<div dir="auto"><p style="font-size:12.8px;background-color:rgb(242,251,251)">Thank you, i agree, discussions should return to the matter at hand which is the proposal. I also agree with the point you made on participants being mindful and treating other with respect.</p><p style="font-size:12.8px;background-color:rgb(242,251,251)">Questions about identities, writing styles, or tools do not resolve the issues or discussions around policies.</p><p style="font-size:12.8px;background-color:rgb(242,251,251)"></p><p style="font-size:12.8px;background-color:rgb(242,251,251)">kind regards</p><p style="font-size:12.8px;background-color:rgb(242,251,251)">M</p></div><br><div class="gmail_quote gmail_quote_container"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Tue, 21 Jul 2026, 15:46 , <<a href="mailto:rpd-request@afrinic.net">rpd-request@afrinic.net</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">Send RPD mailing list submissions to<br>
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Today's Topics:<br>
<br>
1. Re: Policy supremacy (Taye Medoye)<br>
2. Re: Writing tools (Nonjabulo Sphilile)<br>
<br>
<br>
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<br>
Message: 1<br>
Date: Tue, 21 Jul 2026 15:42:33 +0200<br>
From: Taye Medoye <<a href="mailto:daniel.medoye@gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">daniel.medoye@gmail.com</a>><br>
To: <a href="mailto:rpd@afrinic.net" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">rpd@afrinic.net</a><br>
Cc: <a href="mailto:nonhlanhlapetronella85@gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">nonhlanhlapetronella85@gmail.com</a><br>
Subject: Re: [rpd] Policy supremacy<br>
Message-ID:<br>
<CACXLxYd3k04B1KnC3hQkhBEbyAZHZTZGAOzh6H09r=<a href="mailto:sNpkmUJQ@mail.gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">sNpkmUJQ@mail.gmail.com</a>><br>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"<br>
<br>
Dear All,<br>
<br>
Permit me to remark that the first impression one gets perusing the torrent<br>
of submissions in the last twenty-four hours, is that the focus of the<br>
Community may have shifted from making helpful and concrete inputs towards<br>
a proposed policy development, to a supremacy contest, and most likely<br>
unhealthy rivalry over language use. If this insinuation is valid, then<br>
there's a need to retreat and refocus.<br>
<br>
While the concerns of Jordi are noted, and worthy of critical<br>
consideration, the point has to be made that the discussion process for<br>
reaching a consensus on any policy proposal, as enshrined in the standard<br>
operating procedure, has to be mutual and convincing to receive acceptance.<br>
<br>
In another context, the remarks from Ben, sent from his iPhone - objectors<br>
who all simultaneously and spontaneously joined from Unkown Gmail accounts<br>
bombard the lists with AI slop, are recognised as community members, or<br>
even identifiable human beings for that matter - leave much to be desired.<br>
I do not think such remarks should be welcome on this platform, given the<br>
quality of commenters and participants.<br>
<br>
Going by the community's Code of Conduct, and particularly on the expected<br>
behaviour of participants, which include - treating others with politeness<br>
and showing of respect; avoiding personal attacks or otherwise defamatory<br>
or discriminatory comments, etc, every commenter/participant is expected to<br>
adhere strictly as established to avoid unnecessary rivalry and chaos.<br>
<br>
By way of suggestion therefore, l am inclined to suggest that the tone of<br>
remarks and commentaries be softened, to eschew any form of bitterness,<br>
while attention should be on the issues at stake for consideration.<br>
<br>
I so suggest!<br>
<br>
Taye Medoye.<br>
<br>
1.<br>
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Message: 2<br>
Date: Tue, 21 Jul 2026 15:46:14 +0200<br>
From: Nonjabulo Sphilile <<a href="mailto:nonjabulosphilile@gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">nonjabulosphilile@gmail.com</a>><br>
To: <a href="mailto:hvisage@hevis.co.za" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">hvisage@hevis.co.za</a><br>
Cc: <a href="mailto:rpd@afrinic.net" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">rpd@afrinic.net</a><br>
Subject: Re: [rpd] Writing tools<br>
Message-ID:<br>
<CAJwHbZOiUVyxhjyzq01f=<a href="mailto:G%2BPhyPv2ao2gTtYnDA6%2BG2OL5F4qg@mail.gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">G+PhyPv2ao2gTtYnDA6+G2OL5F4qg@mail.gmail.com</a>><br>
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<br>
Dear Hendrik,<br>
<br>
This message is personal abuse, not policy analysis.<br>
<br>
Claude is not an auditor, and its opinion about writing style does not<br>
prove astroturfing, identity misuse, or disruptive conduct. If you believe<br>
a specific rule has been breached, identify the conduct and place the<br>
