While it doesn't match the FA title, I think an addition of "(FSF and RMS)" could be helpful to many people.
On Recent Controversial Events
11–20 of 151 posts
Re: On Recent Controversial Events
#12What a thoughtful essay. Kuhn clearly pored over those words most carefully. > The question is whether an organization should have a designated leader who is on a sustained, public campaign advocating about an unrelated issue that many consider controversial. It really doesn't matter what your view about the controversial issue is; a leader who refuses to stop talking loudly about unrelated issues eventually creates…
But then Kuhn gives the game away within a couple paragraphs, calling RMS's views 'problematic' and expressing disagreement with several of them. If you're gonna go with that line, stay on-message.
I disagree with you, Kuhn expressed that he believes that a leader pushing a controversial message unrelated to an organization’s purpose can become a distraction which has consequences, whether you agree with the leader’s controversial message or not.
That is not invalidated by the fact that Kuhn also disagreed with the views RMS has expressed and Kuhn clearly wished to distance himself from those views.
Re: On Recent Controversial Events
#13> The question is whether an organization should have a designated leader who is on a sustained, public campaign advocating about an unrelated issue that many consider controversial. I don't understand this. Are people in prominent positions not allowed to have opinions or interests outside of their job? As long as RMS wasn't actively using his power/influence as head of the FSF to advance his odd-ball views I really…
Your question is addressed in the article.
Re: On Recent Controversial Events
#14Even setting aside RMS's indefensible behavior, his vision of what "free software" means is stuck in the '80s. [1] got flagged for its flame-baity title but it's a valid point. Nobody gives a damn about the firmware for your laptop's wi-fi card. Cloud services and mobile rule the world now, and RMS never came up with a good solution to either besides "don't use them." (There's AGPL but it's never won any victories for software freedom. All it means is "buy a commercial license.")
It's unfortunate that RMS loyalists will continue to control the FSF for the foreseeable future. This is one of those cases where progress is made one funeral at a time.
[1] https://maffulli.net/2019/10/17/why-richard-stallman-doesnt-...
Re: On Recent Controversial Events
#15RMS resigned!? I can’t believe I missed something like that (I’m even a fsf “member”)
Re: On Recent Controversial Events
#16> The question is whether an organization should have a designated leader who is on a sustained, public campaign advocating about an unrelated issue that many consider controversial. I don't understand this. Are people in prominent positions not allowed to have opinions or interests outside of their job? As long as RMS wasn't actively using his power/influence as head of the FSF to advance his odd-ball views I really…
> Are people in prominent positions not allowed to have opinions or interests outside of their job?
There are absolutely jobs in the world where “don’t be a distraction” is a requirement for the job.
Re: On Recent Controversial Events
#17> In fact, RMS' views and statements posted on stallman.org about sexual morality escalated for the worse over the last few years. Each word is a linked to a comment, some of them fairly eye opening.
Except reading the links and keeping the timestamps in mind pretty much the opposite occurred. In 2016 he was blabbing about bestiality and pedophilia / rape of minors and excusing it, but later on he was mostly talking about not calling 18yos children, and saying that not all 'Sexual assault' is equal and different words should be used to describe different actions, he even provides a pretty logical argument for thi…
Regardless of how his stated views changed over time, the article is more about how such outside-the-mainstream views end up being a significant distraction from the already (unrelated) outside-the-mainstream views of the FSF.
Even were he to turn out to be an incredible coder and lover of open source, I also wouldn't expect the FSF to hire David Duke as a spokesman because the combination of two unrelated advocacy positions would be a distraction for both.
Re: On Recent Controversial Events
#18> However, we do not need to follow leadership from those whose views we fundamentally disagree.
I don't know much about the author, but I really like this viewpoint. People are of course entitled to their opinions and to free speech. But we don't have to follow leaders whose values don't align with our own.
Re: On Recent Controversial Events
#19RMS forever.
Re: On Recent Controversial Events
#20Even setting aside RMS's indefensible behavior, his vision of what "free software" means is stuck in the '80s. [1] got flagged for its flame-baity title but it's a valid point. Nobody gives a damn about the firmware for your laptop's wi-fi card. Cloud services and mobile rule the world now, and RMS never came up with a good solution to either besides "don't use them." (There's AGPL but it's never won any victories fo…
firmware
It's certainly true that RMS never came up with a good solution, because the only winning move is not to play.
But sure, rattle off your agit-comments. You don't sound like you have an agenda at all.