Re: [Fsfe-uk] Stalls at Marxism 2003

[Timothy Baldwin]

On Saturday 17 May 2003 2:22 pm, Chris Croughton wrote:
> On Sat, May 17, 2003 at 12:27:56PM +0100, North London John wrote:
> > I think the anti-capitalist / anti-globalization movement is pretty
> > sussed about Free Software - the net is very important to it, and
> > indymedia's content management system has gone gpl
> > (http://mir.indymedia.org/)

Only some of the anti-capitalist / anti-globalization movement, 

> Please note that many of us who are supporters of free software are
> /not/ anti-capitalist nor against 'globalisation' (at least some
> definitions of it, it's a term which tends to be defined differently by
> everyone who uses the term).  In fact some of us see Marxism as very
> incompatible with the freedoms expressed by the free software movement.

Already noted. You should also note that many are against globalisation, 
including Richard Stallman. In Brazil the Free software movement and the 
anti-globalistion movement are more closely connected, for example, Debian 
RS' (a LUG) involvement with the World Social Forum, and the Free Software RS 
Project.

> In particular, the free software aims are seen by libertarians as being
> anti-authoritarian and anti-statis regardless of whether the state is
> left or right (socialist/capitalist), and many of us see a forced
> "everything must be 'free'" condition as just as bad as enforced
> secrecy, the element of 'force' being in direct opposition to freedom
> (and it's freedom which the 'free' in "Free Software" claims to uphold).

That sounds like an argument against the GNU GPL.

Marxists also have the long term goal of the end of the state of any form, as 
people can not be completely free in the presence of a state, but work on the 
basis that persuading the likes of Bill Gates is impossible. How do 
libertarians intend to do away with the capitalist state, given that is shows 
no intention of abolishing itself? We (marxists) are quite used to hearing 
that argument from Anarchists.

-- 
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