The-Source.com

In the continuing and complex drama surrounding MySQL and Oracle, RMS expressed concerns on the acquisition, and later expounded on his position in “On Selling Exceptions to the GNU GPL“.

The latter document is an informative read, and Bruce Byfield has an insightful take on the situation in his article “Selling GPL Exceptions isn’t Exceptional“.

What Lies Beneath

Although the actual specifics are fairly interesting in and of themselves, I’m more interested in an underlying theme, one that Mr. Byfield astutely hits upon here:

Both supporters and opponents of the FSF sometimes seem to have created a set of straw figures to react to. The supporters have done so out of uncritical respect (if not downright hero worship) of Stallman and the FSF, and the opponents for propaganda, but the results are surprisingly similar. For both, Stallman and the FSF are ethically and morally uncompromising — admirably so, for supporters, and naively, dangerously so for opponents.

I often wonder how it is that RMS, a person who expends considerable effort to explain himself precisely is so grossly misrepresented? (Quite a bit moreso by his opponents, I should say. In my humble opinion, Mr. Byfield is bending over backward to present both sides in the same light here.)

It is a favorite tactic of some to paint a caricature of Free Software supporters in general, and RMS in specific, as uncompromising unrealistic “zealots” with only the barest understanding of how the “real world” functions. Yet even the most casual examination of FSF articles and actions refutes such a notion.

Thus I return again to my point that the vocal anti-Free Software critics are either ignorant or malicious.¹ The FSF is quite good at laying out its philosophy in great detail on its website. You don’t have to sign an NDA or anything.

¹ The sadly necessary disclaimer:  I’m not suggesting there is no valid criticism out there, just that people who play the “zealot” card, ridicule RMS or the FSF for “hypocrisy”, or enage in other such fact and logic-free fallacies are to be dismissed with scorn.