Re:BPFK Section: lerfu Shifts
I was somewhat afraid of that.
I suppose I will go ahead and define the alphabet shifts. But I believe Lojban will eventually need a concept of deprecation.
Human languages have words that become obsolete due to lack of usage. Computer languages have deprecation so that clunky features of the language don't have to be maintained forever. As halfway in between, I think Lojban needs a similar concept. When an advanced-level Lojban textbook appears, it shouldn't have to describe things like lerfu shifts, and when a Lojban-using AI appears, it shouldn't have to understand them.
So what I mean by "deprecated" is this: the construct is permissible, but future instructional materials in Lojban should feel free to not teach it. Its meaning is left up to the interpretation of whatever listener might understand it. I don't see this as prescribing how people should use the language; I see this as getting rid of baggage so we can get on with accurately specifying the parts of the language that are useful.