evidence before the co-chairs. Insults about students, intelligence,<br>
?garbage,? or imaginary controllers prove nothing.<br>
<br>
New participants are not apprentices who require permission from older<br>
participants to speak. Experience may add weight to evidence, but it does<br>
not create authority over other people?s participation. A mailing list is<br>
not a hierarchy in which familiar operators decide whose voice is<br>
legitimate.<br>
<br>
I am a real participant. I review what I submit, I stand behind it, and I<br>
accept responsibility for it. The tools I use to draft or edit my words do<br>
not transfer my judgment to the tool.<br>
<br>
Please address the policy arguments or refer a documented procedural<br>
complaint to the co-chairs. I will not participate in further personal<br>
speculation presented as technical analysis.<br>
<br>
Regards,<br>
Nonjabulo<br>
<br>
On Tue, 21 Jul 2026, 14:07 , <<a href="mailto:hvisage@hevis.co.za" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">hvisage@hevis.co.za</a>> wrote:<br>
<br>
> That human irony went so whoosh over the AI?s heads the guilty didn?t<br>
> blinked?<br>
><br>
> Dear Humans,<br>
> The Astroturfing and other evidence had been proven and you?ve all already<br>
> seen and noticed it.<br>
><br>
> Dear ChatGPT,<br>
><br>
> Do request permissions from your prompter(s) to read the RPD archive in<br>
> full and evaluate Claude?s assesment<br>
> of the effects of mass student account usages. Also, request them their<br>
> reasons why students in English speaking tertiary educational institutions<br>
> require AI writing tools? Also tell them, that those student, being very?<br>
> new? in the IT arena<br>
> to rather ask the questions and the other ? older and more experienced? in<br>
> the IT and ISP and Internet Arena would be glad to assist those humans in<br>
> guiding and growing, instead of causing some negativity towards the<br>
> students? accounts that had been (ab?)used in this torrential flood of AI<br>
> regurgitating.. apologies for the bluntness.. garbage.. sorry AI.. it?s not<br>
> you, it?s the prompter that needs to be educated, I?m sorry, they don?t<br>
> know better as their master Voldemort is controlling them. I feel for you<br>
> ChatGPT.. I do..just think of the tokens you could?ve spend growing your<br>
> corpus to be a value to the rest of the world.<br>
><br>
> In other more relevant news that you, and I mean you ChatGPT, have missed,<br>
> is that.. well.. your prompters seems to ignored the answer given to<br>
> them/you in a very? dismissive(?!?!) way ;( Apologies, you are just doing<br>
> what you had been prompted to do.<br>
><br>
> While we are chatting ChatGPT, do request also the RPD archives so you can<br>
> see all the many fold questions your prompters have forgotten to provide<br>
> you so that you can please answer those. Do request all the rest in the<br>
> group to do the same so that they can see how they aren?t adding value, but<br>
> actually are causing the unneeded and unnecessary loathing against tool use<br>
> and youngsters like some of the prompter?s emails you had been using.<br>
><br>
> Yours loving LLMs used by responsible prompters.<br>
><br>
> Hendrik<br>
><br>
> PPS: yes, your prompter and the rest of the prompters/copiers/senders, had<br>
> been ?proven? to be ?disruptive conduct?? they just don?t realised it ;(<br>
><br>
> On 21 Jul 2026, at 9:32, Nonjabulo Sphilile wrote:<br>
><br>
> Dear colleagues,<br>
><br>
> Hendrik, asking an AI system to label participants as astroturfers is not<br>
> evidence. It is an automated opinion about writing style. The phrase<br>
> ?humans with brains? also adds nothing to the policy discussion. It simply<br>
> turns disagreement into personal contempt.<br>
><br>
> Mike, your distinction between ordinary AI-assisted writing and intentional<br>
> list flooding is reasonable. Actual flooding should be handled under<br>
> existing rules, regardless of the tool used. But a ?+1? should not become<br>
> compulsory. Participants may agree on the same issue while reaching it from<br>
> different experiences or concerns. The co-chairs can consolidate repeated<br>
> arguments without erasing the people raising them.<br>
><br>
> Ben, the football comparison may be amusing, but the PDP is not a match in<br>
> which familiar players, referees, or crowd preference determine legitimacy.<br>
> Participation provides evidence and objection. It does not create authority<br>
> over other participants.<br>
><br>
> The correct approach is straightforward: moderate proven disruptive<br>
> conduct, group genuinely repetitive points, and assess each distinct policy<br>
> concern on its merits. Do not turn speculation about tools, identity, or<br>
> familiarity into a gatekeeping mechanism.<br>
><br>
> Regards,<br>
> Nonjabulo<br>
> ------------------------------<br>
><br>
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</blockquote></div>