Richard Stallman's Personal Site


The photo comes from wikimedia.org
"Richard_Stallman_at_LibrePlanet_2019"
by Ruben Rodriguez

I continue to be the Chief GNUisance of the GNU Project.
This is my long-term commitment and I plan to continue.
You may have heard or read critical statements about me; please make up your own mind.

I'm looking for speaking invitations for a trip in January and February that will include some part of Europe, then India, then some other part of Europe.

The first visit to Europe will be roughly Jan 16 to 22. The visit to India will start Jan 22 and can continue into February. The second visit to Europe will be after that. Those dates are flexible.

One advantage of this period for you is that the intercontinental flights are already covered, so you won't need to pay for that.

If you are interested in inviting me, and you have a venue to use and a public to invite, please email me soon with "speaking invitation" in the Subject field, using the name rms and the host gnu dot org.

Political Articles | Political Notes | Talks | Airlines | Anti-Glossary | Archive | Ban face recognition | Books | Comics | Empire of the Megacorporations | Fiction | Glossary | GPG Key | Humor | Humorous Bio | Links | Media/Press/Bio | Non-Political Articles | The Four Factors of the Apocalypse | There Ought to Be a Law | Travel Experiences | Travel Photos | How I Do My Computing | RMS personal FAQ | Sayings | Scientific Links | Stallman on Love | Thanks |

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RSS site feed for the most recent political notes and new material.

This is the personal web site of Richard Stallman.
The views expressed here are my personal views, not those of the Free Software Foundation or the GNU Project.
For the sake of separation, this site has always been hosted elsewhere and managed separately.

If you want to send me GPG-encrypted mail, do not trust key servers! Some of them have phony keys under my name and email address, made by someone else as a trick. See gpg.html for my real key.

Richard Stallman has cancer. Fortunately it is slow-growing and manageable follicular lymphoma. Treatment put it into remission, and he can expect to live many more years. However, he now has to be even more careful not to catch Covid-19.

FSF Giving Guide

Canadians: I suggest you seek election advice at a local chapter of a group that pushes to curb global heating and has the courage to say, "Canada should stop exporting fossil fuel." It will at least use the right goals to suggest who to vote for in your area.

Join a Friday climate strike.
That page is made by scraping Fridays for Future so you can get the information without running any Javascript code. I would be very glad if they made the information on their own site accessible from the Free World; then we could simply refer people to their site and do without the scraping etc.

I am limiting the number of new political notes per day so as not to overload the volunteers who install new notes. If you'd like to help, please write to rms at gnu period org.

Is your bank pressuring you to use biometric ID? If so, please write to rms at gnu dot org. It could be useful if you document what is happening.

Please join the Free Software Foundation to support its work for your freedom.

"They" is plural — for singular antecedents, use singular gender-neutral pronouns.

Link Policy

The largest part of the site is the political notes, and they are typically updated every day.

I'm looking for people to If you would like to help me in any of these ways, please write to rms at gnu dot o r g.

Civil Liberties Minute

[America Means Civil Liberties / Patriotism Means Protecting 
             Them / www.aclu.org/safefree ]
graphic by Susan Henson
Americans, you may wish to copy this icon to your own page, as a way of showing what patriotism means to you.

Upcoming talks

Urgent action items

Recording of Guantanamero

Listen to the recording of Guantanamero, a protest song written in Spanish. The recording is in Ogg Vorbis format. To install an Ogg Vorbis player, see the FSF's Ogg Players page.

There Ought to Be a Law

More items where there ought to be a law.

Quotes

Here are some quotations that I particularly like.

Most recent Political Notes and News Items

(RSS Feed)

You can now read the political notes on Mastodon.

Urgent: Reinstate Gwynne Wilcox in NLRB
6 February 2025

US citizens: phone your congresscritter and call on per to sign a letter calling on the saboteur-in-chief to reinstate Gwynne Wilcox in the NLRB.

If you phone, please spread the word! Main Switchboard: +1-202-224-3121

Central Intelligence Agency staff "buyouts"
6 February 2025

*The Central Intelligence Agency offered [its staff "buyouts"], citing aim to bring agency in line with [new regime's] priorities, US media report.*

Making the whole staff hostile seems like a really foolish thing for an intelligence agency to do. Driving many agents to leave seems dumb too, since some will be angry enough to sell secrets to foreign countries.

Especially now that their country won't be the United States of constitutional rights that they used to be loyal to. Disobeying your country's rulers is not betrayal if they have betrayed your country already.

Corrupter wants to take over Gaza
6 February 2025

The corrupter said the US should take over Gaza and move all the inhabitants permanently to other countries. Implicitly, this would mean transferring them by force, although he claimed (implausibly) that they would be glad to move.

