Echoes of Ghandi and making salt.
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| Author | Content |
|---|---|
| salparadise Dec 02, 2005 11:24 PM EDT |
In India, the right to make salt was removed by (British?) law.
So "they all" marched to the sea and made some salt, reaffirming the basic rights of people to interact with their world and make use of the resources therein. There's similarities to the current situation. Various companies, governments and agencies do NOT want to allow people to have free access to software and information. They are trying to outlaw such things. So we have to hold the line. And we have to keep repeating the truth. And should the day come when Free Software is outlawed, we have to be prepared to keep going and to keep fighting even if it means fines, jail time and/or beatings. We are the sand in the M$-vaseline, the spanner in the M$-works, the fly in the M$-ointment. And (I hope) we will stand against these mad New World Order feaks and their officially sanctioned, advert ridden, subscription model based global media nightmare to the last. Passive resistance based on the idea that we are doing nothing wrong. On the contrary, it is wrong to want to control all humanity. It's one thing to encourage uptake of your particular product, quite another to lie to governments, bully manufacturers, treat customers like criminals and generally behave like a spoiled 5 year old having a tantrum because you can't have all the pie, the fridge it came in and the entire house as well. So yes, we could do with some Named Vendor support. We could do with a Bonfire of the Vanities for the 21st Century, where people gather in the streets and burn their copies of Windows/OSX. Apple isn't cool, they just pretend to be to con people into buying them. You can't buy "cool". You want to be cool? Use Linux! Sharing is cool. Giving is cool. Helping other people is cool. Making a boatload of money out of people isn't cool. Why? Because money isn't cool. Knowing your neighbour is in a better position because you helped him for free is way cool. Real power lies in the hands of the governed, not the in the hands of the governors. |
| henke54 Dec 03, 2005 2:02 AM EDT |
2005-12-03
US research restrictions spark controversy "The news that the US Government proposes to prevent Chinese and other nations' citizens participating in advanced scientific projects in the United States has prompted an outcry among overseas Chinese students and scholars in the United States, according to a Xinhua News Agency report. The proposal is, for the so-called sake of US national security, aimed at the prevention of the theft of technical secrets by foreign spies, said Xinhua, quoting relevant reports. Such a restriction will do no good to exchanges between China and the United States in scientific, cultural and educational fields," said Zhu Hongwen, chairman of the Association of Chinese Students and Scholars of Greater New York Area. " http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-12/03/content_... |
| dinotrac Dec 03, 2005 2:37 AM EDT |
Sal -- What are you talking about? If you're referring to the article, the situation described is nothing like the ban against making salt. There is no government ban against Linux. It is freely available. Some proposed laws and some technologies might have a negative impact on Linux, and we need to be vigilant about that, but, to date, nobody is preventing access to it. Nobody. The situation with vendors is more akin to Wal-Mart offering only CDs that meet its standards for family-friendliness. Artists complain about censorship, but nobody is censoring them. Wal-Mart is exercising its freedom to select which merchandise to offer. Nothing more, nothing less. Artists who want to sell CDs through Wal-Mart must product CDs that Wal-Mart will sell. Nothing sinister there. No rights violated. If Dell wants to offer a true consumer Linux PC, it will. Same for HP. In the meantime, you can buy one elsewhere. You can even convert a Dell or HP to a Linux PC by -- gasp! -- installing Linux. |
| salparadise Dec 03, 2005 3:23 AM EDT |
Sal -- What are you talking about? A good question. In retrospect, and in relation to the original article what I said is non-sensical. A lot of what's on my mind is this http://www.fsffrance.org/news/article2005-11-25.en.html and it's possible consequences. My only other defence is age and posting within half an hour of waking up. My apologies. |
| TxtEdMacs Dec 03, 2005 5:55 AM EDT |
salparadise - no apologies necessary, my thoughts have been running along very similar lines. Moreover, those thoughts are independent of this article (I skip most), but the drum beat for various methods to introduce DRM by various big players sanctioned by big governments is to be missed only by the tone deaf. It's like high gas prices in the US (actually they are low by world standards) are always met with 'Had I only known' or 'No one warned me', etc. The rules of commerce are concocted not on free or natural advantage, but by the interests of the traders. Take China - they are even more energy inefficient in manufacturing than India, the distances and energy use required to get the products to safes areas are large. Furthermore, this is built on the backs of the less connected that are dumped or used for the advantages of those with lines to power. While I admit to a bias towards the Chinese, it does not extend to the CCP. |
| tuxchick Dec 03, 2005 1:26 PM EDT |
It's not so farfetched, given Microshaft's successful purchasing of congresscritters and other lawmakers. And the entertainment industry and their successful encroachments against fair use and free speech. |
| tadelste Dec 03, 2005 4:16 PM EDT |
You guys have to get in touch with the concept of faith. The universe always let's these guys look like they're getting away with something. But, eventually it all comes tumbling down. The universe is a rules based system ultimately. |
| jimf Dec 03, 2005 4:20 PM EDT |
True tadelste, but, it's the damage they do in the mean time.... |
| tadelste Dec 04, 2005 8:50 AM EDT |
Quoting:it's the damage they do in the mean time. I suppose any one of us would run the universe much better. |
| jimf Dec 04, 2005 9:42 AM EDT |
Humm... A bit stoic today are we :) I just think it behoves us to do what we can to bring things back into balance, and, limit that damage as much as we can. But 'run' it, hell, we can barely comprehend it all. |
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