THE mostly antiwar-leaning Free software movement goes back to the late era of the Hippies and geeks. That's not too revisionist a thing to claim, particularly with respect to Richard Stallman and his political orientation/roots. Mr. Torvalds might not like to acknowledge it in public, but he comes from a socialist family with sympathy towards the Soviets (his father).

"Mr. Torvalds might not like to acknowledge it in public, but he comes from a socialist family with sympathy towards the Soviets (his father)."We as a site don't associate with the "left" or the "right"; we rarely speak or think in those terms. We do, however, focus or speak about some objective if not slightly subjective concept of ethics, which isn't the same as political wings (both can do truly unethical things, both fiscally and militarily).

What about software?

"Debian's new project leader (DPL), in his opening or introductory statement that is a couple of days old, stressed the relevance of this pandemic to software freedom and the Debian Project in particular."Well, more and more things are becoming digital now. The pandemic further contributes to this because of remote work, digital payments, surveillance and so on. It seems inevitable that governments will, over time, treat people who wander around without a tracking device (such as a 'smart' phone) like unvaccinated, reckless individuals looking to spread plagues.

Debian's new project leader (DPL), in his opening or introductory statement that is a couple of days old, stressed the relevance of this pandemic to software freedom and the Debian Project in particular. The same is true for the GNU Project, still led by Richard Stallman by the way, and the FSF openly speaks about it. Those are very positive signs.

"Please join us in promoting and spreading the idea that we need Free software for a free and open society."Over the next few months more of us ought to become increasingly vocal, in light of profound societal changes. Resistance in moderation will be necessary to ensure we preserve basic human dignity (such as privacy inside our own homes).

Please join us in promoting and spreading the idea that we need Free software for a free and open society. Not everyone out there agrees with us. Google and Apple are currently facilitating even greater surveillance with SDKs. The media, owned by barons and large companies, praises them for it. Be sceptical, but not alarmed. Public safety and "health" have long been exploited by the surveillance capitalists; their wearable spying machines have been promoted for a number of years not just as a matter of convenience/productivity but a matter of life-saving. That extends to listening devices. ⬆