Re: [libreplanet-discuss] Is Stallman nuts?

[Patrick 'P. J.' McDermott]

On 2019-09-16 at 09:54, Caleb Herbert wrote:
> On 09/16/2019 06:54 AM, Patrick 'P. J.' McDermott wrote:
> > Reportedly though, Stallman's views "changed significantly"
> > by 2016 [6], and he confirmed on Saturday that "personal conversations
> > in recent years" have convinced him that sex between an adult and a
> > child is wrong [7].  
> 
> Yes, but Stallman makes a distinction between children and young adults.
>  He says it's wrong to think of young adults as children, because it
> creates a society where people don't grow up and don't take on
> responsibilities and start contributing to society.

I wasn't aware of that, though the csail-related thread suggested
something possibly along those lines.  Thanks for the input.  Again,
this is something that could be debated, if not for the article pre-
empting such thoughtful discussion by making up something else entirely.


And in general, in case it wasn't clear:

  * I'm not explicitly taking a side here; I just think the article is a
    gross mischaracterization of the facts for advertising revenue.  I
    want to encourage people to read and understand the source material
    before jumping to conclusions.  Some will still blame Stallman in
    this case regardless, and in my opinion that's fine as long as they
    do so with an understanding of what he really said.
  * I take absolutely no pleasure in dissecting this whole situation,
    evaluating the lexicon of sexual assault, contemplating consent and
    violence, or diving into such an emotionally charged and divisive
    topic.  This is a depressing waste of time and energy that I (and
    all of us) really don't need.

I'm saddened to see the community rush to corners and tear itself apart
over this.  I really wish that either Stallman would not have even
touched such a personal and controversial subject or that his words
would not have been so thoroughly misunderstood by the media and others.

-- 
Patrick "P. J." McDermott:  http://www.pehjota.net/
Lead Developer, ProteanOS:  http://www.proteanos.com/
Founder and CEO, Libiquity: http://www.libiquity.com/