morninʼ scott, > it is hard to see why it should be standards track or why it should > be using RFC 2119 type terminology. these are two separate issues. alvaro and the chairs can adjudicate what flavor of ice cream it should be. it my memory says it was a wg decision. i really do not care. as to 2119 language, i kinda feel it should remain. it is used sparingly. but is crucial when used. e.g. all private keys MUST be protected when at rest in a secure fashion. i suspect we would want to keep that strongly prescriptive; but it is not a hill on which i am interested in dying. randy