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[Discuss] Govt Source Code Policy
- Subject: [Discuss] Govt Source Code Policy
- From: greg at freephile.com (Greg Rundlett (freephile))
- Date: Tue, 5 Apr 2016 16:01:39 -0400
- In-reply-to: <57033925.50705@gmail.com>
- References: <chxy48tkulo.fsf@iceland.freeshell.org> <5702D47C.3010104@gmail.com> <57032657.9080508@mattgillen.net> <57033925.50705@gmail.com>
I opened this discussion by proposing that not only should the US Government "open source" it's work, but that the BEST choice for licensing that work in a way that ensures public benefit is to use the principles of copyleft as enshrined in the GPL v3 license. It's a legal technique to enforce a greater morality. It's a way "that this nation shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth." These words were not only repeated by Lincoln in his Gettysburg Address, but it's a concept that goes back to at least 1384 (as a prologue to the English translation of the Bible). There are obstacles; and it would be a radical transformation, but doable and worth the price. This transformation could affect every other sector of life, providing a whole new landscape for the future. It's WRONG that elections are not held on verifiable free software platforms. And it's sad that the Open Source Initiative, who has been working on this for nearly a decade via OSET, had to create a new watered-down copyleft license based on the MPL so that it could meet the needs of their 200 or so stakeholders [1] [2]. Still you could argue that they're trying to do the right thing: They make it clear that they wanted to choose the GPL. If the US Government doesn't use the GPL, the next best choice for government work might be the OSETPL Why isn't this widely implemented yet? Perhaps it's because the commercial implementors have no incentive? It's WRONG that the US taxpayer spends about $82 billion a year collectively supporting private contractors for things like 'Census taking software' (old crusty stuff that only runs on Windows) which even when 'public domain' [3] is not available as 'complete and corresponding source code'. The GPL license stands up for the little guy. In a world of 1% "haves" and 99% "have nots", copyleft is one of the few mechanisms available to try and correct course. We have one planet with nearly 7.5 billion people on it. I believe the GPL works to provide a future for the next 40 years when we reach 10 billion [4] people alive (and hopefully cooperating). The way copyright, trade deals, and patents work today, I don't think humanity will have another 7 centuries before we perish. What's ironic is how educational institutions such as MIT and Harvard, with a stated mission of education, have subverted their own mission by doing everything possible to maximize their profitability by making the fruits of their research proprietary. They've done so with the help of government funding. They've done so with the help of advantageous tax policy. They've done so with "open source" licenses that they and their graduates can leverage better than the 99%. What's also ironic is that so many people continue with 'business as usual' even in the face of "Panama Papers" and WikiLeaks that show just how corrupt the status quo is. Maybe we're on the verge of a resurgence in the GPL. Maybe software patents will be abolished. Maybe copyright will be replaced by inalienable 'sharing rights'. It's interesting that the Pirate Party is the most popular party in Iceland right now -- and that's before the Panama Papers. [1] OSET Public License https://trustthevote.org/oset-public-license-v2/ [2] Rationale http://static1.squarespace.com/static/528d46a2e4b059766439fa8b/t/5355935ce4b0e10db1983502/1398117212004/OSETPublicLicenseRationale_v2.pdf [3] Most Gov't software is not public domain like it's supposed to be. We've utterly failed to conduct our government in the fashion it was supposed to be done. In less than 3 centuries. [4] http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/
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