as 
particular parts of a semantic multilinguistic metatechnology.

Mark is a long time practitioneer of a part which interests us a lot: 
human usage interface with "mecanologie". How people do react when 
confronted with new  "mechanical" rules (such as Unicode tables, 
locale files, etc.).  We have much to learn from him about 
man/machine relation in a language context

I do hope he accepts to work with us, helping us to correct what we 
might think wrong.
Best
jfc

At 04:58 03/07/2009, jean-michel bernier de portzamparc wrote:
>Dear Dr. Davis,
>Do you mean that the project.fra is a nonsense, that academics 
>participating to it are ignorant, that politicians supporting it are 
>fooled by Jefsey, that supporting linguists dont know their mother 
>tongue, and that its future users' IQ will be too low for them to 
>understand on the internet the words of their very daily language?
>
>Is that not a little blunt?
>Portzamparc
>
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