Bonum Certa Men Certa

This is How GNU Finally Dies

By figosdev

Vegas at night



Summary: "Brace for when GNU falls the way that OSI, FSF, FSFE, Mozilla, and the Linux Foundation did."

These three paragraphs speak volumes:



"The goal of the GNU Social Contract is to state the core values GNU maintainers who have endorsed it are committed to uphold. It is both an agreement among us, GNU contributors, and a pledge to the broader free software community.

Additionally, we think it can be a first step towards formalizing a transparent and collective governance of the GNU Project.

"Ultimately they spell out the takeover of the GNU Project by IBM and Red Hat."The process followed by this initiative is not supported by Richard Stallman. Nevertheless, we consider it a legitimate action by and for GNU maintainers to collectively define the core values we believe GNU stands for."

Those three paragraphs are a vicious and narcissistic lie. Ultimately they spell out the takeover of the GNU Project by IBM and Red Hat.

If you look into the history of OSI, a similar tragedy happened under the directorship of Simon Phipps. Today, OSI is stifled and staffed by GIAFAM.

They did the same to ESR that they did to Stallman. This does not mean I like ESR, but I believe the people in charge now are even worse.

"Today, OSI is stifled and staffed by GIAFAM."Today, the Linux Foundation is stifled and staffed by GIAFAM. They did the same to Torvalds. I definitely do not like Torvalds, but I believe the people in charge now are even worse.

Today, Mozilla is stifled and staffed by GIAFAM. They did the same to Eich. Although the opposite is a famous political slogan, I do Not like Eich. But I will note that after he left, Mozilla did become a horrible corporate shadow of its former self. Credit where credit is due, Eich was obviously the piece that had to be removed for Mozilla to be gutted.

This happened to Stallman as head of the FSF. I believe some of these people tried to fake Stallman's resignation from the GNU Project, and they have tried to take over GNU several times. Technically, they failed. But what people don't realise is they haven't stopped. They are still taking it over, gradually.

Brace for when GNU falls the way that OSI, FSF, FSFE, Mozilla, and the Linux Foundation did.

"Brace for when GNU falls the way that OSI, FSF, FSFE, Mozilla, and the Linux Foundation did."These are fascist, surveillance-state corporations taking over grassroots movements and non-profit organisations. They do it by weaponising useful idiots to do their bidding in the name of "progress", but it is nothing more than Social Justice Theatre.

Stallman was supposed to Resign. He didn't.

In the general pattern of these takeovers, that just means they will hit harder.

These people do not stop, and people are not resisting them -- they are making them welcome, instead of ejecting them from the GNU Project. Believe me, I know that's never going to happen. And by the time enough people realise the need is there, it will have slipped out of their hands.

I'd really like to be wrong about this. I'm pretty damned tired of my concerns being vindicated by history. People need to worry more about IBM. They're just as bad as Microsoft.

Rest well, GNU. I think you will make another appearance, when all this corporate destruction is over. Whenever that is.

"These bastards have spent the past few decades rewriting history, trying to scrub out Stallman and write in Torvalds, but it's bunk."Linux is already dead, and GNU has precious little time left. But it has a 36-year legacy that will not soon be forgotten. The software world was changed forever on September 27, 1983. It was far more significant than anything that happened in 1991 or 1998. These bastards have spent the past few decades rewriting history, trying to scrub out Stallman and write in Torvalds, but it's bunk.

They will try very hard to destroy the legacy, and they will certainly cause some damage. But what these useful idiots are doing is rewriting the constitution that governs the GNU project -- and the result will be takeover by corporations.

People say that can't happen because of the license. If that were true, then the GPL would protect the Linux kernel.

They've done a lot to work around the GPL to co-opt Linux. I'm not saying the GPL isn't powerful or necessary, it's both. But from lobbying against the GPL to lobbying against GPL3 adoption, to taking over the Linux Foundation, to simply violating the GPL whenever it pleases them, Microsoft has shown that the GPL is not invincible.

It's never enough to simply establish freedom -- it has to be defended. Licenses and freedom both need defending. Free software projects need defending. Their little coup is basically strapping charges to the governance of the GNU Project. When those blow, Stallman effectively won't run the GNU Project anymore, and the history of the Middle East, the history of OSI and countless other organisations (and other countries) already tell us what happens when this power vacuum is created.

"This isn't just a corporate takeover of GNU, it's a fascist takeover."Corporations will swoop in to rebuild the thing in their image. This isn't just a corporate takeover of GNU, it's a fascist takeover.

So you people that claim you are against fascism, but you let this happen, you cheer it on -- maybe your heart is in the right place, but frankly you suck at this.

Watch and see. Nothing precludes people in the future fighting to restore the GNU Project. But for now, it is as good as dead.

The clock is ticking -- say Goodbye before it's gone.

Remembering GNU will be the most important thing you can do for software freedom.

I've compared Stallman to Einstein, but Tesla also fits. Tesla worked for Edison, and was shafted all of his life. This didn't prevent Tesla from practically creating the 20th century. That motor that's spinning your drive -- you can thank Tesla. You can sort of thank him for the solid state components as well, I'm not saying he invented every aspect of them.

"You aren't progressives, kids. You're fascists with progressive branding."On the software side, you can thank Linus Torvalds. But that would be kind of stupid at this point. Stallman is the person you should thank. You can and should also thank Ken Thompson and Dennis Ritchie, obviously.

IBM can thank these useful idiots and their idiot wiki page, for helping them finally kill the GNU. Keep count of the people from Red Hat, I bet there will be one from Google as well.

I'm so incredibly disappointed in you, Ian. I honestly thought you were on our side.

