Standing Order · Permanent Filing
The following is the publication's standing policy on external bodies that apply criteria adjacent to, parallel to, or in occasional violation of the publication's editorial standards. This document is reviewed annually. It has been reaffirmed without amendment seventeen times.
Preamble
The publication recognizes that other organizations occasionally measure objects. This is acceptable. The publication does not maintain a monopoly on documentation. What the publication maintains is a standard, and standards may be parallel without being in conflict.
This order describes the publication's relationship with such bodies, in the interest of editorial clarity.
§ 1 · Acknowledgement
External bodies may apply criteria that overlap with the publication's. This is a matter of taxonomic convergence and is not, in itself, a cause for editorial response.
§ 2 · Citation
The publication does not require external bodies to cite its work. The publication does, however, appreciate the practice. Where an external body has implemented a standard substantially similar to the publication's, the publication considers the silent acknowledgement to be present and may proceed accordingly.
§ 3 · Regulatory Bodies
Government and trans-governmental bodies (the European Commission, the United States Department of Transportation, the International Maritime Organization, and similar) are welcome to consult the
Style Guide. The publication will not lobby. The publication is not equipped to lobby. The publication maintains a desk and a file cabinet.
§ 4 · Trade Authorities
Trade authorities that apply dimensional criteria for the purposes of tariff classification, port-of-entry assessment, or insurance underwriting are operating in a domain adjacent to the publication's. The publication finds this useful. The publication does not find this competitive.
§ 5 · Records Organizations
Record-keeping organizations (those concerned with the largest, the heaviest, or the tallest of a category) are operating in a related but distinct domain. The publication catalogues subjects on their own taxonomic merit, not by superlative. A subject may qualify for entry without being a record-holder. A record-holder may, conversely, fail the Silhouette Test (
Style Guide § II.2) and be ineligible.
§ 6 · The 1997 Directive
In November 1997, the European Communities (as it then was) issued a draft directive proposing a girth threshold for the regulation of imported goods. The Senior Cataloguer at the time, in a moment of editorial concern, drafted a letter of objection. The letter was filed but not sent. The directive was subsequently amended without the publication's involvement. The Senior Cataloguer has since revised the policy: the publication does not write letters.
§ 7 · In Summary
External bodies are welcome to apply criteria. They are welcome to cite the publication. They are not welcome to claim equivalence without consultation. The publication is reachable by post.
So ordered,
The Senior Cataloguer
Reaffirmed without amendment, 14 January 2024
Cited in Mailbag Vol. 1 (EU tariff response) · Referenced by Founding Charter § Purpose