[Fsf-collab] Random thoughts...

[Michael Gilbert]

> In the meantime, I can paraphrase the issue at hand, which is that we're
> unlikely to see Debian listed in the free-distro list until Debian stops
> providing the Contrib and Non-Free repositories, mentioning them, linking to
> them, and so forth.

So, are there any concrete thoughts on what would actually be a viable
solution from the FSF perspective on this?

If there are references or links to contrib/non-free on debian
websites, I'm sure the debian www team would be happy to correct them.
 Those can be reported to: the www.debian.org pseudo-package with
sufficient severity:
http://bugs.debian.org/www.debian.org

References and links in various packages can be submitted as bug
reports to the respective packages.  It would be preferable for
someone from the FSF that cares about these issues to actually help us
increase awareness of what actually needs fixing.  We can't really act
on general/undefined qualms.

Removing contrib and non-free is simply not an option.  That violates
the Debian social contract and was defeated in a general resolution
eight years ago (getting less than a majority of votes while needing a
3:1 ratio):
http://www.debian.org/vote/2004/vote_002

The fact of the matter is that FSF doctrine overlooks one of the most
important aspects of freedom: the freedom of choice.  On the other
hand, Debian champions it.  If the FSF is truly about promoting
maximal freedom (in a its most general context), then restrictions on
Debian's (and of course all other's) endeavors and choices should not
be one of its pursuits.

Best wishes,
Mike