Putin's war is wrong and inconsistent with FOSS ideals

[Emanuel Berg]

>> Wars of aggression should be explicitly inconsistent with
>> the ideals behind free software.
>
> You'd have to define your terms. What distinguishes a war in
> general from a war "of aggression"? Call me cynical, but
> I suspect it would boil down to wars started by North
> America/Western Europe/Israel would be deemed "peace
> keeping", whereas wars started by others would be deemed "of
> aggression".

In the activism world it is rather the opposite. Remember the
huge movement against the 2003 Iraq invasion ... Meanwhile the
Russian war against Chechnya, Georgia, and the annexation of
Crimea didn't see any manifestations even close to resembling
2003 (or 1968~1975! even tho I wasn't active/born then, my
mother was active tho for many years). Again the Soviet war in
Afghanistan and so on ...

Even today left-wingers bubble about NATO in the face of this
apparent onslaught.

And, these extraordinary events don't happen every day, thank
god. So no need for definitions, it is done one a case-by-case
basis ...

>> The FOSS bodies should declare they are opposed to
>> this war.
>
> Why? What good would it do? It might just make those bodies
> look ridiculous and impotent.

The whole world tries to respond by isolating Russia any way
they can. I started to program when I was 12. I'm 100% there
is some 12-year old Russian programmer right now, unaware of
the war, or being duped by TV-propaganda, surfing the FOSS
sites ... eye opener.

And the whole Russian educated middle-class that stick their
heads in the sand - we can be uncomfortable to them, remind
them, anywhere they try to escape their responsibility which
is to oppose their government and the war ...

Not everyone can be a prime minister or oil magnate or warrior
or the battlefield. But there are other fields like the one we
have right in front of us. And that's where you start.

>> The whole world is trying to isolate Russia and raise
>> awareness to prevent this kind of things both short and
>> long term. Why should the FOSS world do nothing? It doesn't
>> make sense to me.
>
> Because the FOSS world needs to stay consistent.

Shame. This goes against all notions of free software.
You think programming goes forward when your school is bombed
and there is no electricity and people are already traumatized
or killed? Hardly.

> That's assuming there's any way it can interpose in this war
> anyway. It seems to me there's a far greater case for taking
> measures against the USA, the UK, France, and Israel than
> against Russia.

The USA, the UK, France, and Israel have done a lot but they
didn't do _this_, if and when they do something like this (I
hope not!) indeed, everyone should act in what little or big
ways they can!

> These four states are far more belligerent than Russia, but
> because their victims are Middle Eastern people rather than
> Europeans, we look the other way and pretend it's
> not happening.

Here, it is THIS WAR we are concerned with.

> A fundamental principle of Free Software is that it is free
> for everybody, not just free for people from states whose
> politics we like.

It is this particular war of aggression.

> Anyway, what would you suggest the FSF could do?
> Inform contributors from Russia, such as Dmitry Gutov, that
> their contributions are no longer welcome?

It is up to them to decide. Think! Start by writing
a statement and put a common banner on all sites, this war is
wrong, it is inconsistent with our ideals and dreams for what
free software can bring to all humanity.

-- 
underground experts united
https://dataswamp.org/~incal