Re: [ELPA] New package: repology.el

[Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org>]

> Date: Fri, 8 Jan 2021 21:27:42 +0300
> From: Jean Louis <bugs@gnu.support>
> Cc: emacs-tangents@gnu.org, rms@gnu.org, ulm@gentoo.org, ams@gnu.org,
>   arthur.miller@live.com, dgutov@yandex.ru
> 
> > We develop Emacs because we think it helps users.  We don't develop it
> > as some academic exercise to be shown in some ivory tower, nor as
> > merely an example of what Free Software can become.
> > 
> > I came to Emacs because it helped me do my everyday's work, and I've
> > taken upon myself the burden of being its maintainer because I want it
> > to help others, and become better at helping them.
> > 
> > Thus, whether I personally can access that site is immaterial.  I
> > don't need your, or anybody's, permission to do whatever I want with
> > my systems.  It's the Emacs user community that I'm trying to help,
> > and I believe I'm not the only one who needs to do those tasks that I
> > described.  Refusal to make this, or any other package that has the
> > similar audacity of showing information about software in a completely
> > neutral way, to be available from GNU ELPA diminishes from the
> > community, and thus hurts me in my effort to help the community
> > members to enjoy software freedom.  That is why I'm speaking up.
> 
> If I understand it better you wish to help general Emacs users without
> regard if GNU as project would be giving all those references to
> non-free software.

I want help them because I don't see how these references cause any
damage to the Free Software cause.  Promoting non-free software and
inviting users to use it is indeed against our cause, but just telling
where it's stored isn't.  Our users aren't babies from whom we should
hide potentially dangerous stuff, they can make their own informed
decisions.

> you have known that GNU project is about free software.

I don't think the GNU project is about concealing information.  I hope
it isn't.