On 2012/10/03 09:04, Ralf Corsepius wrote:
On 10/03/2012 11:55 AM, jdow wrote:
On 2012/10/03 02:01, Marko Vojinovic wrote:
On Tuesday, 2. October 2012. 18.52.10 jdow wrote:
How about government funding? There is a tried&tested scenario used for some time now all over the world, say in science. For example:
Then you get what the government says you will want not what you do want.
Right now we get, what the manifacturers say we will want, not what we do want - I don't see much actual difference.
Where giant manufacturers are not protected by government red tape that is so onerous it makes starting a new company too difficult to contemplate (such as a land run by a chief executive who is in GE's pocket, for example) you will get start-ups that fill the consumer demand vacuum. That is how Microsoft started; that is how Linux started; that is how Apple started in the big machines dominated world; that is how Google started in the clumsy search engine world; that is how MySpace started and was later supplanted by FaceBook; and the list goes on.
That is why you want small government not overwhelming large take care of everything "but it's supposed to be benevolent" government. And before you ask government to take something over or make new laws contemplate what that means in terms of larger government.
I really don't think Linux or GNU or any FOSS could exist in a purely communistic society or even a plain old tyranny like Bobby Mugabe-land. FOSS is a good idea. It's not the only good idea out there. Nor is it a solution for everything.
{o.o}