[XML-DEV Mailing List Archive Home] [By Thread] [By Date] [Recent Entries] [Reply To This Message] Re: The Information Interchange Profession
Ihe, I assume you are posting this link for a reason, but having read the referenced... BCS [British Computer Society], THE CHARTERED INSTITUTE FOR IT TRUSTEE BOARD REGULATIONS - SCHEDULE 3 CODE OF CONDUCT FOR BCS MEMBERS ...the reason is not clear to me. The statement appears to me to be in service of the BCS's institutional concerns, taking the position that the true calling of an IT professional is to maintain the status quo, play by the rules, etc. Is that your understanding of it, or am I reading it wrongly? That kind of thing makes sense for Bar Associations, because their members' professional calling is to serve the Rule of Law. It makes sense for the accounting profession, too, because its purpose is to maintain the stability of property ownership, get public services paid for without undermining the currency, support the formation of capital in securities, allocate and direct resources, and so forth. A pro-establishment mission statement makes less sense for doctors. Doctors have a calling that can conflict with the requirements imposed by law and by property. I don't want to seek therapy from a doctor whose primary professional duty is to anything but my recovery, consistent with public health. We expect doctors to be disruptive in just that way. An important global professional organization's name, "Medecins sans Frontiers/Doctors Without Borders" is emblematic of my point, here. The flavor of the British Computer Society statement makes even less sense for Information Interchange Professionals, whose professional duty can very easily conflict with the interests of the status quo. In my own view, an Information Interchange Professional accepts responsibility for the accurate transfer of information among diverse communities with diverse viewpoints and diverse universes of discourse, no matter the agenda. Such a role *must* be a disruptive one, at least from the perspective of the establishment, but it's a life-affirming role from the perspective of human beings, because of the stark "adapt or die" choice every organism faces. Humanity cannot adapt successfully if it doesn't know what it needs to adapt to. Indeed, I suppose the reason humanity is now the dominant species on this planet is its phenomenal adaptability, which in turn rests on its ability to share information of considerable complexity, subtlety, and novelty. And that's why Freedom of Speech (which is something that the UK establishment's Official Secrets Act limits, BTW) and Open Source are two things, among many others, that are profoundly wise and life-affirming, as well as being threatening to existing interests. They are wise things because public health demands more than clean water and vaccinations. On 12/04/2013 02:03 AM, Ihe Onwuka wrote: > http://www.bcs.org/upload/pdf/conduct.pdf
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