Linux at the Dod

[Jason Stephenson]

Jon maddog Hall wrote:
> 
> You can bet that they will take off the gloves in full force soon.

SCO is only the beginning. An entire "way of life" is being threatened 
by GNU/Linux and open source software. When it was "just a thing for 
hobbyists" it was no big deal and the "real software developers" were 
happy to just ignore it. Now that gov'ts are endorsing the open model of 
software development and now that the software is "good enough" to be 
used by large business, the guys who "do this for a living" are running 
scared. They can't compete on features, quality or price, but they do 
have a lot of money and that can buy a lot of lawyers and, more 
importantly, face time with lawmakers.

However, this battle goes way beyond software. There is a very real, 
though somewhat understated, battle going on right now for control of 
the means of cultural production. What do you think defective (i.e. 
copy-protected) CDs and DVDs are about? What do you think the DMCA is 
about? Levies on blank media in countries like Canada? The industies of 
mass production are attempting to stifle the re-emergent cottage 
industries that have been enabled by information technology and the 
Internet. Today, anyone is potentially a producer and distributor. The 
large corporations can handle "competing" against each other, but when 
the very consumer that you're trying to exploit is a potential 
competitor, that, they can't stomach.

This is what Microsoft, SCO, the MPAA, and the RIAA are all about. They 
are trying to retain their slipping grip on the means of production and 
distribution. Unfortunately, they have the money to buy the laws that 
they require. Generally, in America, you get the kind of justice that 
you can afford.

Well, I'll step down off the soap box before this goes too far.