On Apr 14, 2021, Deb Nicholson <[email protected]> wrote: > It's disappointing that so many people have chosen to disbelieve former FSF > employees, hundreds of women who have encountered RMS at conferences or MIT > and many, many free software creators.
That's a real peril, and would have been wise to take into account, before deciding to form a coalition with known liars and attackers, and before resorting to false allegations, exaggerations and distortions to spark an explosive reaction that facts have or would have failed to spark. These decisions have contaminated and shed doubt on the legitimacy of claims advanced by those who joined the coalition, or who opportunistically timed their action to coincide with those of the corporate-funded coalition. That may be illogical, but it's often a valuable heuristics. Call it karma if you wish. Now, if there were any true, first-hand accounts of actual sexual harassment, I'd be very interested in getting them straight from the source. Giving out pleasure cards, politely asking people on dates, keeping foliage or mattresses in work offices, reports of the existence of institutional sexism at universities, advising caution against leaps to unsupported condemnation, tasteless jokes, getting angry and being loud are not it IMHO. Hearsay about the same half dozen rumors over a period of 40+ years isn't either, unless your own investigations haven't hit a dead end before something concrete popped up. I encourage you to let the FSF board know if that's the case, and please keep me on copy. > The vast majority of the people who signed the letter asking for RMS > to step down, care deeply about free software. I encourage them (you) to behave as such, instead of associating with historical opponents, and working so hard to divide us. It's become really hard to believe in that commitment, and in good intentions behind the actions, given the present circumstances. -- Alexandre Oliva, happy hacker https://FSFLA.org/blogs/lxo/ Free Software Activist GNU Toolchain Engineer Vim, Vi, Voltei pro Emacs -- GNUlius Caesar _______________________________________________ libreplanet-discuss mailing list [email protected] https://lists.libreplanet.org/mailman/listinfo/libreplanet-discuss
