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Re:Richard Stallman resigns from CSAIL at MIT by codesushi42 on Monday September 16, 2019 @09:46PM (#20990408)
I see no real difference. He said that. And there are even worse comments that he made in that thread.
Re:Richard Stallman resigns from CSAIL at MIT by throwaway17746 on Monday September 16, 2019 @09:57PM (#20990476)
There's a big difference. "Presented as" does not mean "was", and the sentence immediately after that makes it clear that he didn't mean it as such.

There are other pretty bad comments, yes. If most of the coverage focused on those rather than something he didn't actually say, I wouldn't have as much of a problem with it.

Re:Richard Stallman resigns from CSAIL at MIT by veemacs on Monday September 16, 2019 @10:15PM (#20990584)
Here here, RMS is a weirdo but he's being vilified for things that do not effect his job in any way, he is by no means a representative for MIT, and his opinions on unrelated matters (no matter how misguided they might be) do not change his ability to represent the FSF.
Re:Richard Stallman resigns from CSAIL at MIT by throwaway17746 on Monday September 16, 2019 @10:22PM (#20990625)
>and his opinions on unrelated matters (no matter how misguided they might be) do not change his ability to represent the FSF

Now that I can't say I totally agree with. The free software movement is a political movement, and as such his statements and opinions on social issues of all kinds have a deep impact on whether or not he can be a good representative of the FSF.

But we should at least be truthful about his statements and opinions!

Re:Richard Stallman resigns from CSAIL at MIT by frio on Monday September 16, 2019 @10:54PM (#20990862)
Thanks. I know we're supposed to just upvote when someone hits the nail on the head, but this comment summarises my internal conflict on this perfectly.
Re:Richard Stallman resigns from CSAIL at MIT by williamDafoe on Monday September 16, 2019 @11:39PM (#20991173)
He is a beneficiary of having a free office at MIT like a faculty member on sabbatical there, at the recommendation of his friend, Gerald Sussman.
Re:Richard Stallman resigns from CSAIL at MIT by codesushi42 on Monday September 16, 2019 @10:20PM (#20990608)
"Presented as" does not mean "was"

It can mean that.

sentence immediately after that makes it clear that he didn't mean it as such.

No, it is debatable. The following sentence does not clearly state they were unwilling.

Another Stallman gem:

I am skeptical of the claim that voluntarily pedophilia harms children. The arguments that it causes harm seem to be based on cases which aren't voluntary, which are then stretched by parents who are horrified by the idea that their little baby is maturing.

Re:Richard Stallman resigns from CSAIL at MIT by qqn on Monday September 16, 2019 @11:08PM (#20990967)
For the record, he retracted that statement:

"Many years ago I posted that I could not see anything wrong about sex between an adult and a child, if the child accepted it. Through personal conversations in recent years, I've learned to understand how sex with a child can harm per psychologically. This changed my mind about the matter: I think adults should not do that. I am grateful for the conversations that enabled me to understand why."

https://www.stallman.org/archives/2019-jul-oct.html#14_Septe...

Edit: just noticed that's from two days ago, so in reaction to this fiasco.

Re:Richard Stallman resigns from CSAIL at MIT by michaelmrose on Monday September 16, 2019 @10:21PM (#20990622)
Supposing that Epstein would have told her to act willing and supposing that she was willing are two entirely different things.

The first is what was actually said the latter is a lie being repeated.

Re:Richard Stallman resigns from CSAIL at MIT by codesushi42 on Tuesday September 17, 2019 @03:35AM (#20992597)
It is true, I am tired of Stallman defenders repeating the same lie.

"The most plausible scenario is that she presented herself to him as entirely willing," Stallman wrote in his post last Wednesday. "Assuming she was being coerced by Epstein, he would have had every reason to tell her to conceal that from most of his associates. I’ve concluded from various examples of accusation inflation that it is absolutely wrong to use the term 'sexual assault' in an accusation."

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2019/09/17/richard_stallman_in...