I dont know why Linus speaking his mind on an issue, which is not technical in nature, is indicative of the linux community as a whole, or how OP made the leap in logic there...
The question is trollish and misleading. Don't feed the troll.
There is a big difference between "I want you dead" and "I'm going to do something to cause that death". The first is perfectly LEGAL. The second is a threat of violence. You are right in the libel/slander area, but it remains that it is perfectly legal and acceptable to go to a perfect stranger and tell them that you think they stink (although it might not be the wisest course of action, and you might be an @$$hole for doing it...). That libel/slander set of laws also needs to be tempered by what a "reasonable person" would believe is a factual statement. Nobody is going to arrest me and take me to jail for saying "everyone who chooses not read slashdot is uninformed and intolerable", because it is not reasonable or likely to be believed by a reasonable person.
One of the most important rights we have is the right to say things that are patently offensive to others. That right needs to be defended. Including saying "Jimmy is a big fat doo doo head".
We have the right to say whatever we like about whoever we like. PERIOD. Schools and governments would do well to re-read the basic framework of our nation.
Slashdot Mirror
After shooting a neighbor with whom you had repeated documented disagreements, don't you think you should stand trial and be judged?
I dont know why Linus speaking his mind on an issue, which is not technical in nature, is indicative of the linux community as a whole, or how OP made the leap in logic there... The question is trollish and misleading. Don't feed the troll.
There is a big difference between "I want you dead" and "I'm going to do something to cause that death". The first is perfectly LEGAL. The second is a threat of violence. You are right in the libel/slander area, but it remains that it is perfectly legal and acceptable to go to a perfect stranger and tell them that you think they stink (although it might not be the wisest course of action, and you might be an @$$hole for doing it...). That libel/slander set of laws also needs to be tempered by what a "reasonable person" would believe is a factual statement. Nobody is going to arrest me and take me to jail for saying "everyone who chooses not read slashdot is uninformed and intolerable", because it is not reasonable or likely to be believed by a reasonable person. One of the most important rights we have is the right to say things that are patently offensive to others. That right needs to be defended. Including saying "Jimmy is a big fat doo doo head".
We have the right to say whatever we like about whoever we like. PERIOD. Schools and governments would do well to re-read the basic framework of our nation.