Has Mark Hammond attained pariah status yet?

[Michael Chermside]

Um... look folks. We can all point at the article and laugh, but some 
people appear to be confused about what is and what isn't intended to be 
  taken with a <wink>. So let me state a few facts quite clearly, with 
no sarcasm (or humor) intended.

  1) Mark Hammond has made HUGE contributions to the Python community.
     The degree to which he personally has contributed to usability on
     the Windows platform is clearly an important contribution.

  2) Mark generally has a decent sense of humor. So do lots of folks in
     the Python community -- after all, it's not named for a snake! We
     LIKE to laugh when journalists (or anyone!) makes a silly statement
     and uses it as a lead.

  3) Not everyone will want to use a .NET version of Python if Mark were
     to create such a thing. (Not everyone will have a platform where
     they COULD use it.) But everyone (pretty much everyone) will be
     pleased that such a thing exists. Everyone (pretty much everyone) in
     the Python community thinks that Python is a really cool tool and
     would like as many people as possible to be able to use it! Python
     everywhere!

  4) Mark should have more support from within the Python community for
     the work he is doing. So should Guido. And so does Andrew Kuchling,
     Robin Dunn, Finn Bock, and MANY, many others. We could all use an
     extra hand. I hope Mark gets the support he needs, much as I hope
     all the other projects make headway.

Okay... now back to your regularly scheduled <wink> enabled sense of
humor. This message has been sponsored by the C.C.U.P.M.H.B.P.W.A.H.S.H. 
(Committee to Cover Up the Pariah-ization of Mark Hammond By Pretending 
We All Have a Sense of Humor), a sub-committee of the PSU.