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<title>Avoiding Ruinous Compromises |
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- GNU Project - Free Software Foundation</title> |
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<h2>Avoiding Ruinous Compromises</h2> |
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|
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<address class="byline">by Richard Stallman</address> |
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|
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<p class="introduction">Twenty-five years |
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ago <a href="/gnu/initial-announcement.html">on September 27, 1983, I |
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announced a plan</a> to create a completely free operating system |
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called GNU—for “GNU's Not Unix.” As part of the |
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25th anniversary of the GNU system, I have written this article on how |
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our community can avoid ruinous compromises. In addition to avoiding |
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such compromises, there are many ways you can <a href="/help/help.html"> |
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help GNU</a> and free software. One way is to say no to the use of a |
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nonfree program or an online disservice as often as you can or |
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<a href="/philosophy/saying-no-even-once.html"> |
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even once</a>.</p> |
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<hr class="no-display" /> |
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|
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<p>The free software movement aims for a social |
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change: <a href="/philosophy/free-sw.html">to make all software |
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free</a> so that all software users are free and can be part of a |
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community of cooperation. Every nonfree program gives its developer |
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unjust power over the users. Our goal is to put an end to that |
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injustice.</p> |
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|
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<p>The road to freedom |
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is <a href="https://www.fsf.org/bulletin/2008/spring/the-last-mile-is-always-the-hardest/"> |
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a long road</a>. It will take many steps and many years to reach a |
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world in which it is normal for software users to have freedom. Some |
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of these steps are hard, and require sacrifice. Some of them become |
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easier if we make compromises with people that have different goals.</p> |
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|
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<img src="/graphics/gplv3-with-text-136x68.png" alt=" [GPL Logo] " |
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class="imgright" /> |
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|
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<p>Thus, the <a href="https://www.fsf.org/">Free Software |
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Foundation</a> makes compromises—even major ones. For |
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instance, we made compromises in the patent provisions of version 3 of |
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the <a href="/licenses/gpl.html">GNU General Public License</a> |
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(GNU GPL) so that major companies would contribute to and distribute |
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GPLv3-covered software and thus bring some patents under the effect of |
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these provisions. </p> |
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|
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<img src="/graphics/lgplv3-with-text-154x68.png" alt=" [LGPL Logo] " |
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class="imgleft" /> |
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|
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<p><a href="/licenses/lgpl.html">The Lesser GPL</a>'s purpose is a |
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compromise: we use it on certain chosen free libraries to permit their |
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use in nonfree programs because we think that legally prohibiting |
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this would only drive developers to proprietary libraries instead. We |
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accept and install code in GNU programs to make them work together |
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with common nonfree programs, and we document and publicize this in |
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ways that encourage users of the latter to install the former, but not |
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vice versa. We support specific campaigns we agree with, even when we |
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don't fully agree with the groups behind them.</p> |
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|
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<p>But we reject certain compromises even though many others in our |
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community are willing to make them. For instance, |
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we <a href="/distros/free-system-distribution-guidelines.html"> |
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endorse only the GNU/Linux distributions</a> that have policies not to |
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include nonfree software or lead users to install it. To endorse |
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nonfree distributions would be a <abbr title="ruinous |
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(rū'ə-nəs) adj. 1. Causing or apt to cause ruin; |
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destructive. 2. Falling to ruin; dilapidated or |
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decayed.">ruinous</abbr> compromise.</p> |
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|
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<p>Compromises are ruinous if they would work against our aims in the |
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long term. That can occur either at the level of ideas or at the |
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level of actions.</p> |
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|
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<p>At the level of ideas, ruinous compromises are those that reinforce |
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the premises we seek to change. Our goal is a world in which software |
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users are free, but as yet most computer users do not even recognize |
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freedom as an issue. They have taken up “consumer” |
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values, which means they judge any program only on practical |
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characteristics such as price and convenience.</p> |
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|
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<p>Dale Carnegie's classic self-help book, <cite>How to Win Friends |
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and Influence People</cite>, advises that the most effective way to |
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persuade someone to do something is to present arguments that appeal |
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to per values. There are ways we can appeal to the consumer values |
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typical in our society. For instance, free software obtained gratis |
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can save the user money. Many free programs are convenient and |
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reliable, too. Citing those practical benefits has succeeded in |
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persuading many users to adopt various free programs, some of which |
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are now quite successful.</p> |
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|
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<p>If getting more people to use some free programs is as far as you |
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aim to go, you might decide to keep quiet about the concept of |
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freedom, and focus only on the practical advantages that make sense |
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in terms of consumer values. That's what the term “open |
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source” and its associated rhetoric do.</p> |
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|
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<p>That approach can get us only part way to the goal of freedom. |
