On Sat, 14 Aug 2010, Rugxulo wrote:
Did you know that Sourceforge (hosted in the U.S.) is now forbidding that projects (by default) distribute to "banned" countries? (Syria, North Korea, Cuba, etc.)
But the GPL doesn't let me arbitrarily do that, I can't omit sharing with anybody who wants sources. So who shall I obey? (I guess you'll say, "If you can't distribute it legally to everyone, you can't distribute it at all.")
If I remember rightly, the GPL gives licensees the privilege of redistributing (or not) to whomever they please, as long as all privileges granted by the GPL are passed on (licensees can even sell copies). Thus, I can decide not to distribute GPLed software to North Korea (with or without a legal prohibition), but I can't forbid others to do so.
I didn't know I needed to care about (non-military) software to other countries!! Seems insane. Okay, it is insane. So why would I obey that (esp. if I'm not hurting anyone)??
I agree that the policy is rather ridiculous, but them's the rules, and the fact that I disapprove of the rule is not sufficient reason to break it (either legally, or IMHO, morally). Besides, bad laws are more likely to be repealed if they're obeyed and enforced, thereby forcing society to live with the negative consequences of the bad law. Bad/Stupid laws that are mostly ignored are still available for use by malicious prosecutors or litigants, and are therefore more dangerous than stupid laws that are routinely followed.
--------------------------| John L. Ries | Salford Systems | Phone: (619)543-8880 x107 | or (435)867-8885 | --------------------------|