Nathan Buck <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
> The root of the matter is that when you donate money to Gentoo, you are
> rewarding the organization, and more specifically the _VOLUNTEERS_ who
> produce, manage, and develop Portage for your person use. The question
> regarding your donation should not be, "Those bastards better not be
> handing my money off to terrorists," instead it should be, "Do I appreciate
> the product they produced that I'm using right now?"
I dont think many *VOLUNTEERS* see much of our donation money, unless
it's a case by case basis, and I hope *everyone* who develops shuts me
up by saying they generate revenue from profits earned by GTI, even if
it's $0.25 a month, which they could in turn forfeit and return back
into the proje... oops, i meant business, if they so desire. If only
90% of developers are seeing this money, then our funds are being used
in a biased manner, and this is not only unfair, but inadequate when
it takes the contribution of *every* developer to make Gentoo Business
Distributions a reality.
I wouldnt expect monetary compensation from Debian (GNU/Linux),
because they are non-profit, but Gentoo, on the other hand, is
trying to make a buck not only from it's users, but from the people
who are pouring sweat and blood into the outcome of this project. Why
should the upper management (or whomever profits from funds) get
broken off some funds, but not others?
If I donate $100 and it's being used for Pizza - fine, but this means
pizza for every single developer who has spent countless hours hacking
away on any gentoo related material, not just people who are 'owners'
or 'stockholders', as this would be saying some developers are more
important than another developer. If you dont have enough money to
purchase pizza for everyone who makes Gentoo a complete Linux
Distribution, then you have no business buying pizza in the first
place.
I wont contribute money if it isn't being spread around in a fair and
unbiased manner into the pocket of *everyone* who has made GTI what it
is today - a potential money-making Linux Distribution. You want my
money? I'll give you money for shares of stock in your venture,
otherwise, you can continue making money off the uninformed and glazed
over users who dont care where their money ends up.
Anyone who contributes time, energy and money into this project should
own a piece of it, or see some sort of compensation with monetary
substance, because their work will generate *someone* revenue (a group
of people) in the future, and I sure hope they care how their
expenditure of energy is to be used in the future, and if it will
benefit them in the long run.
> You don't ask the cashier at your local convenience store what the hell
> they do with their paycheck every evening because if they spend it on porn
> you sure as hell aren't supporting THAT store anymore, do you? (If you
> do.. get help).
You cant compare a project which technically employs hundreds of
developers, their man hours and technical labor to a local convenience
store, or to a privately held corporation which only impacts a 100 mile
radius. Yes, it is true privately held corporations need not disclose
financial information to anyone other than the companies respective
owners, but then again do any of these companies have hundred of
people donating *thousands* of hour in development for FREE? Are these
companies profiting from *YOUR* hard labor, and not giving you a
salary?
*I* *think* *not*.
I dont think any of you who work for companies which will not disclose
their financial statements to anyone other than their respective
owners are working for FREE, and I'm more than sure you would want to
see these statements if you worked 40 hours a week into making them
money, which you see no part of in your present endeavors.
You're also right in stating that *I* could not walk into the private
company where you work and just ask for financial statements, but then
again I'm more than willing to bet money the same company has
*everyone* on payroll, and no one is working 40 hours a week for
*FREE*. I bet a majority of devs providing their services for *free*
towards the company known as Gentoo invest more than 40 hours a week.
If Time == Money
* Invest:
7. To lay out (money or capital) in business with the view of
obtaining an income or profit; as, to invest money in bank
stock.
If the owner(s) of Gentoo want developers to invest their time and
energy into their business with the view of obtaining an income or
profit, then so should developers who devote their time and energy be
rewarded with monetary compensations and should view their investment
with an outlook of obtaining money in the long run from their
investment of time. This is what Mr. Welch was trying to explain with
his relationship with Gentoo Technologies, Inc., as he viewed GTI for
what it was - a business, so why is everyone being so clouded by,
"hee-hee, gee this LinUx Distr0 is the k3wlest and I dont care if my
money is spent on buying weed and prostitutes for the l33t, hee-hee!"
I'm sorry, but I dont want *any* of my money going towards the
purchase of 'weed', prostitution or any other mind altering
substances, as this is not the way I would want any future child of
mine spending my hard-earned money, and I think it a shame when people
suggest it doesnt matter if $60 a day is spent on an 1/8th of
marijuana just because it helps someone who is developing the Gentoo
Business. I'm not about to fund pot-heads or drug-users with my hard
earned $$$. I dont want my money going towards 'beer' or
'prostitution', as this benefits no one in the long run.
You see, the way Gentoo seems to be set up - the owner(s) of Gentoo
(private corporation?) can easily sell Gentoo and make mad profit from
its current and potential money making status, and can be sold out
from under every single one of us, while making a huge profit for the
owners which can then escape to the Fiji, Tahiti or Jamaica never to
be seen again. What would you say then? The above would be fine if
everyone involved in making Gentoo was making money when this
happened, but this is not the case. Someone would profit from the hard
work / labor put forth into this distribution and every past, present
& future developer would have no legal recourse against the owners,
because they essentially signed their rights away by not standing up
and seeing Gentoo for what it is - a business which profits from their
hard work, time and energy.
IBM could essentially purchase GTI from the owners and make it a
non-profit distribution, and the owners of GTI could leave with their
huge check without giving any in return to the people who got them to
where they are this day. I hope this isn't the case, but then again
money is what makes a man act funny.
--
Louis C. Candell
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