<story><title>Why FSF Founder Richard Stallman is Wrong on Steve Jobs</title><url>http://www.readwriteweb.com/enterprise/2011/10/why-fsf-founder-richard-stallm.php?utm_source=feedburner&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=Feed%3A+readwriteweb+%28ReadWriteWeb%29</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>calibraxis</author><text>[There goes my karma...]&lt;p&gt;Since a lot of people here seemed to have an emotional reaction to Jobs&apos; passing, I had no desire to say anything here. But now the topic is Stallman, and for whatever reason, people are wanting to discuss his comments.&lt;p&gt;I (and probably most people I know) don&apos;t think Stallman&apos;s comments are a big deal. Steve was known for acting cruelly to people; apparently acted like a sociopath. If he treated people like shit when he was alive, then it&apos;s not the end of the world when someone says a few less-than-respectful things about him when he&apos;s gone.&lt;p&gt;When confronted with the death of someone he disliked, I doubt Steve would be so sentimental. (At least not inwardly.)</text></item><item><author>redthrowaway</author><text>Free Software truly does deserve better than RMS.  The guy is just about the least-suited person to being a spokesman (or any public figure) I&apos;ve seen.  As a hacker and behind-the-scenes guy, sure.  But his complete lack of tact, social skills, and presentability makes him more harmful than helpful as a figurehead.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>kprobst</author><text>&amp;#62; Steve was known for acting cruelly to people; apparently acted like a sociopath&lt;p&gt;Stallman is also a sociopath by your definition then; remember his comments in some mailing list when someone announced they had had a child. There are plenty of other examples. Richard Stallman is an asshole. A brilliant and useful asshole, but an asocial asshole incapable of basic empathy nonetheless.&lt;p&gt;I don&apos;t &lt;i&gt;admire&lt;/i&gt; either of them (though I&apos;d give more credit to Stallman for fighting the good and difficult fight all these years), but it seems to me that Stallman&apos;s supporters behave exactly the way they claim Jobs&apos; supporters do - by eulogizing and finding excuses for the ugly sides of their heroes and claiming &quot;the others&quot; are a cult.&lt;p&gt;History is full of brilliant and useful assholes. both Jobs and Stallman should be given their rightful due and called on their failings. But neither of them should be casting aspersions about the other (not that Jobs can do that anymore). At some level they are fundamentally the same.</text></comment>
<story><title>Why FSF Founder Richard Stallman is Wrong on Steve Jobs</title><url>http://www.readwriteweb.com/enterprise/2011/10/why-fsf-founder-richard-stallm.php?utm_source=feedburner&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=Feed%3A+readwriteweb+%28ReadWriteWeb%29</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>calibraxis</author><text>[There goes my karma...]&lt;p&gt;Since a lot of people here seemed to have an emotional reaction to Jobs&apos; passing, I had no desire to say anything here. But now the topic is Stallman, and for whatever reason, people are wanting to discuss his comments.&lt;p&gt;I (and probably most people I know) don&apos;t think Stallman&apos;s comments are a big deal. Steve was known for acting cruelly to people; apparently acted like a sociopath. If he treated people like shit when he was alive, then it&apos;s not the end of the world when someone says a few less-than-respectful things about him when he&apos;s gone.&lt;p&gt;When confronted with the death of someone he disliked, I doubt Steve would be so sentimental. (At least not inwardly.)</text></item><item><author>redthrowaway</author><text>Free Software truly does deserve better than RMS.  The guy is just about the least-suited person to being a spokesman (or any public figure) I&apos;ve seen.  As a hacker and behind-the-scenes guy, sure.  But his complete lack of tact, social skills, and presentability makes him more harmful than helpful as a figurehead.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>jacobolus</author><text>&lt;i&gt;Arrogant&lt;/i&gt;? For sure. &lt;i&gt;Narcissistic&lt;/i&gt; even? perhaps. &lt;i&gt;Sociopath&lt;/i&gt;? Give me a fucking break.</text></comment>