Freedom of Speech vs. The Right to Remain Silent

Posted by NoDough on Apr 27, 2007 10:25 PM EDT
LXer; By Lane Beneke (aka NoDough)
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At Tux500.com you have the opportunity to make your voices, and your currency, heard loud and clear in support of your favorite Linux distribution. Surely the same sentiments we have seen at LXer will be reflected at Tux500, right?

Part of what makes a community great is freedom of speech. If an individual in a community thinks my opinion sucks, that individual has the right to say so, and several frequently do. In the LXer community, if an individual thinks my Linux distribution sucks, that individual has the right to say so, and several frequently do.



As individuals, we also have the right to remain silent. One might think your Linux distribution sucks, but can diplomatically choose to keep that opinion private. Of course, in choosing to do so, one surrenders an opportunity to share the points that they believe make their distribution superior.



In the LXer community, these discussions abound. Rarely a day goes by without someone chiding one Linux distribution or another. Rarely a day goes by without someone extolling the virtues of their chosen distribution. Silence may be a virtue, but it won’t win your favorite distribution any points.



In the your-distro-sucks category, names ending in ‘buntu seem to come up quite frequently. Mind you, most don’t believe the ‘buntus suck, but are simply tired of hearing the name(s). That’s fine; freedom of speech is a wonderful thing.



In the my-distro-rocks category, Debian seems to dominate. Once again, three cheers for freedom of speech!



At Tux500.com you have the opportunity to make your voices, and your currency, heard loud and clear in support of your favorite Linux distribution. Surely the same sentiments we have seen at LXer will be reflected at Tux500.com, right?



Wrong.



As I write this, Ubuntu and Kubuntu hold the top two positions. Debian is a distant third with the ‘buntus out-earning it by almost 400%.



Now, evangelizing your favorite distribution on an online forum is all well and good. But if you really want to make your voice count for something, you should head on over to Tux500.com and put your money where your mouth is.



On the other hand, you have the right to remain silent. Anything you don’t say and do will be held against you in the LXer forums. I’ll see to that. :)

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» Read more about: Story Type: Editorial; Groups: Debian, Linux, LXer, Ubuntu

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Debian the distant third Sander_Marechal 1 2,398 Apr 29, 2007 5:57 AM

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