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From: Richard Stallman <rms@gnu.org>
To: dpaun@rogers.com
CC: lm@bitmover.com, acahalan@cs.uml.edu, linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org
In-reply-to: <200301071118.41059.dpaun@rogers.com>
Subject: Re: Nvidia and its choice to read the GPL "differently"
Reply-to: rms@gnu.org
References: <200301050802.h0582u4214558@saturn.cs.uml.edu> <20030106173705.GP1386@work.bitmover.com> <E18Vtxy-0002c2-00@fencepost.gnu.org> <200301071118.41059.dpaun@rogers.com>
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Date: Thu, 09 Jan 2003 02:28:00 -0500
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    You are a smart guy. I think you'd agree with me that this particular
    battle (GNU/Linux) is lost.

It's not a battle, and the outcome isn't binary.
(See http://www.gnu.org/gnu/gnu-linux-faq.html.)
The GNU/Linux campaign is partly successful
and that's better than not at all.

    Bottom line is, the are only so many hours in a day. You have so many 
    battles to fight, that would serve the community.

All other work that we do is made less effective than it could have
been because the public doesn't know what we've already done.  The
partial success of the GNU/Linux campaign partly reverses this.

Calling the system "GNU/Linux" is very easy, and takes just seconds a
day; that and using the term "free software" are the most efficient
ways you can use your time to help us.

    situation, it must be clear even to you that things can't possibly go
    back, and all your doing is creating bad blood. Think about it.

When we call the system "GNU/Linux" we are not insulting anyone.  The
bad blood is created by others, by the people who resent our saying
this.

There are two ways to look at this question: in terms of principle
and in terms of practical effects.

First, principle.  When a majority assaults a minority for stating a
truth that the majority wants forgotten, who is morally responsible?
If you say that the unpopular minority "creates bad blood", you're
blaming the victims of the intimidation campaign for resisting it;
taking a stand that deliberately disregards the concept of justice.

Second, practicalities.  The people who are so attached to the idea of
the "Linux" system that they would attack us for disagreeing with it
are never going to help us much.  They mostly don't share our values
anyway.  So we have nothing to lose.

These discussions will never convince those people, but they do win
support from others who read both sides and find that we have right on
our side.  So we have something to gain.

All in all, what we are doing is both right and effective.  We will
continue.


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