Behold, a Linux maintainer openly admitting to attempting to sabotage the entire Rust for Linux project:
https://lwn.net/ml/all/[email protected]/
The good news is this doesn’t affect drm/asahi, our GPU driver. The bad news is it does affect all the other drivers we’re (re)writing in Rust, two so far with a third one coming.
Another choice quote, calling R4L “cancer”: https://lore.kernel.org/lkml/[email protected]/
Personally, I would consider this grounds for removal of Christoph from the Linux project on Code of Conduct violation grounds, but sadly I doubt much will happen other than draining a lot of people’s energy and will to continue the project until Linus says “fuck you” or something.
As for how to move forward, if I were one of the Rust maintainers, I would just merge the patch (which does not touch code formally maintained by the dissenter). Either Linus takes the pull, and whatever Christoph says is irrelevant, or he doesn’t, and R4L dies. Everything else is a waste of everyone’s time and energy.
Edit: Sent in my 2 cents: https://lore.kernel.org/rust-for-linux/[email protected]/T/#m1944b6d485070970e359bbc7baa71b04c86a30af
That’s why I didn’t address the technical merits, like a leader should. (Nor I am a leader; I’m a random with a chimp avatar.) I focused on the “popcorn” / drama.
Cool beans.
What I’m saying is that Martin should be sharing this info, instead of creating drama.
Because ultimately the goal of both sides is the same, a better kernel. It’s just that one prioritises consistency (for the sake of maintainability) and another the advantages of Rust over C, and those priorities are in conflict.
And if Hellwig cannot be convinced, the leadership can, and should.
I’m saying that Martin has the moral obligation to make his complain as precise as possible: “The CoC says [insert excerpt] and Hellwig is going against that”. Telling people to RTFCoC is the opposite of that. Is this clear now?
Also, this either is or isn’t a violation of the CoC. There’s no space for “to them”, rule violations should be handled as objectively as reasonably possible. (From a quick check, it doesn’t seem to be one. I might be wrong however.)
There’s no room for either reading, given that
The immediate reading is as an analogy; cancer is known for spreading itself through tendrils, taking huge amounts of resources. If that reading is correct, Hellwig is criticising the project for not being well contained, and invading spaces that Hellwig believes that it shouldn’t.
Another possible reading is “cancer” as “shit”, “crap”, or “rubbish”; a simple negative word.
And were my cat a chicken, she would lay eggs. However my cat is not a chicken and “cancer” is not a slur.