You aren't progressives, kids. You're fascists with progressive branding.

Goodnight. ⬆

Licence: Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International

Recent Techrights' Posts

Intercontinental Brigading - Part XXXXVI - Attempts to Kill Critics
"Epstein contacted Cambridge academics about research funding"
NVIDIA Down About 30% in 5 Weeks, When Does the Media Call It "Bubble" Rather Than Frame It as Sex Scandal?
they'll find a way to blame "China"
 
IRC is for Communities, Social Control Networks Are for Broligarchs (by Broligarchs)
Unlike Reddit, it's not a company
JavaScript is the Problem, Not the Answer
Making the Web better is about making things better, not slapping more JavaScript 'walls' at it
Intercontinental Brigading - Part XXXXVII - "Making a False Complaint to Police is a Crime." (British Cops Aren't American Mercenaries)
"In the United Kingdom, the Foreign Enlistment Act 1819 and the Foreign Enlistment Act 1870 make it unlawful for British subjects to join the armed forces of any state warring with another state at peace with Britain."
The Label 'Anti-AI'
They make it sound like opposing plagiarism or cheating is an act of intolerance or hatred
Intolerance and Violence
Intolerance in the software world is not a new problem
António Campinos Hiding From Staff Amid Strikes, Won't Participate in Dialogue
They voted to continue striking until Christmas
Silent Layoffs at IBM (Rolling Layoffs), Now Curbs on H1B (Mostly Indian Applicants)
Little will change at IBM except the gravity (global distribution) of its workforce will go east
Links 11/11/2026: Moving from Proton to Posteo and "Floating in Space"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, November 10, 2026
IRC logs for Tuesday, November 10, 2026
Gemini Links 10/11/2026: Running, Tektronix, and "Smallnet Information Services Zig Port"
Links for the day
Corporations Don't Lose 2 Trillion Dollars in 'Value' Over a 'Dick Story', This is an Overvaluation and Belated Correction
Nvidia is down, down, down again
Links 10/11/2026: "50 Years of Project Censored" and NVIDIA's Collapse Continues
Links for the day
Surreal Times
NVIDIA's shares fell 27% in 5 weeks
Links 10/11/2026: "Jensen Huang Could Face $81 Billion Divorce Bill" and "Nvidia Shareholders sue Jensen Huang"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, November 09, 2026
IRC logs for Monday, November 09, 2026
Gemini Links 10/11/2026: Open Problem in Computer Science Due to Bloat and "Queueing Nine Hours for an iPhone"
Links for the day
“Losing Huang Would Introduce a Lot of Uncertainty"
Huang won't last much longer
GNU/Linux Rose to 6% as Laptop/Desktop Operating System in Azerbaijan
In the past two weeks the average measure as seen by Clownflare is 5.7%
Intercontinental Brigading - Part XXXXV - The Brand (and Reputation)
"Russell Brand sentenced to 10 years and six months for rape and sexual assault"
Microsoft Will Pay $11,742 USD for Workers to Leave
11 lakh Indian Rupees
Since Records Began 18 Months Ago, statCounter Saw Chatbot Usage Falling Sharply
Chatbots are not becoming more popular and the commercial world is having second thoughts
Losing Their 'Faith' in Slop
Are leather jackets becoming a "signal" of "cheating on the wife"?
Protestants at the EPO Fight On, Rising in Opposition to and Against Corruption, Also Against GAFAM
Don't say we didn't warn you...
Boosters of Non-reciprocal Licensing Are Just Trying to Cancel Richard Stallman (RMS) and His Baby, GNU
If only they liked freedom as much as they love Microsoft (or Microsoft's GitHub, which is proprietary and unsafe)
Gemini Links 09/11/2026: Zephyr, Wireless Planet, and Old E-mail
Links for the day
IBM: From Illegal NDAs to Illegal Secret Settlements (Money in Exchange for Promise Not to Sue)
Insiders also explain why RAs may come weeks from now [...] IBM has marked 40,000 workers it wishes to get rid of
When Some Footage Causes Your 'Company' to Lose Almost Half a Trillion Dollars in 'Value' in a Few Minutes Your Company is Fictionally Valued
stock slips 8% because the CEO cheats on the wife
Links 09/11/2026: 'Humanitarian' Putin Knocks 600,000 Civilians Off the Grid, Eminem’s Publisher Sues Suno
Links for the day
Like Crooked Politicians, The Register MS is Selling "Dinners" (Access, Sponsors)
Talk about "hey hi".
The Register MS is Not Objective Regarding "AI", It's Paid by Pushers of the Pyramid Scheme (including Nvidia)
Some time soon we'll name some companies that pay millions to The Register MS in order to cement their role in the house of cards (while it lasts)
GAFAM Moribund
A lot of what we say about Microsoft in respect to debt is equally applicable to the rest of GAFAM
NVIDIA as a Scam Company Run by Scammers Who Fake Demand for Their Waste of Energy (Subsidising GPU Sales for Use Cases That Don't Exist)
First they targeted gamers, then fake 'currencies' (which turned out to be a bust), now it's slop (obfuscation of plagiarism using brute force and fusion) [...] We're quite glad that Huang publicly broadcasts how untrustworthy he is
Links 09/11/2026: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Cheats on Wife With A Suspected Chinese Spy, "400,000 Russians Killed in Battle Since 2022 Invasion"
Links for the day
Zero Tolerance for Slop
very few sites that dabbled in slop ended up well off (for it)
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, November 08, 2026
IRC logs for Sunday, November 08, 2026
Gemini Links 09/11/2026: "The Blue Wave Won't Save Us" and "Discoverability Is Only Solved If You Can Be Discovered"
Links for the day