Xref: utzoo comp.sys.next:10611 alt.religion.computers:2195 Path: utzoo!utgpu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!lll-winken!unixhub!shelby!neon!pescadero.Stanford.EDU!philip From: philip@pescadero.Stanford.EDU (Philip Machanick) Newsgroups: comp.sys.next,alt.religion.computers Subject: Re: lawsuit flame (Was: NeXTStep 2.0 Completed) Keywords: demeaning_the_holocaust Message-ID: <1990Dec12.202344.28613@Neon.Stanford.EDU> Date: 12 Dec 90 20:23:44 GMT References: <352@atncpc.UUCP> <57237@brunix.UUCP> <356@atncpc.UUCP> <359@atncpc.UUCP> <33894@athertn.Atherton.COM> Sender: news@Neon.Stanford.EDU (USENET News System) Reply-To: philip@pescadero.stanford.edu Organization: Computer Science Department, Stanford University Lines: 21 In article <33894@athertn.Atherton.COM>, dlw@Atherton.COM (David Williams) writes: |> [...]. The metaphors of LPF & GNU supporters on |> "Look and Feel" lawsuits and boycotts towards the holocaust and the experiences |> of Blacks in South Africa, lead one to wonder just what sort of sheltered life |> they lead. Six million people were butchered in the holocaust. Blacks in |> South Africa suffer under a repressive police state, with a below poverty |> standard of living. Can either of these experiences be compared to the *IDEAL* |> or struggle you engage in for "free" software? I think not. This is quite correct. But in defence of Richard Stallman: I met him at a conference organized by Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility, and he was most earnestly explaining the problems of copyright etc. Then he heard I was from South Africa, and immediately conceded that his problems were trivial by comparison. Nonetheless, I must agree that comparing look and feel lawsuits with situations of gross human rights abuse is over the top and does nothing to promote FSF's generally worthy case. -- Philip Machanick philip@pescadero.stanford.edu