Losses [LWN.net]

Losses

Posted May 1, 2008 2:37 UTC (Thu) by ncm (subscriber, #165)
In reply to: On the conviction of Hans Reiser by graydon
Parent article: On the conviction of Hans Reiser

Yes, Jon, please change it to read "a greater loss".

By my lights, though, the effect on the perception of Linux among the public completely
overwhelms any effect on development of individual file systems or on the architecture of the
virtual file system layer.  We'll never know if she's dead, or, if she is, whether he killed
her, but that's more nuance than the public can absorb; about all they can manage is "Linux ::
murder!". The lesson to the rest of us is, "if you're known for contributing to Free Software,
don't get yourself accused of, or framed for, murder."  (That's good advice for everybody
else, too.)  I might add, "study how not to be universally reviled; it will improve your life
elsewhere than in front of juries."

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Losses

Posted May 1, 2008 7:25 UTC (Thu) by csawtell (subscriber, #986) [Link]

All of which is very good advice. In addition, this tragic case has been a learning exercise for us all.

In the past I have learnt that if you find yourself in a room with an argumentative person, particularly somebody who has the potential to do you harm, do not engage in the argument. Just leave the room. Nina would probably still be with us if she had done that.

If you find yourself in a situation where you could be accused of a crime and arrested:-

Talk very politely to the police about the weather, and not much else.
Do not change any of your routines at all. If you, understandably, just have to go somewhere else then tell the police how to contact you.
Don't talk about your situation to anybody, even your family and friends, but if you must, do not use any means of communication which can be intercepted. In effect that means talking only in the open air.
Do not engage a legal defence team until you are actually arrested.

If you are arrested:-

Don't talk at all except to your appointed legal defence team. In most civilized jurisdictions, this is your absolute right.

Finally, if you are an intelligent, yet volatile, individual who lives away from of the mainstream of your society, I'd suggest you measure its level of civilization by looking at the proportion of its citizens who are incarcerated in prison and how they are treated. If you discover your country of abode to be lacking, I'd suggest that you start learning a European language without delay, Danish, Swedish, or Swiss-German would all be excellent choices.

Note: I Am Not A Lawyer, but this is, in essence, what I have been told by a friend who is one, and what I have learnt from the Reiser tragedy.

Finally take note of the fact that Gerry and Kate McCann are sleeping at home in their own bed, whereas Hans Reiser is not.