On Tue, 2005-09-20 at 11:07 +0800, Irvin Piraman wrote: > > http://news.inq7.net/infotech/index.php?index=1&story_id=50589 > > I think what we lack is a strong representation in Congress. We need > to urge our > "beloved" congressmen to push through open source. Strong influence > comes from > the academe. As much as possible, spread and practice the use of OSS > in education. > We need to have a solid plan, an established study on how open source > can replace > proprietary software.
I beg to disagree. Going to congress and asking them politely doesn't work. It can get our hopes up, but it doesn't work. There's a better way than going to a congressman who cannot differentiate the meaning of habeas corpus and his neighbor Habeus Corpuz. (pardon the rant) We need to continue using Open Source, and help in improving it. Leave the bureaucracy to the bureaucrats -- the most we can do is make sure they don't screw up, but we shouldn't ask too much from them (as in expect them to actually work after spending time and money to get to where they're at). > > Let's put this to work. For my part, I'll be writing to my congressman > soon after I gather > all the materials/points/issues that I can give to convince him to > pass a bill for open source > adoption in government. Good luck on this -- and I mean it. When M$ finds out what you're planning to do, they'll just tell the congressman -- "Look, the government can make much more money by enforcing copyright and IPR laws." And they're right. And in the Philippines, much like most of the world, government == making money. > > This crackdown has given us a wonderful opportunity to show the worth > of open source. > Let us sieze the moment, and do this now. > I agree. But let's go about it the most productive way -- by actually going to your local computer shops, and telling them about the merits of Open Source software. This works best if you really know what you're talking about, or if you have something you can show them concretely. If you can bring a CD of your favorite distribution (that you yourself use and know how to configure) then it would be best if you can demo it to them. And if you need help, I think PLUGgers near your area would be very much appreciative if you shoulder the transportation costs (maybe board and lodging) and set up a one day cookfest/hackfest/burnfest/<insert favorite action here>fest relating to advocacy and hands on demo. We know this works, and let's not try to get ahead of ourselves and actually expect our mostly clueless "i-don't-know-what-a-computer-does" bureaucrats to do something about it before we do. Just my 2 cents worth. -- Dean Michael C. Berris <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> GPG Key: 0x08AE6EAC http://mikhailberis.blogspot.com Mobile: +63 928 7291459
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