as the originator of this thread, I note that I indeed labeled it as [OT] from its inception and didn't feel it necessary to debate the topic, only that people could sign or not sign on their own perogative.
Agreed, hence why I complimented you on it (there was no sarcasm or complaint on my part, I was sincerely giving credit for good list netiquette - did it come across any different?).
Thus the predicate for not trusting the petition site as a means not to sign is easily solvable with only a little amount of detective work.
Fair enough. I wasn't suggesting it wasn't his work. Just that it wasn't particularly obvious from reading his home page and from the rest of the info. Something one would have expected seeing the importance of the topic to this individual.
As for not signing petitions that you don't understand, that's a blinding glimpse of the obvious.
Better to admit ignorance than to try and mask it and lose credibility when the obvious surfaces, hence why I made that fact clear. I could have read the info on Wikipedia and his sites and claimed otherwise. But I am not that kind of person (nor am I suggesting others who've posted are). As for finding the time to read up on the topics pertinent to the debate in order to assume a justifiable position, I just don't have that time. I leave that for those closer to the pulse to duel it out and hope that good will triumph over evil. Better to have the issue debated by a handful of knowledgeable, competent people than a large group of ill informed or uninformed people. That would hurt the cause more than help it. Now if the issue was something to which I was more on the pulse of, I would quite possibly take a public stance on it. We can't all be activists. We can't be well versed on everything Linux. We all contribute in different ways. It would inappropriate to criticize someone for not getting involved without knowing a person's reasons (which is something that a person can choose to share or not). A person can be a great contributor to Linux without getting involved in this petition or that issue as a whole. My advice was if you are going to get involved, be well informed so that you can do so competently, don't you agree? If anyone suggests otherwise, then they are being extremely unfair, unreasonable, and will risk doing more harm than good in their quest to further their side's position on the issue. We only have to do two things in life, pay taxes and die. Everything else is a choice (well so is not paying taxes but you know the saying...). Fair enough to seek to raise awareness and involvement in a topic. But not to expect it. Jacques B.
