Subj : Re: GNU Public Licences Revisited (again)
To   : comp.programming
From : Serge Skorokhodov (216716244)
Date : Tue Aug 30 2005 09:39 pm

Rob Thorpe wrote:
> Serge Skorokhodov (216716244) wrote:
> 
>>Gerry Quinn wrote:
>>
>>
>>>>>I don't believe you want to leave anything more than a
>>>>>skeletal and effectively useless remnant of IP, rather as
>>>>>communist states left a skeletal and effectively useless
>>>>>pretence of freedom.
>>>>
>>>>Be carefully about comparing various countries' freedoms:) I
>>>>believe that you are informed (I would even say
>>>>indoctrinated) about many ways the Soviet were not free
>>>>compared to the American. Still I do believe you know
>>>>nothing about many freedoms the Soviets did enjoy while the
>>>>American didn't even imagine its possible:). I just can
>>>>compare all pros and cons:).
>>>
>>>
>>>Would you care to give examples of such freedoms?
>>
>>Sure:)
>>
>>Just imagine that you can really be fired, for example:)
>>Practically, if one isn't involved in politics and setting cases
>>of real serious professional incompetence aside, there used to be
>>no reason to be afraid of losing one's job:)
>>
>>If you are not aimed at military controlled areas, you can move
>>around without any "Private property. No trespassing!" signs.
>>Canada is much better than the US in this respect, but still...
>>
>>Ill-famed KGB was actually a joke compared with tax authorities
>>in the US or Canada:) I couldn't even imagine what a real
>>surveillance is:)
>>
>>Actually, when I was young (I'm 48 now) my life was much more
>>fun. Well, it was expensive to get a decent fishing tackle. But
>>it was much easier to find plenty of quality fishing time:)
>>
>>Yes, we were not well off. But I wouldn't say that most people
>>lack freedom rather than more material stuff, I'm sorry to say:(
>>
>>
>>>One objective distinguishing feature might be which countries
>>>build walls to keep people out, and which countries build
>>>walls to keep people in.
>>
>>Actually, the end of the USSR has rather little to do with
>>freedom. It has a lot to do with sausage though. Economically it
>>was a disaster:( Most people try to get to America for simple
>>economical reasons and just cover this simple motive with
>>"freedom" word.
>>
>>Personally, I respect only two groups of people that benefit from
>>the fall of the soviet empire. First, it is those who couldn't
>>realize their potential in the soviet system. Second, those who
>>need free information exchange. These were major drawbacks of the
>>soviet system. Unfortunately, most people go to the West for
>>other reasons:(
> 
> 
> Remember you experienced the Soviet system from within Russia, the
> ruling state.  This is rather like experiencing the British empire from
> Britain.
> 

It is a very complicated issue, actually. Remember that vast
majority of soviets vote for the new Soviet Union on the
referendum at 1991 (even Ukrain vote for the union at the time,
except Baltics:). It was the the elete of republics (including
Russian Federation) elite who broke the country. I might agree
that the USSR was doomed anyway but still the facts are people
vote for it at the time.

The majority of Russians considered that they just do not have a
national state of their own rhather than enjoyning being of
"ruling state":) The declaration of independence of Russia was
voted unanimously at 1990. It basically means "let all republics
live on their own as we do not want them to live at our expence
any more":)

Normally Russians consider themselves as the most oppressed
nation in the USSR as communist always golden the pill to
everybody except Russians. Anyway, the Russian was the only
ethnical group without ethnical authonomy in the USSR.

I'm afraid that this is a strong offtopic but it is really not
that simple. Believe me:)

-- 
Serge

.