[libreplanet-discuss] Moving Forward

[Matt Ivie]

Hello

There has been a lot of damage done in the last week or so and it is
clear that not everyone in the community feels the same way about
everything going on. I want to voice my support for RMS, for the FSF
and for the Free Software Community.

This is not the first attack to ever take place on a community or the
figurehead of a movement. I think we all know that other important
social movements have had their share of media-driven scandal. What is
most important here is how we move forward.

What RMS said is being misquoted and misstated everywhere around the
web. Those that were already overly critical of him just went
supernova. This situation has made it hard to keep perspective of
what's going on.

There are some things in this situation that are not totally clear to
me:

1) Is RMS still going to have any kind of interaction with the FSF? 

2) I am unclear as to the motivation for his resignation. I'd like to
know if he voluntarily resigned or if he was urged or forced to
"voluntarily" resign?

2a) Did RMS, or the FSF board have him resign to do some damage control
and create distance between himself and the FSF or did he resign due to
demand of the board and others within the FSF because they wanted him
gone, as has been theorized?

Having a clear understanding of these motivations can be helpful in
trying to sort out where we need to go next.

This movement must continue. We need to have Free Software, not Open
Source software. We need GNU/Linux, not "Linux". We need these things
not just for the practical and obvious applications of the things
themselves but also for the ideology they carry. We have to quit
fighting over this. What's done is done. If you care about Free
Software then let's show support to the FSF and work together as a
community, and RMS is still a part of this community.

I want to mention that I did attend LibrePlanet this year, for the
first time. I loved it and I met so many amazing people. It was a very
inviting atmosphere and everyone there was very respectful and
friendly. Everyone at the FSF were great as well. I found the entire
experience to be very positive. This community has really great people
in it.

Thank you
Matt Ivie