So, this seems like a fine policy. But calling it an “oath of reply” feels like it waters down the word “oath” in a way I dislike. (cf. the people who’ve taken the GWWC pledge, and said that if in future they think it’s not a good idea, they’ll just stop doing it.) Especially when the stuff you’ve said should be a universal understanding (around self care, rudeness, circumstances changing) is left implicit. That stuff won’t be universally understood.
As a simple change that I personally would consider an improvement, I’d call it a “reply policy”. A few words making it clear that this not absolute might be good too. Perhaps, for the one you left on this post:
For this post, my reply policy is to respond to top-level comments at least once, absent a specific reason not to, through August 2021. I will likely pursue longer-form discussions. If commenters provide especially helpful feedback, I’ll note it here along with an acknowledgement.
(Possible downside: readers might take that to be weaker than you consider it.)
That’s a good point. I picked the word “oath” intuitively, and I can try to articulate why.
First, “policy” feels more detached and state-ish than I wanted. I wanted a word that conveyed some emotional depth and a spark of human connection.
Also, “policy” has the implication of being explicit in its details, like a law. By contrast, an oath is about building credibility without being specific about what actions to take. Here’s a sample from the Hippocratic Oath:
“I swear to fulfill, to the best of my ability and judgment, this covenant: I will respect the hard-won scientific gains of those physicians in whose steps I walk, and gladly share such knowledge as is mine with those who are to follow.”
Policies can also have statements like that occasionally, but they are also often extremely detailed and voluminous:
“Employees accrue 2.15 hours of emergency personal time per pay period. On an annual basis, this is the equivalent of 56 hours. Employees may use emergency personal time up to 56 hours.”
But if you want to call yours a policy, more power to you!
So, this seems like a fine policy. But calling it an “oath of reply” feels like it waters down the word “oath” in a way I dislike. (cf. the people who’ve taken the GWWC pledge, and said that if in future they think it’s not a good idea, they’ll just stop doing it.) Especially when the stuff you’ve said should be a universal understanding (around self care, rudeness, circumstances changing) is left implicit. That stuff won’t be universally understood.
As a simple change that I personally would consider an improvement, I’d call it a “reply policy”. A few words making it clear that this not absolute might be good too. Perhaps, for the one you left on this post:
(Possible downside: readers might take that to be weaker than you consider it.)
That’s a good point. I picked the word “oath” intuitively, and I can try to articulate why.
First, “policy” feels more detached and state-ish than I wanted. I wanted a word that conveyed some emotional depth and a spark of human connection.
Also, “policy” has the implication of being explicit in its details, like a law. By contrast, an oath is about building credibility without being specific about what actions to take. Here’s a sample from the Hippocratic Oath:
“I swear to fulfill, to the best of my ability and judgment, this covenant: I will respect the hard-won scientific gains of those physicians in whose steps I walk, and gladly share such knowledge as is mine with those who are to follow.”
Policies can also have statements like that occasionally, but they are also often extremely detailed and voluminous:
“Employees accrue 2.15 hours of emergency personal time per pay period. On an annual basis, this is the equivalent of 56 hours. Employees may use emergency personal time up to 56 hours.”
But if you want to call yours a policy, more power to you!