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German Court Says GPL is Valid
Axel Metzger writes "The Munich District Court has ruled on May 19, 2004 that the main clauses of the GNU General Public License are valid under German copyright and contract law. This seems to be the first judgment worldwide proofing the validity of the most popular free software license. The ruling is a confirmation of the preliminary injunction of April 2, 2004. The new judgment gives on 20 pages the reasons for the ruling. It states explicitly that the terms of section 2, 3 and 4 of the GPL are valid under German copyright and contract law. Here is the German text of the judgment; an English translation will be available soon. The judgment comes at the right time to fight those (SCO and others) who challenge the legal validity of the GPL in Europe and elsewhere. The lawyer of the plaintiffs, Till Jaeger from Munich should be granted the Free Software Award."
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OH SNAP, niggas just got tha beatdown put on that ass
As you may have heard, ECFA (Euthanasia for Canus Familirous Association) has purchased the GNAA (G** N***** Association of America) for an unspecified amount. Many people have had questions about the "connection" of the two associations. Thus, here's a FAQ:
Q. Why is the GNAA connecting into one ECFA?
A. Because both the GNAA and ECFA share one common goal, A HAPPIER MANKIND.
Q. Will the illicit images and homosexuality continue?
A. Unfortunately, these will not be a part of the combined ECFA, as we are moving to a broader demographic.
Q. What will the ECFA stand for?
A. Euthanasia for Canus Familirous Association.
Q. Why is the ECFA right for me?
A. Have you stepped in dog doo-doo? Do you hate dogs? Want to kill dogs? The ECFA is for you!
Q. Will the GNAA "early posts" continue?
A. Yes, these will continue, but their messages will be changed.
Q. What will the new ECFA do?
A. The ECFA would like you to do one thing - KILL A DOG. By KILLING A DOG, you will ELIMINATE one USELESSLY RESPIRATING animal from this planet. Take a stand! Help rid this INFESTATION. KILL A DOG TODAY!!!!
Q. Why do you kill dogs?
A. Are you TIRED of having your TAXES increased? Humane Societies cost our country over $100 million annually. By eliminating DOGS, this money can EDUCATE OUR KIDS. OVERPOPULATION of DOGS is RAPANT in this country. One dog can easily use the entire oxygen output of ten full size trees. One dog can output over 20 lbs of droppings daily. One dog can aggrivate the allergies of untold numbers of people with its fast growing hair and all to common dandruff. Do you own a dog? Are you tired of its mess? Don't feel like planting ten trees and waiting 10 years for them to reach maturity? Then get it euthanized. Euthanasia is a painless way for a dog to... terminate. However, it can be too expensive to buy these drugs for the LARGE NUMBER of DOGS in the HUMANE SOCIETIES. It is thus proposed that these dogs be turned into food for the homeless. One dog can feed up to five homeless children for one day.
Q. Will my favorite content still be available?
A. Yes! ECFA will be a combonation of both GNAA and ECFA. Here's the listing of content that will be used from both associations:
GNAA: troll pattern, basic format, troll network
ECFA: motto (To protect our oxygen, to clean our streets, and to curb noise pollution), message, and all your favorite existing ECFA troll messages
Q. Will I be required to change my skin color or sexual lifestyle to be a member?
A. no. People of all skin colors and sexual lifestyles are welcome. The GNAA/ECFA do not support any sexual lifestyle, skin color, or race.
Q. Where's all the content?
A. We're pulling all existing GNAA content offline on "ECF day", when we will officially connect. All your favorite ECFA content will still be available.
Q. How do I join the ECFA?
A. By simply participating in our propaganda campaign to exterminate dogs. You can become a member of our slashdot trolling team, our usenet trolling team, or you can be a member of our local campaigning - by simply handing out brocures or posting signs outside humaine socities.
Q. What is ECFA/GNAA's stance on cats?
A. We're indifferent about cats.
Q. How do I kill a dog?
A. Euthanasia is by far the most clean method, but it taints the meat and is cost prohibitive. Thus, the most economical method is our K9Zap product ($29.95), which deals a fatal shock to a dog up to 60lbs. Alternatively, the slightly messier bakers chocolate approach costs only about $0.30 per pound of dog. For more information, reply to this message or contact Gadgets for the Elimination of Dogs (GED).
You're right, I'm bit drunk. Though I did not moderate grandparent, although I've got mod points.
There are differences, they just don't matter
so these Germans you speak of, they're nihilists?
Will you shut the fuck up Donny!
"Personally, my soul tells me what right and wrong are."
That's the problem. Some people's souls say nothing. Does that mean that nothing is right or wrong? The term "evil" signifies that it should be publicly obvious or at least discoverable when someone is doing an evil act. But if good/evil right/wrong are personal decisions, then really "fighting evil" makes no sense, it's actually just "fighting _them_" (whoever 'them' is - because for them, you are evil).
"Why do Christians believe that their book is better than the others or that their priests are better authorities than anyone else?"
That's simple - they believe that it was given by God. It's a historical, not really a theological/philosophical reason. They (or we, more specifically) believe that, for whatever reason, God started moving in the lives of people through Abraham and those after him. If this is a true historical happening, Christianity and its doctrines are in fact true. If this event did not occur, Christianity is a lie.
The question for Christians is simply, "did it happen" (also "does it happen" because we believe that God still works today). If the answer is "no", then we are fools. If it is "yes", then thank the Lord for working in us for whatever His strange reasons are.
Engineering and the Ultimate
But why? What's the justification?
If atheism believes that your monitor is of the same substance/worth as a carbon lifeform, why would we have the statement about people but not about computer monitors?
Engineering and the Ultimate
"And that, in general, is why im not religious."
I would hope that it would take more than a resolution of that issue to make you religious. Christianity is a historical, not a philosophical, proposition. It shouldn't be examined true/false based on whether you agree with the doctrine or if you like the teaching, it should only be examined with the question "did it happen?" The apostle Paul agrees wholeheartedly that if Jesus's resurrection is not part of history, then Christians should be pitied most of all people.
It's not about want you want or how you want morality to be handled, it's whether or not you believe in the historicity of the Bible. If you do, I can't imagine an argument for not serving God. If you do not believe in the historicity, I can't imagine an argument for why you would believe in God.
For most believers, trust in God comes about initially by experiencing God in our own lives. Sometimes other evidence comes up. For example, my son was healed from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (see here) after much prayer (confirmed by multiple echocardiograms).
Also, at variance with what you think, most Christians do not follow Christianity because they already agree with it, but rather because they have become convinced that Christ truly did die for our sins. This causes a change in belief, not a continuation of existing belief.
Engineering and the Ultimate
"IMHO true atheism is very rare."
I agree. I have just never understood people who were both true atheists and moralists, which is why the post.
Engineering and the Ultimate
"many atheists believe in free will."
I'm not sure that qualifies as total atheism or a moderate form of pantheism (what is will, where do you get it, and what gives "living things" will and not computer chips).
Engineering and the Ultimate