10.27.19
Gemini version available ♊︎Support Alexandre Oliva as Acting FSF President (Vice President, Interim Co-President)
Summary: Based on his track record, Alexandre Oliva would be a good pick as permanent leader for the Free Software Foundation (FSF) as he already has very strong GNU and Linux (kernel) credentials
RECENTLY, I’ve had many opportunities to chat with Alexandre Oliva, who told me “we [FSF] presently have two vice presidents, neither being a first vice president under the bylaws, so we jointly serve as acting president.”
“Being an American not from the United States, he also ‘ticks’ Red Hat’s ‘box’ for “diversity” (this seems to be what matters most to the people of IBM in the wake of Stallman’s departure).”He is one of them.
I’ve known Oliva for a long time and we wrote about him in the past, e.g. about his strong opposition to software patents and trolls. He’s very technical, he’s a longtime GNU contributor, and he truly values Software Freedom. Being an American not from the United States, he also ‘ticks’ Red Hat’s ‘box’ for “diversity” (this seems to be what matters most to the people of IBM in the wake of Stallman’s departure). Oliva, to his credit, had left Red Hat before IBM formally took over (citing concerns about proprietary software there). That shows his commitment and sacrifice.
“Perhaps Oliva can be to the FSF what Ole Gunnar Solskjær was to Manchester United last year/season.”The sincerity of Oliva (whom I sometimes call Alex) has convinced me that he would be a suitable successor for Stallman at the FSF. He may not be as ‘famous’ as Moglen or Perens, but his dedication to Software Freedom is a matter of public record and he has many years “left in him” (as the saying goes) before retirement age. In many ways he’s a lot like Techrights folks. He’s highly technical, he’s generally sceptical of corporations and he’s more patriotic or loyal to Software Freedom than to any particular nation or group. These are the qualities the FSF needs and those are exactly the things Stallman’s loudest and most notorious ousters loathe with a passion (they don’t care about the FSF; they want to nuke the whole thing!). Perhaps Oliva can be to the FSF what Ole Gunnar Solskjær was to Manchester United last year/season. Give him time to age and build his reputation. We would support him.
“As a bonus, Oliva is also a Linux developer in the sense that his main GNU project is a quasi-derivative of Linux. So he can help with Linux bridge-building…”And let’s face it; whoever runs the FSF needs very potent GNU credentials because Stallman leads the GNU project and FSF strongly depends on GNU (the software, licences and so on). As a bonus, Oliva is also a Linux developer in the sense that his main GNU project is a quasi-derivative of Linux. So he can help with Linux bridge-building (not the Linux Foundation but pertinent Linux developers, whose employer — if any — is not the Linux Foundation, at least 99% of the time). █
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