Re: Proposal for an Emacs User Survey

[Alfred M. Szmidt]

   > > And picking on 2-3 "ideologically impure" packages (out of several
   > > thousands!) that are distributed on MELPA is counter-productive.
   >
   > We could turn this argument around and ask why the developers who
   > maintain MELPA don't remove `2-3' packages that promote non-free
   > software.

   I sincerely hope it doesn't happen. 

We should all hope that it does, since such software is bad, one way
that is being done is with the non-GNU ELPA archive.

   Also, is the goal of the GNU project to deny users the right to run
   the software they want or need? Or is it to give them a choice of
   free options to replace non-free software?

The goal of the GNU project is to replace all non-free sofware, since
any non-free software is unjust.  That means, we do not want to
recommend users to install any kind of non-free software.

This isn't the same thing as prohibiting users what they can do on
their own accord, but rather that the project goal is to eliminate an
injustice being done to all computer users.  And with that means that
we do not want to do anything that would work against our goals.

   Having those packages removed would make it more difficult to use
   non-free software, but it would do nothing to improve the power of
   free software.

That may be so, but recommending users to use non-free software would
be worse -- it would be immoral and unethical.