Conversation

Me: Free software licenses should include ethics clauses.

Folks: Don’t be silly, you can’t put restrictions on licenses like that. It’s unworkable.

Apple: You can only run this operating system on hardware I sell.

Folks: Sounds good to us, sir. Whatever you say, boss!

If our only answer to unethical licenses is indifferent ones—as opposed to ethical ones—I don’t see how we win this. I feel the offhand dismissal of ethical licenses in technology has been and is a mistake.

#foss #ethics