[EM] Re: Normative criteria

[MIKE OSSIPOFF]

Chris--

You said:

I meant the same as I assume James meant, that is
just that it is about how things should be. In that
weak sense I suppose  all or nearly all the criteria
mentioned at EM are "normative", so  the phrase could
be reserved for criteria that are based on or
prescribe the more desirable (or "fundamental")
standards.

I reply:

MY other question was "Who decides which criteria are normative?". Your 
answer suggests that when someone says that a criterion is normative, 
they're expressing their personal opinion that a criterion is based on or 
prescribes the more desirable or fundamental standards. Ok, that's all I 
wanted to find oiut.

Of course desirability is a purely individual subjective matter. The fact 
that a criterion is based on a fundamental standard needn't mean much. A 
fundamental standard is merely one that doesn't result from another 
standard. It could be a lousy one almost no one likes or values.

So far, then "normative" doesn't mean a whole lot, does it.

Mike Ossipoff

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