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Major Linux Hardware Donor Is a CNN "Hero"

christian.einfeldt writes "James Burgett of the Alameda County Computer Resource Center calls himself a 'tattooed freak' and a recovering drug addict, but CNN is calling him a hero (video) for diverting tons of computers from landfills, installing Ubuntu Linux on them, and giving them out to schools, non-profits, and poor people. Burgett's filmed interview is currently leading a CNN contest among videos of 'ordinary people' whom CNN considers everyday heroes, narrowly edging out the video of a man who is saving gorillas from extinction. In his interview, Burgett points out that the people working for him are also recovering drug addicts or recovering mental illness patients." Update: 10/02 23:46 GMT by KD : Reader stefanlasiewski posted a journal article describing how, bewilderingly, the state of California is threatening to shut down Burgett's ACCRC.

5 of 341 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Weird by QuantumG · · Score: -1, Troll

    What's useful about it exactly? It's not like they make stew out of those gorillas to feed the starving children in Africa.

    --
    How we know is more important than what we know.
  2. Re:Weird by Reality+Master+201 · · Score: 0, Troll

    Why not make stew out of you and your family? Y'all are significantly less rare and important in genetic diversity terms.

    If nothing else, the gorillas are classier than you are.

  3. The definition of the word hero by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

    Does a guy running into a burning building to save an infant get mentioned on CNN let alone labeled a hero? Does a guy risking his life in Afghanistan ("the good war") get mentioned on CNN, let alone labeled a hero? No. Of course not, those guy's aren't heroes, they're pussies. This guy though, he must have a cock 2^6 inches long, hard as diamonds to risk his life doing whatever he does to earn the title of CNN/Hero. Same with the other guy mentioned. I want to have both of their babies, simultaneously.

    --DD

  4. Re:Weird by megaditto · · Score: 0, Troll

    Fuck gorillas. What have they ever done for us except giving us AIDS?

    --
    Obama likes poor people so much, he wants to make more of them.
  5. Re:Weird by JonathanR · · Score: 1, Troll

    So rather than let old computers die, he's prolonging their life-span, thereby increasing the global PC population, each of which is plugged into a power socket. All of these are sucking electrons from the grid, and leading to additional power generation demand. Tonnes more CO2 spewing into the atmosphere. Yay!

    Ah, the law of unintended consequences.