David Gerard wrote:
Apart from the problem of unnecessarily redefining a word in English
as a jargon term of quite different meaning, I really don't see how
this will lead to *less* subjectivity and contentiousness.
Well, all natural language is inherently vague, so this objection could
arise for absolutely any definition of absolutely any word in English.
This is also a major problem in legal jurisprudece, for example in
Constitutional interpretation. I think the consensus is more or less
that what's important is that the social conventions match up with how
the word is used in the individual instance. In the case given, the
definition would be dictating the substance of the social convention --
so, as long as everyone agrees that they understand what the definition
means and that they'll abide by it, I don't think there is much of a
problem here.
- Ryan