11:42 p.m.
Hi Ludo,
On Wed, Apr 07, 2021 at 03:29:29PM +0200, Ludovic Courtès wrote:
Mark Wielaard <mjw(a)gnu.org> skribis:
> So have we really arrived at the point where to move Free Software
> forward we have to break with the FSF? Has the name GNU become so
> toxic because of the myth of the GNU GNUisance that we will have to
> make clear we are GNU but without the FSF?
I think so. Fellow free software hackers and activists view it this
way, with very concrete implications: Guix can’t use its money held at
the FSF to pay Outreachy internships, the open letter authors
“inadvertently” called to stop contributing to GNU, and so on.
That’s why I think we must publish a statement to prove that we exist
and that GNU is not a homogeneous group following its one true leader.
I really wish that wasn't true, and I so hope the FSF will do the
right thing, but sigh. I recently saw this list of Free Software
projects statements:
- [April](https://www.april.org/en/richard-stallman-back-board-free-software...
- [Document
Foundation](https://blog.documentfoundation.org/blog/2021/03/25/statement...
-
[EFF](https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2021/03/statement-re-election-richard-...
- [Fedora
Council](https://fedoramagazine.org/fedora-council-statement-on-richard-s...
- [FSFE](https://fsfe.org/news/2021/news-20210324-01.en.html)
- [KDE](https://ev.kde.org//2021/03/24/on-the-reappointment-of-rms-fsf/)
- [Mixxx](https://mixxx.org/news/2021-03-26-fsf-statement/)
- [OSI](https://opensource.org/OSI_Response)
- [Organization for Ethical
Source](https://ethicalsource.dev/blog/statement-on-richard-stallman/)
- [Outreachy](https://www.outreachy.org/blog/2021-03-23/fsf-participation-ba...
- [Public Laboratory for Open Technology and
Science](https://publiclab.org/notes/jmacha/03-25-2021/public-lab-calls-f...
- [Software Freedom
Conservancy](https://sfconservancy.org/blog/2021/mar/23/outreachy-fsf/)
- [Solidaires
Informatique](https://solidairesinformatique.org/2021/03/30/contre-le-ret...
While the GNU Social Contract says:
The GNU Project collaborates with the broader free software community
The GNU Project works together with other free software projects to
advance its goals, and aims to extend the reach of the project
beyond the GNU System.
This makes that so hard :{
> I was hoping to give the FSF another week to clarify which
direction
> they want to go. As far as I understand the board will meet again this
> week and make another statement. Although I admit some of the recent
> statements from the FSF haven't been very encouraging.
Some of the recent statements, but also everything that’s happened since
2019 when we were hopeful, starting from the
<https://www.fsf.org/news/fsf-and-gnu> operation that, in hindsight,
looks like a trick to silence dissent.
That is cynical, but yes, it wasn't just our letters that were
ignored, I heard from others they also sent in recommendations which
were totally ignored.
> If we do break off then I hope we will keep using GNU as much
as
> possible, but start building out resources provided under gnu.tools,
> but always with an eye towards one day merging again with those GNU
> projects that want to stay behind. As a first step I think we should
> find a different fiscal sponsor that can help us setup a new
> governance structure and navigate all those foundational issues. I am
> not sure we should do this as GNU Assembly, or encourage each
> individual project to do this separately.
To me, fiscal sponsorship is unrelated to governance.
But I agree it’s also an important issue for those of us involved:
toolchain, Guix, and probably Mailman, Octave, and MediaGoblin:
https://www.fsf.org/working-together/fund
In Guix we’re still discussing what to do, but I think we should discuss
this among all these projects at some point.
Having a fiscal sponsor, or a legal entity, is related to governance
to me because without it we cannot hold any resources. Then we are
just a bunch of hackers where individuals have DNS, pay for hosting,
individually collect money to hold a meeting, etc. Now I trust those
individuals and it is a form of governance, but it is very fragile and
you are totally relying on a few people to not go crazy or get drunk
on power :)
Cheers,
Mark