Richard Stallman
A Brave Humanist
It is very difficult to describe this unique character called Richard Stallman.
Having listened to his views, I have used two words to describe him in essence but have decided to devote a chapter on his behalf, in my book "Linux Essentials".
He was asked what is his religion and he joking have said his religion is Ignaseous and the Church is E-Max (which is a text editor in Linux).
He can be better described as a philosopher.
What a philosopher does is to bring out a concept out of his or her own thinking process (arena) which has not been discovered or postulated before. The beauty of this new concept is, it outlasts, the person who creates it and the rest of the humanity grasps, it with delight.
Freedom is such a concept.
Add this concept, to emerging technology is very difficult but that is what he did. He formulated, the laws underlying the Free Software and that was his contribution. In of his own words, the term Open Software, misrepresents and corrupts, his original intention laid down by Four Principles.
In a summary form, Free and Open Source Source grants any user four essential freedoms.
The freedom to run the program for any purpose
The freedom to study and modify the program
The freedom to redistribute copies of the original or modified program
The freedom to distribute modified versions of the program
These principles are very much similar to Buddhist way of thinking.
Dhamma (Principle of Truth) Dhanam, Subbha Dhanam Jinati.
In other words, Gift of Knowledge is the best Gift of all.
Coming from a Buddhist background grasping Linux Principles was pretty easy for me.
Having said that, I have a funny way of coming back to Rebirth Principle, over an over again. It is a bit of an obsession.
I have another principle, called “Uncertainty Principle”.
Let me apply these Principles to Richard Stallman.
I think, Richard Stallman in his previous birth was born as a Buddhist. I do not think that country was Ceylon but may be Thailand.
The base of his concept is for humanity.
Source Code should be shared with the entire humanity.
It does not belong to corporate clients.
It is not a capitalistic venture.
It is social and progressive.
This idea has to be shared.
By sharing and modifying it expands beyond its origin and spread to the far corners of this world.
To propagate Buddhism (The Essential Truth), at a cross road two monks should not walk along the same path.
Even a good concept, given time is bound by the Uncertainty Principle and gradually disappears, into thin air.
This is happening to Free Software.
It is wrapped in another verbiage called Open Sources and the Freedom disappears and little bit of other things from proprietary stuff is added on top, blurring the very Principle of Freedom.
This pieces is not about FOSS but about the man who created it.
In essence he is global man with democratic vision.
He does not use force to spread his message.
The conviction is his force and not coercion which is the corporate tool.
Its the ordinary people vs elite, a sound philosophy.
Greater good not a moral code like in a religion.
It is an ethical issue.
Copyright and unjust trade agreements are not its mode of distribution.
Digital Rights Management is vicious encroachment on these principles.
Good examples are Google’s Androids, Apple’s Mac, Microsoft’s Windows and Amazon’s Web Services.
They manufactured consent to use these products and sideline Free and Open Software.
Uncertainty Principle hard at work to destroy a simple and benign force.
Richard Stallman’s ideas have no boundaries or limitations but the corporate giants create this misconception that, if one pays for something one gets a better product.
What is amazing is these ideas which should have come from either Russia and China is coming from America and in that respect, he is a Reborn Guy from an Buddhist country in Asia, has some valid credence.
