> But that assumes that the vendor/maintainer of open source software has a responsibility to not engage in "bad behaviour."
> "it’s not really in the spirit of open source, where criticism comes in the form of patches and forks."
Everybody has an obligation to refrain from bad behavior whether or not they are an "open source" developer, and everybody has a right to criticize bad behavior whether or not they consume software, and whether or not the software they consume is "open source." That may not be what "open source" means to you, but in that case I want nothing to do with whatever it is that it means to you. I don't subscribe to any ideology that obligates me to hold my tongue when I see somebody doing something I think is morally wrong.
You'll just have to find a way to cope with people criticizing things or people you believe should be immune to criticism. The simple fact of the matter is you have neither the power nor authority to set the bounds for acceptable criticism. People will continue to criticize software they choose to not use, and there is nothing you can do to stop that. You certainly can't stop them by telling them to shut up or by trying to overload the definition of "open source" with your own inane pet philosophy [namely: "All criticism should be formatted as patches or forks."]
You're responding to an argument that I didn't make. Your entire post appears to be a response to a fictional rewriting of my posts which doesn't exist.
For the record—:
• I didn't say (and I don't believe) that developers "should be immune to criticism"
• I didn't describe (and I do reject) an "ideology that obligates [anyone] to hold [their] tongue."
• I never defined any "bounds for acceptable criticism."
• I never said "All criticism should be formatted as patches or forks."
Nobody is obligated to act in accordance with anyone else's opinion of the spirit of a community. People are free to do whatever they wish as long as it's within the bounds of law and license conditions.
I have no problem with any form of criticism, although I do find it more worthy of one's attention when it's constructive. I do have a problem with the attitude of some people who get offended when their criticism is rejected or ignored.
What I reject is the assertion that the copyright holder of an open source software project is obligated to follow a certain mode of behaviour. By contrast, you're saying that "everybody has an obligation to refrain from bad behaviour." So in a surprise twist, it turns out the only person obligating a certain ideology upon others here is you.
> "it’s not really in the spirit of open source, where criticism comes in the form of patches and forks."
Everybody has an obligation to refrain from bad behavior whether or not they are an "open source" developer, and everybody has a right to criticize bad behavior whether or not they consume software, and whether or not the software they consume is "open source." That may not be what "open source" means to you, but in that case I want nothing to do with whatever it is that it means to you. I don't subscribe to any ideology that obligates me to hold my tongue when I see somebody doing something I think is morally wrong.
You'll just have to find a way to cope with people criticizing things or people you believe should be immune to criticism. The simple fact of the matter is you have neither the power nor authority to set the bounds for acceptable criticism. People will continue to criticize software they choose to not use, and there is nothing you can do to stop that. You certainly can't stop them by telling them to shut up or by trying to overload the definition of "open source" with your own inane pet philosophy [namely: "All criticism should be formatted as patches or forks."]