On Tue, 30 Sep 2008, Isaac Atilano wrote: > I personally agree with Josh but I'd like to point out where I think RMS > is coming from. > To him proprietary software is 'evil.' Did he actually write somewhere that it was "evil." I think I can find pages where he has written that DRM is evil. I think he says that there are evil effects of proprietary software but I don't think he would say that it is evil to produce software with a proprietary license. I could easily be wrong though. Also, I wouldn't take the word "evil" too seriously because it is often used as a loose shorthand for "something that isn't good for us." > This is a philosophical position > which brings up questions such as: > "To what extent does my use of proprietary software make me a > participant in evil?" > "To what extent does my promotion of a system that makes an evil program > available to others make me a participant in evil?" > "Should we have the liberty to chose something that is evil?" > Through his words and actions, I think he's shown where he stands on > these questions. > > Not everyone has to agree with RMS and not everyone does. > Even though I disagree with RMS on a philosophical level, I agree with > him on a pragmatic level in that it is in our best interest as a free > society to promote the use of free software and discourage the use of > proprietary software. I think he has found that taking an extreme position is necessary for him if he's going to make progress in getting people to be like you and me. Mike