cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/62536902
The ongoing discussions about age-verification and changes in Free and Open-Source Software and GNU Linux and related OSs made me realize a gross misunderstanding on my part. I think many other users may have the same misunderstanding (seeing many comments using the word “traitors”), and it’s important that we become aware of it. We must understand that using or saying “FOSS” or “Linux” does not automatically mean to stand up for human rights like privacy, for the community, against corporations, and similar goals and values.
If we read the comments in those age-verification discussions we can see that many developers and possibly also users make statements like “the developers have no obligation towards the community”, “the law is the law, no matter what the community wants”, “we must comply”, and similar. It’s important to realize that many developers work on FOSS not out of consideration for the community, or for human rights, or against corporations. For them it’s just one kind of software development. We may have projects that are FOSS and pro-corporations or pro-surveillance. The “F” in FOSS stands for freedom to modify and distribute the software by/to anyone in the community. It doesn’t stand for “software that promotes / stands up for general human freedom and human rights". But of course there are also developers that work with FOSS because of such values.
So for anyone who, like me, wants to use and promote software as an assertion of, and a stand for, human rights and against corporations, it’s necessary not to stop at “FOSS” or “Linux” but apply more scrutiny and more careful choices. Probably it’s always been like this, but the present times require extra awareness.
I wish there was an acronym or other word that made this moral aspect of some FOSS development clear. This would help users to recognize software projects that share their values, and also those FOSS developers who do work for those values. Is there such a term already out there?
Awful idea, if that worked we would have done it from the start.
Libre software is for taking back our computers, not controlling what others do with theirs.
This is a good point and important philosophy.
None of us want to be taken advantage of or used. But we shouldn’t let that stop us from mutual aid and building community. Whether it’s in the physical space or code space. People are always going to take advantage at some point. There isn’t anything effective you can do to preemptively stop it. Attempts to are much more likely to hinder or hurt the very people you want to help more. Time is better spent pursuing the abusers rather than trying to guard against them.
And that’s why such a license would be for. For when we manage to organize and revolt into a better world, that we actually can use the power to pursue infringers. Call it prep work, if you would.