His proposal continues that the US would take over Gaza and rebuild it. It doesn't say who would own it after that. It would not surprise me if he arranged for this to be his property and exempted himself from paying taxes on it.

It has been suggested that this proposal is meant to distract attention from his attack on the US system of government.

Leaving names off prescriptions for abortion pills
6 February 2025

*Democratic [New York] governor Kathy Hochul signs law permitting doctors to leave names off prescriptions for abortion pills.*

This is good, but if the organization that employs per is not limited to New York State, fanatics might be able to subpoena that name from that organization outside New York State. It would be enough to determine who that patient had an appointment with on the date the prescription was issued.

(satire) Self $10 Billion Federal Buyout
6 February 2025

(satire) *Elon Musk Offers Self $10 Billion Federal Buyout.*

Meta making abortion information harder to find
6 February 2025

*Meta accused of "bowing" to [the corrupter] by making abortion [information] harder to find.*

Please join me in refusing to use the word "content" to mean "publications, treated as a commodity".

Claims the wrecker has sent prisoners to Guantanamo
6 February 2025

The wrecker's press secretary claims that he has already sent prisoners to Guantanamo, unauthorized immigrants who were in the US.

The wrecker, or someone working for him, has a cunning awareness of the US's sores, and picks at them to exacerbate the soreness. This spreads the feeling that the US will be so massively cruel and evil that it threatens to demoralize Americans who want their country to be good rather than cruel.

The oldest bullying technique
6 February 2025

*The oldest bullying technique is to threaten little guys who don’t have nearly the power you have — say, Canada, Mexico, Columbia, and Greenland (Greenland!) — and then, when they appear to cave, announce that your bullying has worked. And then move on to larger targets.*

This is what the bully is doing now. But he has an additional advantage that so many treat anything he says as truth. He didn't get a surrender from Mexico or Canada, but when he boasts about one, his magats are thrilled that the USA is (in their minds) a powerful overlord.

But it is not guaranteed to stay that way. He could start doing to other countries the real damage he has done in USAID, the OPM, the US treasury, NOAA, and the CDC.

Another bullying tactic he uses is acting unpredictably and showing he can do drastic things (that less vicious leaders would be wise enough to avoid) and get away with them. The message is, "I am so powerful no one can restrain me — so be afraid and bow down."

Putin tried the same thing in his "I'm a madman with a nuke, so give me whatever I demand" act. Putin's disinformationists and supporters told us we should be terrified and meek. Biden and other western leaders realized it was an act, so they ignored it and dealt with Putin as someone evil and vicious but nonetheless sane.

Persecutor "paused" CFPB's regulatory work
6 February 2025

The persecutor "paused" the CFPB's regulatory work, including the regulation not to include medical debt in people's credit reports.

This was a weak response to the problem that medical costs were ruining Americans, but it had the advantage that the executive branch could do it without support from Congress. The stronger measures were blocked by Republicans.

FBI agents sue DoJ
6 February 2025

*FBI agents sue the … DoJ over effort to target January 6 investigation workers.*

Amerindians born before 1970
6 February 2025

Amerindians born before 1970 did not get birth certificates.

With the law to limit voter registration that Republicans are proposing now, in practice those Amerindians would be disenfranchised.

Arizona is making it easier for them to get birth certificates belatedly. But I would not be surprised if red states did the opposite, as a form of voter suppression.

Call for total blockade of Trump nominees
6 February 2025

*Grassroots & Progressive Democrats Call for Total Blockade of Trump Nominees.*

The problem of how ti rouse "mainstream" plutocratist Democrats to fight for a New Deal has been with us for decades.

Talk in Torino, Italy on February 12th
6 February 2025

  • Torino, Italy

    Richard Stallman will give a talk in Torino, Italy, February 12th at 17:00.

    The talk will be at the Sala Ciminiera of the Department of Computer Engineering.

  • Prohibiting many medical procedures to include abortion
    5 February 2025

    Magats in Wyoming propose to prohibit many kinds of medical procedures in order to prohibit abortion as well.

    It seems their prohibition on causing harm *to the heart, lungs, brain and other organs* is meant to refer to the organs of a fetus, but would also cover those that harm to the patient's own organs, and that is an unavoidable cost of many important treatments. For instance cancer treatments often damage some organs, but patients accept that because it is preferable to dying.

    Department of Transportation impose no mask or vaccine requirements
    5 February 2025

    The Department of Transportation has imposed the irrelevant requirement on cities and states not to make mask or vaccine requirements. Also the irrelevant preference for places that have higher marriage and birth rates.

    The magats who have seized the US government are looking for every way to impose their religion and their superstition on all Americans.

