MESSAGE
| DATE | 2003-02-09 |
| FROM | Ruben Safir
|
| SUBJECT | Subject: [hangout] Re: eGovOS conference in D.C.
|
>
> I'm not talking about compromise. Letting them speak at a conference where
> they will be skewered is not compromising.
The conference is not an academic debate.
Regardles of the election, dialague is never part of the proces.
> >From that perspective, Tony is doing the right thing letting Microsoft
> speak.
Tony is not doing the right thing. Tony never has done the right thing.
Tony wouldn't know the right thing if it hit him in the head.
Tony is giving a platform for Microsoft, and giving them a free ride.
This is a morally depraved act, in Washington, New York or Pitsburgh
We will not be part of that.
> They effectively spoke at the last conference (through their puppet
> from the Alexis de Toqueville Institute, whatever that is). At least they
> want to show up to take the heat themselves.
That is proper Marketing technique. And it is why it i important not to give
them a platform. Negative publicity is publicity.
>
> We are running a guerilla, stealth campaign and doing quite well at it with
> a very limited budget.
It' not a guerilla stealth campaign. It's a routine grassroots movement
and we are LOOSING, not winning.
> Terry Bollinger, who is on the conference committee
> and will speak, wrote the Mitre report on free/open-source penetration in
> the Defense Department. He showed it runs around 40% and opened a bunch of
> eyes (and raised a lot of hackles in Redmond).
>
Never heard of him. His paper had so much influence that there are thousands
of FedBizOp jobs requiring GNU Desktops....
Right?
> Susan Turnbull and Brand Niemann, who are both on the conference committee
> and will also speak, run a monthly government/industry "Collaborative
> Exploration Workshop" that is helping government CIO's learn about
> free/open-source and a bunch of other disruptive ideas that can save money
> and improve productivity. I hope to speak there about a forthcoming
> IEEE-USA broadband position that will really make things interesting
> politically. (Bayonne could easily become a widely-used, superstar product
> in that environment.)
Ditto
>
> David Wheeler, another conference committee member who will also speak,
> works for a government contractor but has independently made a name
> collecting business case numbers on the benefits of free/open-source and is
> the author of the "stacker" module of the Linux Loadable Security Module
> effort.
Ditto
>
> Microsoft's next point of attack will be in the area of security. They
> poured in money and got their Windows 2000 product certified at Common
> Criteria EAL-4+. (I recently met the manager of the evaluation lab that
> did the certification.) Tony has been working on countering that for some
> time by getting Security Enhanced Linux evaluated. That's probably what
> the Microsoft lobbying at NSA was all about.
This is an old story already which started with NT3. And the White Papers haven't
had any impact. NONE
>
> Come in here with New York tactics, disrupt the conference, and raise the
> level of controversy to in-your-face 24/7 and you will cut all these people
> off at the knees.
Not at all. If it's done well and in an organized way, it will be an impressive showing
and it will break the ice finally. We've done it before, and we'll do it again. We
have had nothing but success in Washington. And if our political tactics were used
nationalwide, we would be done with this phase of the Free SOftware and DRM battle
already.
Instead, I have Linus making DRM chips for Transmeta.
All Hail the Perens/Cohen political doctrine.
Correct political tactics work everywhere. And they are always the same.
And I repeat, this is not a political conference. It's a marketing of Free Software
Conference.
I'm pretty much done with this conversation at this junction. You guys will either
do what is wrong, or what is right. If you do what is right, your and ally. If you
do what's wrong, you'll be identified as a political enemy.
I'd like to end this conversation by saying that the last time we went to Washington, we
spent over 2 hours talking with our representitive on the House IP sub-committee.
He has traded an agressive Pro-War stand for a pro-DRM stand with Congressman Berman.
As a result, he aggressive pushed his agenda on us and didn't listen to a word we said,
but finally through his support against the Berman Bill..a strictly based on our persistence
and ability to deliver votes.
The analysis on the ride back up to NY was very enlightening to the membership. For many,
it was their first real political experience. Niether business decisions or political
decisions get decided on fair debate. Everyone is focused on accessment of your political
strength, their ability to gage if you have an ability to sell your position to the public,
and your skill as an organization to deliver votes, and a sellable message.
Besides campain funding, these are the only thing people care about. Right now I am gaging
if it is more profitable for our movement to loudly oppose you, or if your too small of a fish
to fry. I'm not worried in the least bit about cutting the knees of speakers which are having
no positive affects in New York.
Our people need protection of Fair Use with regard to digital media,Free Software adoptance,
Free Software Contracts, and Free Software Jobs, with a competitive Free Digital systems
market.
Your conference can not deliver that is currently hurting our efforts.
Ruben
--
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Brooklyn Linux Solutions
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Fair Use -
because it's either fair use or useless....
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