cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/62296258
I find it sad and very anti-democratic that they blocked my post, which is polite and respectful. The reply of the moderator was moreover rude: “Instead of starting useless drama here, seemingly in search of magic validation points” and “Go and protest somewhere else, to the people that can actually do something about it.”
Here’s my polite open letter:
I have been happily using KDE software, and especially the Kubuntu Linux distro, Plasma, and Dolphin, for almost a decade, on several devices. Of course I’m also a regular donor and affectionate follower.
It seems that more and more software developers in the Linux and FOSS ecosystem want to implement changes to comply with various age-verification laws. I understand that for the KDE developers and maintainers it might be a difficult decision whether to make this kind of changes or not. They have to consider “legal” aspects, collaboration with other developers, and, possibly, also what their user base think. What to weigh in, and how much weight to give to what, is of course up to the maintainers and developers.
I respect the choice that will be made by KDE. But I also want to make clear, in a respectful and polite way, that if such changes are implemented in KDE software and the Kubuntu distro, then I’ll move away from them, to other software and distros that do not comply (there already are some and I’m sure there’ll be plenty more).
“Well, who cares?” might the KDE people justly say. Partly I’m writing this open letter out of a feeling of friendship. It’s somehow like when you discover that a dear friend might have values very different from yours, so you have to break your no-longer-meaningful friendship, but you also feel you have to explain to your friend why, rather than going away silently. I also believe that many other KDE users think like I do, so this message does not come from me alone.
For me GNU Linux and FOSS is not only a choice about software: it’s also a choice about human values, human rights, and moral stances. These laws, besides being pointless, cross a threshold about human rights and values that I personally do not and will not allow (if this makes me a “criminal” in the egregious company of “criminals” like Claudette Colvin or King or Mandela, so be it). I want therefore to use software that also makes a similar choice, based not only on what’s “legal” but also on what’s “moral”. Besides appeals to politicians, marches of protests, strikes, and similar, also software choice is a form of protest and non-compliance; a stance.
It seems odd to threaten your desktop environment for a decision that likely will be made at a distro level.
Overly wordy too, but that aside shouldn’t this be directed at Kubuntu?
Yeah, I am confused… the changes for age verification are going to be kernal / distro level changes.
If you like the plasma DE you likely can get it to work with a distro that doesn’t have age verification; I’m relatively new to Linux myself but this is my understanding of it.
It isn’t a threat, anymore than their decisions are threats. I suppose the developers give at least a minimum of weight to what the users think, so why shouldn’t we politely say what we think and explain why?
You’re right about posting in the Kubuntu forums. However, I now see that surprisingly there’s only one post about age verification in KDE Discuss, and only one on Kubuntu forums. So I feel that they’re simply blocking posts about this topic. In one of said posts there was a link to another related post, which apparently has been deleted.
It got blocked from where? Where did you try to post it?
In the Community thread of https://discuss.kde.org/
I find it very disappointing that they deleted your post, though reading their FAQ it definitely sounds like keeping the forum a happy place far outweighs any concerns about free and open communication with their users. That FAQ statement really reads like HR mentality.
Not their decision, not their problem. This is a distro decision, not the desktop environments.
Yea, it seems like keeping the peace is a tough job
Luckily I can still share this here. Indeed, many thanks to the mods of this community for not deleting this.
And they were completely right to ban you.
This age verification thing has become part technical issue for developers to solve, and part culture war nonsense for deranged terminally-online weirdos.
I think it’s good that they’re banning this hysterical spam.
Kde is just implementing what systemd and xdg desktop portals are providing.
If you want to fight the battle, fight it there with those who implemented it at a lower level.
I don’t particularly agree with this. Systemd puts it there as an option to use. They are not responsible for what others systems do with this data, or if you choose not to enter anything into this field. It is completely optional at this level… If you want to fight it, fight the politicians that makes these laws…
@axum @pglpm Refusing to use a provided API is meaningful, too. All this rushed obedience in advance is anathema to the spirit of free (as in freedom) software.
I agree, however, that this nonsense should be opposed at every level. (Even if Lennart made his decision for systemd, and is unlikely to change his mind.)
