California (open source) law...

[fu11m00n]

Today... I had to put a disclaimer on my Sourceforge page project.

Disclaimer... this project is prohibted in all jurisdictions that seek to regulate open source
operating systems instead of browsers... sites or hardware platforms (eg... phones/pc's).

American states like California... Texas... Colorado... New York and others
(eg... countries like Brazil) are trying to regulate open source projects.

I got the idea of indemnification from Midnight BSD which addressed the draconian regulation issue with a disclaimer.

IMHO... only browsers... sites and/or hardware platforms should be regulated and/or sanctioned.

[vinnie]

I totally agree and probably this is the best way to deal with this things

[fu11m00n]

@ vinnie... thanks.

IMHO... I truly believe Midnight BSD got it spot on.
Putting responsibility exactly where is belongs... the "user".

I do not personally believe the job of a project maintainer is policing the end users decisions.
Open source is not a product therefore there is no warranty or obligations (only ethos).

On my project page it's what it says right on the tin... "you break it you bought it".
Or as Spiderman's uncle would say... "with great power comes great responsibility".

As a maintainer I take the StarTrek mindset of... "the many are prioritzed over the few".
Also I subscribe to this principle... "do not let the perfect be the enemy of the good".

Literally... anything in life can be a asset or liability in one way or another (that's known as "use case").

These draconian laws (which Meta weaponized when they hired lobbyists for their shareholders)
throw the baby out with the bath water in a way that would make King Solomon proud.

I just don't see the point in putting parental training wheels or Meta's (NSA) backdoors on open source.
That's why I'm a big fan of Libreboot/Coreboot (which does away with the OEM chipmakers ME/PSP... Minix backdoor).

In closing... if I make baseball bats I do not want to be held liable for a disgruntled batter using one on the umpire.

[vinnie]

Unfortunately, midnightbsd has already backtrack and implemented this thing.
However, more and more distros are opposing this, so we’ll clearly have a list of software that doesn’t want to spy on you (including slackware! the last good major distro).

And I agree that developers should shift the responsibility to end users.
It's funny that when they created the cookie law, they asked every website in the world to comply, but didn't require those three or four browsers to create a standardized system for managing cookie consent.
Now, however, as luck would have it, they're targeting developers, maybe because they're afraid of causing a huge uproar reaching out to many people.

[fu11m00n]

I created a new license (I use it for my scripts) to address the conflict..

Code: Select all

# "Emeritus" Attribution: Anonymous
#
# Emeritus License
# Version 2.62
# 
# 1. Grant of License
# Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person
# obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files
# (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction,
# including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge,
# publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the
# Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is
# furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
#
# 2. Mandatory Anonymous Modification
# Any person or entity who modifies the Software ("the Modifier")
# is strictly required to do so anonymously. No identifying
# information, including but not limited to names, handles, digital
# signatures, or contact information, shall be attached to the
# modified code or the commit history. The Modifier may
# choose to keep their modifications closed-source or distribute them
# publicly; however, in both instances, the requirement for complete
# anonymity of the author of said modifications remains mandatory.
#
# 3. Attribution and Enterprise Consolidation
# (i) Open-Source: Non-Enterprise modifiers are permitted to
# distribute derivatives under any name, provided the 
# Original Author remains the exclusive attribution.
# (ii) Enterprise: Enterprise Entities are strictly prohibited
# from using, deploying, or distributing the Software under 
# any name other than the Original Name. All Enterprise 
# attribution remains the Original Author exclusively.
#
# 4. License Inclusion
# This License must be included in its entirety in all copies or 
# substantial portions of the Software
#
# 5. Jurisdictional Liability
# The User assumes all responsibility and liability for compliance 
# with local laws. Any legal consequences arising from the use of 
# the Software are the sole responsibility of the User.
#
# 6. Indemnification
# The user of the Software agrees to indemnify, defend,
# and hold harmless the original authors and any contributors
# from and against any and all claims, liabilities, damages,
# losses, or expenses (including reasonable attorney's fees) arising out
# of or in any way connected with the use, modification,
# or distribution of the Software.
#
# 7. Disclaimer of Warranty
# THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF
# ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED
# TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
# PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS
# OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES
# OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT,
# TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN
# CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER
# DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.
#
# Note: This license is designed to ensure the Software
# remains a "living" entity that evolves through the contributions
# of the anonymous many, while compensating the original creator(s)
# and maintaining a singular, unchangeable identity for Enterprise.
#
# ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

# 5. Jurisdictional Liability
# The User assumes all responsibility and liability for compliance
# with local laws. Any legal consequences arising from the use of
# the Software are the sole responsibility of the User.

The solution is provision 5. This puts the onus back on the user.
Every store has this unwritten rule... "You broke it... you bought it".
It should be the same with open source.

[fu11m00n]

Things have gotten worse.

A new Bill (H.R. 8250) has been introduced in the US Congress which sseks to regulate open source projects.