This seems to be a consequence of a contradiction at the heart of calling what we do “Software Engineering”.

A bridge which stands up for centuries without significant change is a good bridge. This is widely agreed. Nobody expects that a bridge will change much over time. A hydroelectric dam which needs constant maintainence to avoid the killing a million Iraqis is a bad dam. This is also pretty widely agreed.

Is software which cannot be easily changed but just does the same thing for years…

A. good software because it is reliable.

B. bad software because it is not changeable.

?

Is Django good software?

Is Unix good software?

Is our field mature enough to have a clear idea of what good software is?