[SFD-discuss] United Nations and Software Freedom Day

[David Thomas]

Pia Waugh wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> The Software Freedom International Board will be aiming for United Nations
> recognition of Software Freedom Day as a day of international importance for
> 2008. We wanted to let you all know so that you can try extra hard to keep
> track of the numbers and successes you have over Software Freedom Day, as it
> will all contribute to our case in helping the world understand the
> importance of Software Freedom.
>
> If anyone would like to help us with this quest, please let us know, or even
> reply to this post with your thoughts. We feel strongly that Software
> Freedom underpins our basic human rights in a highly digital world, and so
> want to help the UN understand and promote software freedom as a way to
> maintain our human rights:
>
>   http://softwarefreedomday.org/SoftwareFreedom
>
> There are already United Nations projects that are strongly supportive of
> FOSS such as IOSN (http://www.iosn.net/), UNESCO
> (http://www.unesco.org/cgi-bin/webworld/portal_freesoftware/cgi/page.cgi?d=1)
> and more, but SFD is as yet not a "Special Day" on their website
> (http://www.un.org/events/) nor is Software Freedom spoken about officially,
> something to work towards :)
>
> Thank you all for your participation and in taking Software Freedom to your
> communities!
>
> Cheers,
> Pia
>  
>   
My family is very lucky, I'd even say we are a family of privilege. We 
never go hungry, have two cars that are paid for, and live in a very 
nice 3 bedroom home. I work a very easy rewarding job and make enough 
money that my wife gets to stay home and raise our 10 year old son. I'm 
not bragging nor am I saying this because I feel guilty. I'm saying this 
because in this day and age we should all be exactly where I am today. 
We must ask ourselves why are we not? Wars, famine, and disease plague 
our world. Governments, multinational corporations and the industrial 
war complex play us like chess pieces each and every day. The dependents 
and demand for oil fuels the greed of these black organizations while 
polluting the very earth in which we all live. My good life could at any 
moment be stripped away from me as it has from so many people before me. 
In America we have a constitution that has been pulled out from under us 
by fake fear, the removal of civil rights, and an unjust unpopular war. 
I'm still not sure who are enemy's are. I feel my only recourse is to 
fight the only way I know how, supporting free movements, true and just 
as I can find them. We all have the right to be a part of this world not 
just the ones that can afford to participate. The free software movement 
is something I feel very strongly about. It gives those, who if certain 
people had their way, would normally be left out in the cold unable to 
contribute to society. This is a need that in this age of the digital 
economy is more important than ever, the playing field must be made 
level if we are to succeed as the human race. The future of my family 
depends on this, the future of your family depends on this. If taken 
lightly, ignored, or swept under the rug we will be forever under the 
shadow of oppression. If you think this is over the top remember men 
have become billionaires thanks to software, the richest of men are due 
to technology and the energy technology consumes. They will not go 
silently into the night , they will fight and fight to the death to hold 
on to the power they so crave.