    Why the wrecker's tariffs are bad
    5 February 2025

    *Why the wrecker's tariffs will be "very bad for America and for the world".*

    I think the bully intends these tariffs as a threats and expects other countries to pay a big ransom — going beyond money — to avoid them.

    If they do, the world economic harm of the tariffs themselves will not occur, or not for long. But that would introduce a global empire of the billionaires, who will steadily impoverish everyone else and eventually wipe out most of humanity through global heating.

    Wrecker got rid of many USAID staff
    5 February 2025

    The wrecker has got rid of many of the staff of USAID and sent the muskrat's dogs to destroy it.

    Temporary permission for Venezuelans to be in US
    5 February 2025

    The persecutor has canceled the temporary permission of 300,000 Venezuelans to stay in the US, and has threatened 300,000 more.

    They fled Venezuela due to economic collapse caused by US sanctions against Maduro's government, rejecting it as the US encouraged them to do.

    Maduro is a tyrant, and action against his rule can be justified in principle. And the US claimed to be acting for the sake of Venezuelans who were suffering from it. It was proper for the US to act on concern for Venezuelans that suffered as a result, especially if they wanted to cease their allegiance to Maduro.

    However, with the persecutor it is "all hatred, all the time".

    Just remember, if you support him and you are not a billionaire, your turn to be his victim will come.

    Marco Rubio has gone to Panama
    5 February 2025

    Marco Rubio has gone to Panama, perhaps to play the role of "good cop" in contrast to the bully as "bad cop".

    It would be dangerous for a repressive, expansionist great power, led by a megalomaniac liar, to take control of the Panama Canal or systems it depends on.

    Georgian police arrested opposition leaders
    5 February 2025

    *Georgian police have arrested two opposition leaders during a street protest against the ruling party, which has been accused of democratic backsliding and of moving Tbilisi closer to Russia.*


    The four factors of the apocalypse:
       global heating, global hating,
       global eating, global mating.


    [More Cartoons]


    Not f'd. You won't find us on Facebook

    Copy this button (courtesy of R.Siddharth) to express your rejection of Facebook.


    E-books

    Non-oppressive Commercial E-books


    Don't use Facebook

    Facebook's face recognition demonstrates a threat to everyone's privacy. I therefore ask people not to put photos of me on Facebook; you can do likewise.

    Of course, Facebook is bad for many other reasons as well.


    Boycott Harry Potter Books, Movies, etc.



    Internet Music EULAS



    Business Supremacy Treaties



    Countries to Stay Away From



    No national identity cards

    I'd like to make a list of countries that do not require a national identity card, and have no plans to adopt one. If you live in or have confirmed knowledge of such a country, please send email to rms at gnu.org.

    Here's my list of countries with no national ID cards and no plans for one: Australia, Canada, New Zealand, UK. Australia's previous government tried to institute national ID cards, but the Labor government dropped the plan.

    India has mostly finished imposing a national biometric ID number in a grand act of oppression.

    Switzerland has national ID cards which are optional, but they or some other government ID card are needed for some purposes.

    Iceland doesn't have ID cards as such, but they have ID numbers that citizens are forced to use frequently. For example, the national ID number is often required to rent a video or use a gym.

    Denmark issues non-photo ID cards with a "person number", and many services use this card to identify people.

    Norway will impose a national biometric ID card.

    Ireland - national ID card by stealth.

    ACLU: the five dangers of national ID cards.

    Wikipedia has a list of identity card policies by country.


    Borders

    Stay away from certain countries because of their bad immigration policies.


    Flight connections

    Avoid flight connections in these airports because of their treatment of passengers.


    The Lifelong Activist

    People often ask how I manage to continue devoting myself to progressive activism (such as the free software movement) for years without burning out. The best way I can answer is by recommending a book, The Lifelong Activist by Hillary Rettig.

    I disagree with the book on one theoretical point in the last part of the book: we shouldn't think of political activism as being marketing and sales, because those terms refer to business, and politics is something much more important than mere business. However, this doesn't diminish the value of the book's practical advice about borrowing techniques from marketing and sales.

    Disclosure: I am friends with the author.


    Bob Chassell

    Writing (mostly science fiction) by my friend Bob Chassell who recently died.


    Solidarity Economy and Free Software

    Personal Declaration of Richard Stallman and Euclides Mance on Solidarity Economy and Free Software.


    Falkvinge articles

    I have reposted some of Rick Falkvinge's articles. As posted on his site, you can't see them in a browser without running some nonfree Javascript code which is apparently non-free. These versions show the same text, without the obstacle.


    Long-term action items


    Political Articles

    These are my political articles that are not related to the GNU operating system or free software. For GNU-related articles, see the GNU philosophy directory. You can also download copies of my book, Free Software, Free Society, 3rd edition.

