Ramblings

Blame is an investigative tool to isolate a root cause for a problem. In Git, the blame function can be used to identify which user is responsible for a line of code, enabling inquiry and troubleshooting. To address a problem, the root cause needs to be determined, which is typically a combination of an individual fucking up and the structure that allowed them to fuck up in the first place (through poor training standards, improper safeguards against human error, etc.). This works for both software development as well as any interaction between multiple humans that went sideways. A root cause needs to be determined, which is typically a blend of multiple factors, and then strategies are devised and executed to improve the problem.

Blame is not a tool of oppression, to make people feel bad. Blame is not something with inherent moral connotation, it is not “bad” to be blamed. To be blamed means to be identified as a cause of something¹⁾ - this is a process, procedure, analysis with no inherent meaning on its own. It is about establishing who did something and, if necessary, finding the correct angles from which to solve a problem: how can we prevent this from happening in the future?