The ability of humans to exchange information quickly and efficiently is our super power. Our other limited abilities and general fragility could not have made us the dominant species of the entire planet, and enabled us to do the things we do. More specifically, the written and verbal expression of culture has enabled the alignment of the individuals of our species toward long term goals of incredible complexity. So pervasive is our reliance on verbal and written communication that I believe it deserves to be considered a fundamental right. Moreover, it is imperative to establish norms in the kinds of exchanges and how they evolve, and what ideas are allowed or what cross examinations are considered polite and welcome, if only to increase the quality of discourse for exchangers and observers alike.
I. A clear understanding of the issue and main points is critical to make thoughtful and useful contributions to the issue at hand. Thus, in any conversation, be it written or spoken, You have the right to remain silent. You have the right to withhold judgement and contributions, and to have your act of remaining silent remain free of any perceived agenda -- not condoning or condemning any part of any point of any argument in any conversation or exchange of information. The silent party has no obligation to state why they are remaining silent or withholding contributions.
II. You have the right to have your contributions interpreted in the most favorable light. It is not the responsibility of the contributor to specify the full context of any contribution. It is the responsibility of the reader / listener to request clarification whenever ambiguity presents various interpretations which are both favorable and unfavorable, either in the receivers' own mind(s) or on behalf of possible misunderstandings by other observers.
III. Learning and maturation is inevitable and good in any person or organization. Thus, you have the right to express a change in past contributions, and to make updated contributions that overrule your past contributions, whenever those past contributions are referenced as part of this change.
IV. Even if your contribution's thesis has not changed, you have the right to clarify past contributions, and to have the most recent clarification override the past contributions -- to the extent that they do not overtly contradict those past contributions.
V. You have the right to request clarification on any point made by any contributor. The requestee is not bound by any special constraints, and retains all the rights herein. Furthermore, you have the right to request supporting information, context, or background information of any opinion or statement. Such requests shall not in themselves be viewed as a malicious act.
VI. You have the right to pronounce judgement and opinion for or against any contribution or argument by any party as part of your contribution. No party is under any obligation to acknowledge or respond to any pronunciation thereof.
VII. In order to allow context and clear train of thought by a contributor, you have the right to request uninterrupted time or space to present an argument, and to withhold any contributions or information unless that time is given. Similarly, you have the right to request a limit to the uninterrupted time or space given to any party, and are under no obligation to consider discourse that continues outside of this time or space, should they agree to those limits.
VIII. You have the right to specify the audience for your arguments. That is, you have the right to make any statement or express an opinion without the intent to convince the listener, for example to make it part of the conversation record or be it part of posterity.
IX. You have the right to request and /or specify a structure for the exchange of information. These "rules of order" shall be agreed to by all parties or not used, and shall apply to all parties equally, with the exception of an optional "moderator" who directs the conversation according to the rules. If used, the moderator shall act impartially and shall be precluded from contributing to the exchange. Specifically, you have the right to request a moderator in any exchange of information.
X. You have the right to request limited or expanded audience. You can, at any time, request that an exchange of information or dialog be conducted in the party of any observer(s) (or in private), and to withhold your contributions if this is not agreed to. The observer is under no obligation to keep their observations confidential unless agreed upon by all parties.
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