    Political notes

    "Those who profess to favor freedom, yet depreciate agitation, are men who want crops without plowing up the ground. They want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters. This struggle may be a moral one; or it may be a physical one; or it may be both moral and physical; but it must be a struggle. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will."

    Here are notes about various issues I care about, usually with links to more information. The current notes are here. For all previous notes, see this page.

    See this page for information on efforts to maintain links in the political notes.

    Political notes about the 2001 G8 summit in Genoa, Italy are being archived on their own page.

    Media/Press/Bios

    Richard Stallman's bio and publicity photos, and other things of interest to the press, have been moved to a separate page.

    Travel experiences

    Photos about my travels

    Scientific Links


    Some humor

    The berry torture.

    The Free Software Song, by Richard M. Stallman. You can listen to a performance of the song: Free Software Song performed by Thor Here is a variant of this song called "The Free Firmware Song".

    Earth under attack from planet Koch.

    On doxing, and how to spell it.

    Futon Physics

    A Spanish cartoon: La Ruleta Española. thumbnail

    The Night before M-x-mas

    Here I am wearing my "power tie".

    Wine snobs get their comeuppance.

    Here I am struggling to open a bottle of water.

    My application to an join Marian Henley's ex-boyfriends list.

    My funny poetry and song parodies.

    My Cartoons

    My Puns in English (Little Leaguer, August 2019).

    My Puns in Spanish (New pun: Apostasía April 2019)

    My Puns in French (New pun: Microsoft à l'école July 2019)

    My Puns in Portuguese

    My Puns in Italian (New pun: Quale pesce fa starnutire? New 10/2018)

    My Puns in German (New 02/2016)

    Linguistic Swifties (Now with: Wintu, Penutian, Cochiti, Taos, and Towa.)

    I am a
     Saint In the Church Of Emacs --Saint IGNUcius-- The Church of Emacs will soon be officially listed by at least one person as his religion for census purposes.

    There are no godfathers in the Church of Emacs, since there are no gods, but you can be someone's editorfather.

    Stallman Does Dallas: "I have to warn you that Texans have been known to have an adverse reaction to my personality…"

    The Dalai Lama today announced the official release of Yellow Hat GNU/Linux.

    Pre-Zen Studies.

    I found a funny song about the Mickey Mouse Copyright Act (officially the Sonny Bono Copyright Act) which extended copyright retroactively by 20 years on works made as early as the 1920s.

    If you are a geek and read Spanish, you will love Raulito el Friki, who said "Hello, world!" immediately after he was born. Here's an archive of this now-defunct comic strip.

    Sleeping with Stallman at MIT.

    Un malentendido gracioso.

    ESR's favorite programming language: Objectivist C.

    American Extremists

    My Small Mouth

    The huns and the writs.

    No Kludges in Cluj (June 2014)

    Hammer into Anvil

    Fiction

    Made for You (December 2012) (local copy) Esperanto translation

    A science fiction story: Jinnetic Engineering (in Portuguese, Farsi, Spanish, Armenian, Russian, French, and Italian).

    The Right to Read

    Books

    My book of essays about the philosophy of Software Freedom, is available from the GNU Press.

    Stallman on Love

    Love and Dance

    My Childhood Sweetheart

    Made for You

    My Former Personal Ad

    Non-Political Articles

    Am I Doctor Stallman?

    Avec des chapeaux French song parody.

    My radio program of Music from Georgia, originally broadcast on WUOG in Athens, Georgia on Oct 13, 2014.

    Resolving the trolley problem

    Quantum Theory and Abortion Rights

    A proposal for gender neutrality in Spanish, suitable for both speech and writing.

    Origin of the POSIX name.

    On Hacking: In June 2000, while visiting Korea, I did a fun hack that clearly illustrates the original and true meaning of the word "hacker".

    My Childhood Sweetheart

    Love and Dance

    Predicting the attack on Pearl Harbor

    Certificate of confusion

    Links

    Other's works

    A song parody, Colors of the Lisp, by Jefferson Carpenter.

    The text to a filk song, Johnny v. N., by Paul Rubin.

    Thanks

    I would like to thank:


    Please send comments on these web pages to rms at gnu period org.

    Copyright © 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 Richard Stallman
    Verbatim copying and redistribution of this entire page are permitted provided this notice is preserved.
    Verbatim copying and redistribution of any of the photos in the photos subdirectory is permitted under the Creative Commons Noderivs license version 3.0 or later. You can copy and redistribute the photo of me playing music to the butterfly under the Creative Commons Noderivs Nocommercial license version 3.0 or later. Any other photos of me in this (the toplevel) directory may be copied and redistributed under the Creative Commons Noderivs license version 3.0