Ah Python, you have spoiled me for all other languages

[Laura Creighton]

In a message of Mon, 25 May 2015 09:57:28 +0300, Marko Rauhamaa writes:
>Certificates can be revoked, kinda, yes. Or more to the point,
>roadblocks could be put in the way of certifying some applicants.
>However, if that started happening, the OS and browser makers would
>simply drop the obnoxious government from the prestigious club. It
>really wouldn't be in their interests to start acting up.
'
Unfortunately, you cannot count on governments giving two hoots about
what you and I perceive as their interests.  Josef Stalin would just
go off and kill OS and browser makers in his country until he got
things the way he wanted it.  A US government more subservient to big
business could declare, for reasons of patriotism, national security,
and the ever popular 'to stop child pornography' that we all have to
use Windows software and run Microsoft browsers.

These are really bad ideas, even from the point of view of the
governments involved -- it would not accomplish anything like it was
supposed to accomplish (unless spreading fear and terror is the real
goal, in which case it might work great for that).  But having really
bad ideas and being willing to act on them is one of the
characteristics of the sort of obnoxious government we would like to
drop from the club, so no joy there.

What people need to understand is that unless you want to stamp out
freedom altogether, there will be crime.  You cannot have one without
the other, because all crime is, is 'somebody doing something that
some other people have said they are not allowed to do'.  You can have
quite a bit of crime without destroying the basic decent kindness that
most people have for each other.  Everybody says 'tisk tisk' and goes
on helping each other and being decent to each other.  But systematic
oppression, especially state-advocated opression done by the state
cuts to the heart of things and kills such goodwill and spontaneous
kindness dead.

Laura