Free Software Foundation's Richard Stallman recently brought Microsoft's newly instituted CodePlex Foundation to task in his blog. The CodePlex Foundation's Miguel de Icaza, also mentioned in the blog, has since mounted a defense.

Richard M. Stallman talk: «Christchurch, New Zealand - A1 Lecture Theatre (Arts block), University of Canterbury, Ilam. To make a digital society worthy of being included in, we must overcome six menaces to freedom: surveillance, censorship, restricted data formats, proprietary software, software as a service, and the War on Sharing.»

"...The first thing we see is that the organization ducks the issue of users' freedom; it uses the term "open source" and does not speak of "free software". These two terms stand for different philosophies which are based on different values: free software's values are freedom and social solidarity, whereas open source cites only practical convenience values such as powerful, reliable software..."

"Richard Stallman is making a return visit to New Zealand in 2009, following his successful 2008 tour to promote free software and the FSF. This page lists his itinerary as of 29 September 2009, and will be updated as events are confirmed..."

"...GNU Bucks are issued in one denomination—pi—and signed by Free Software Foundation president and "Chief GNUisance" Richard Stallman. We will also be maintaining a list of people who have received GNU Bucks. This is all just our way of saying thanks to people who have helped contribute to the goals of the free software movement..."

Response to the usual anti-Richard Stallman crowd and their latest incitement against Free software (and to a lesser degree Ubuntu)

"...Mac OS is proprietary software, so the users don't have control over it -- rather, the developer has sole control over the program, and employs it as an instrument of control over the users. So I don't withdraw my condemnation of Mac OS. But I do withdraw the claim that it has a known backdoor."

It appears to be open season for launching attacks on the head of the Free Software Foundation, Richard Matthew Stallman, the man who is in large measure responsible for the status that free and open source software enjoys today.