First, I want to acknowledge that neither article was actually about who gets to call themselves a software engineer. That said, clearly that's all the HN comm

First, I want to acknowledge that neither article was actually about who gets to call themselves a software engineer. That said, clearly that's all the HN comments are going to be about , so I'm diving in. I call myself a software engineer because it makes me feel smart and important. To me, that's the only difference between an engineer and similar jobs. I don't want to heap scorn on people who make sandwiches at subway, like many will use this discussion as an excuse for. Nonetheless, the reason the term engineer doesn't apply to them is that their job is neither important, nor requires a lot of intelligence. Things like following a specific process, taking ethics courses, or being certified, are just things that some engineers happen to do. If you're smart and capable, you will do what is necessary to do the job well. Sometimes, this involves following a specific process, and sometimes regulation is necessary to ensure that everyone does this. But other times, individual judgement is the only solution. I believe this is the case for software engineering. I don't really care about the word that much (although I really like calling myself and engineer), but what I do care is the implication that our industry needs to be regulated like professional engineers are. In fact, I'm opposed to all forms of organization, either unions or professional organizations, because they have nothing to offer the industry, and can do a lot of harm through rent seeking behavior. I'm not opposed to regulation that forces businesses to protect user information better, or provide better privacy safeguards. But these are regulations of the business practices. I don't want to have to get a certificate for something I can read online, even if someone else worked really really hard to get their certificate.