Voting Reps:
The following is a message from Board Candidate Phillip
Hallam-Baker.
Scott…
Subject: Election
Communication
Dear Electors,
Thank you for considering my candidacy for the OASIS board of
directors.
I have been asked why I appear to be arguing against ideas
such as encouraging co-operation between standards groups and avoiding
duplicating work. It may appear to some that I am arguing against the principal
functions that the board of directors is intended to perform, questioning an
idea that is considered to be as unquestionable as apple pie.
Part of my concern is the general philosophical principle
that it is the unquestioned ideas that need questioning. Apple pie has many
fine qualities but it can hardly be considered a universal truth. It is easy to
support principles that result in no conflict; the question is which decision
is to be made in cases of conflict.
It seems to me that the principle that sets OASIS out from
other standards bodies is the autonomy allowed to the individual Technical
Committees and that this is something to be preserved. For this reason I
believe that the board should certainly advise Technical Committees to
collaborate and communicate with other groups, both inside and outside OASIS.
I believe that the role of the OASIS board should be
equivalent to that of an Oxford College Tutor, providing advice, facilitating
collaborations with others working in the same field and where necessary
suggesting that the rate of progress is insufficient. An Oxford College Tutor
does not however micromanage the student's work.
The right to fail is an important one that must be jealously
guarded. If we only allow that which is certain to succeed we are certain to
fail.
If a group decides that having considered the conventional
wisdom they wish to reject it the board should in most cases respect that
decision unless there was a significant risk of serious damage to the fabric of
the Internet.
Yours,
Phillip Hallam-Baker