From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: main.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: Richard Stallman Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.bugs Subject: Re: [Reuben Thomas] browse-url.el Opera support Date: Fri, 16 Jan 2004 14:54:11 -0500 Sender: bug-gnu-emacs-bounces+geb-bug-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Message-ID: References: Reply-To: rms@gnu.org NNTP-Posting-Host: deer.gmane.org X-Trace: sea.gmane.org 1074285045 18885 80.91.224.253 (16 Jan 2004 20:30:45 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@sea.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Fri, 16 Jan 2004 20:30:45 +0000 (UTC) Cc: bug-gnu-emacs@gnu.org, d.love@dl.ac.uk, jas@extundo.com Original-X-From: bug-gnu-emacs-bounces+geb-bug-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Fri Jan 16 21:30:41 2004 Return-path: Original-Received: from monty-python.gnu.org ([199.232.76.173]) by deer.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 3.35 #1 (Debian)) id 1Ahac5-0007ny-00 for ; Fri, 16 Jan 2004 21:30:41 +0100 Original-Received: from localhost ([127.0.0.1] helo=monty-python.gnu.org) by monty-python.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.24) id 1AhabT-0004pM-Jf for geb-bug-gnu-emacs@m.gmane.org; Fri, 16 Jan 2004 15:30:03 -0500 Original-Received: from list by monty-python.gnu.org with tmda-scanned (Exim 4.24) id 1AhabM-0004nI-5e for bug-gnu-emacs@gnu.org; Fri, 16 Jan 2004 15:29:56 -0500 Original-Received: from mail by monty-python.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.24) id 1Aha4G-0004wj-Sh for bug-gnu-emacs@gnu.org; Fri, 16 Jan 2004 14:56:16 -0500 Original-Received: from [199.232.76.164] (helo=fencepost.gnu.org) by monty-python.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.24) id 1Aha4G-0004wA-AT for bug-gnu-emacs@gnu.org; Fri, 16 Jan 2004 14:55:44 -0500 Original-Received: from rms by fencepost.gnu.org with local (Exim 4.24) id 1Aha2l-0000uS-It; Fri, 16 Jan 2004 14:54:11 -0500 Original-To: Reuben Thomas In-reply-to: (message from Reuben Thomas on Thu, 15 Jan 2004 15:12:04 +0100 (CET)) X-BeenThere: bug-gnu-emacs@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.2 Precedence: list List-Id: Bug reports for GNU Emacs, the Swiss army knife of text editors List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Errors-To: bug-gnu-emacs-bounces+geb-bug-gnu-emacs=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Xref: main.gmane.org gmane.emacs.bugs:6591 X-Report-Spam: http://spam.gmane.org/gmane.emacs.bugs:6591 The free software movement is based on the recognition that non-free software is antisocial and unethical. It is a social problem, and our work is to solve that problem. Success for us does not mean writing popular free programs, it means ending the antisocial practice of distributing non-free software. Your argument for including this patch seems to be based on a principle that that technical decisions should be made solely on technical grounds. That principle is a grave and fundamental error. It rejects the lessons society learned after the development of nuclear weapons: that technical decisions must be based on consideration of social responsibility. GNU derives from an idea of social responsibility, and we make technical decisions based on that. We can't tell what programs to use, but helping you use a non-free program is not part of the GNU Project's mission. I decided before not to include this code, and I stand by the decision. Not supporting non-free programs in Emacs is one of the ways we show we are serious when we say they are unethical. That may not convince you, but we hope it will convince others.