[svlug] Re: A little on Open Source Philosophy... (fwd)

[George Bonser]

On Fri, 13 Nov 1998, Marilyn Davis wrote:

> And yes, Linux is socialistic, or communal, or whatever you name
> endeavors done for social good rather than personal gain.


I find it more Libertarian than Socialistic. In a socialistic model, all
people would run the same version with the same capabilities. Nobody would
have a more capable or less capable piece of code than anyone else. What
version people should have would be dictated by a central authority.

Linux is different. I can choose to add my own patches, distribute them if
I please, I can pick and choose from patches to add to my kernel. I do not
tell my neighbor how to run his computer and he does not dictate his
preferences on me.

Linux is the closest thing to true Libertarianism that I have ever found. 

Note to the political un-savvy out there, a Libertarian is NOT a Liberal.
An example of Libertarianism might be found in Jefferson and Franklin.
Thinking along the lines of "Those who would exchange a small amount of
liberty for some safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." (Franklin) is
Libertairian thought.





George Bonser

The Linux "We're never going out of business" sale at an FTP site near you!


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