[CS-FSLUG] The Moral Foundation of Free Software

[Don Parris]

On Sat, 1 Jan 2005 18:10:59 +0100, Norbert Bollow <nb at norbert.ch> wrote:
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> Don Parris <evangelinux at matheteuo.org> wrote:
> 
> > Still, we are giving up our right to help our neighbors, by agreeing
> > to not redistribute the software.
> 
> What "right to help our neighbors" are you thinking of?
> 
I have seen a couple other remarks on this.  I admit my choice of
words was flawed.  This is a Christian obligation, not a right.  Is
giving up a right equal to or worse than shirking our
responsibilities?

> Redistributing copyrighted software is forbidden by copyrigkt law in
> just about any country, except if you have explicit permission from
> the copyright holder.
> 
> > How important is it, for us as Christians, to consider the moral
> > implications of choosing between proprietary and free/open source
> > software?
> 
> In my opinion, it's important to view this in the larger context of
> the need for the church to take a stand against greed-driven business
> practices in general.
> 
> Greetings, Norbert.
> 

This makes sense.  I believe greed is also what RMS had in mind with
respect to his view of NDAs and EULAs.

Peace,
Don
-- 
DC Parris GNU Evangelist
http://matheteuo.org/
gnumathetes at gmail.com
Free software is like God's love - 
you can share it with anyone anywhere anytime!