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People who use free software only because it is convenient will stick |
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with it only as long as it is more convenient. And they will see no |
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reason not to use convenient proprietary programs along with it.</p> |
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|
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<p>The philosophy of open source presupposes and appeals to consumer |
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values, and this affirms and reinforces them. That's why we |
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<a href="/philosophy/open-source-misses-the-point.html">do not |
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advocate open source.</a></p> |
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<div class="pict narrow"> |
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<img src="/graphics/gnulaptop.png" |
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alt=" [Levitating Gnu with a laptop] " /> |
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</div> |
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<p>To establish a free community fully and lastingly, we need to do |
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more than get people to use some free software. We need to spread the |
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idea of judging software (and other things) on “citizen |
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values,” based on whether it respects users' freedom and |
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community, not just in terms of convenience. Then people will not |
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fall into the trap of a proprietary program baited by an attractive, |
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convenient feature.</p> |
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|
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<p>To promote citizen values, we have to talk about them and show how |
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they are the basis of our actions. We must reject the Dale Carnegie |
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compromise that would influence their actions by endorsing their |
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consumer values.</p> |
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|
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<p>This is not to say we cannot cite practical advantage at |
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all—we can and we do. It becomes a problem only when the |
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practical advantage steals the scene and pushes freedom into the |
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background. Therefore, when we cite the practical advantages of free |
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software, we reiterate frequently that those are just <em>additional, |
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secondary</em> reasons to prefer it.</p> |
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|
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<p>It's not enough to make our words accord with our ideals; our |
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actions have to accord with them too. So we must also avoid |
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compromises that involve doing or legitimizing the things we aim to |
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stamp out.</p> |
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|
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<p>For instance, experience shows that you can attract some users to |
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<a href="/gnu/why-gnu-linux.html">GNU/Linux</a> if you include some |
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nonfree programs. This could mean a cute nonfree application that |
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will catch some user's eye, or a nonfree programming platform such |
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as <a href="/philosophy/java-trap.html">Java</a> (formerly) or the |
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Flash runtime (still), or a nonfree device driver that enables |
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support for certain hardware models.</p> |
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|
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<p>These compromises are tempting, but they undermine the goal. If |
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you distribute nonfree software, or steer people towards it, you will |
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find it hard to say, “Nonfree software is an injustice, a |
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social problem, and we must put an end to it.” And even if you |
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do continue to say those words, your actions will undermine them.</p> |
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|
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<p>The issue here is not whether people should be <em>able</em> |
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or <em>allowed</em> to install nonfree software; a general-purpose |
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system enables and allows users to do whatever they wish. The issue |
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is whether we guide users towards nonfree software. What they do on |
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their own is their responsibility; what we do for them, and what we |
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direct them towards, is ours. We must not direct the |
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users towards proprietary software as if it were a solution, because |
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proprietary software is the problem.</p> |
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|
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<p>A ruinous compromise is not just a bad influence on others. It can |
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distort your own values, too, through cognitive dissonance. If you |
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have certain values, but your actions imply other, conflicting values, |
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you are likely to change your values or your actions so as to resolve |
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the contradiction. Thus, projects that argue only from practical |
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advantages, or direct people toward some nonfree software, nearly |
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always shy away from even <em>suggesting</em> that nonfree software |
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is unethical. For their participants, as well as for the public, they |
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reinforce consumer values. We must reject these compromises if we wish |
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to keep our values straight.</p> |
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|
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<p>If you want to move to free software without compromising the goal |
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of freedom, look at <a href="https://www.fsf.org/resources">the FSF's |
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resources area</a>. It lists hardware and machine configurations that |
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work with free software, <a href="/distros/distros.html"> totally free |
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GNU/Linux distros</a> to install, and <a href="https://directory.fsf.org/"> |
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thousands of free software packages</a> that work in a 100 percent |
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free software environment. If you want to help the community stay on |
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the road to freedom, one important way is to publicly uphold citizen |
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values. When people are discussing what is good or bad, or what to |
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do, cite the values of freedom and community and argue from them.</p> |
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|
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<p>A road that lets you go faster is not better if it leads to the |
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wrong place. Compromise is essential to achieve an ambitious goal, |
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but beware of compromises that lead away from the goal.</p> |
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<hr class="column-limit"/> |
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|
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<p> |
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For a similar point in a different area of life, |
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see <a |
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href="https://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/jul/19/nudge-is-not-enough-behaviour-change"> |
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“Nudge” is not enough</a>. |
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</p> |
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