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by MarsIronPI 24 days ago
Not so. Stallman created copyleft licenses as a defense against the current implementation of copyright. Copyleft uses the existing system of copyright to protect authors of free software from people who want to use copyright to restrict distribution. It wouldn't be necessary if copyright didn't exist.
2 comments

Important nit-pick:

Copyleft was created to protect users of free software from authors/distributors who tried to use copyright to control the software running on the users' computers.

Stallman wanted to protect the right to fix bugs, he was not against paying for goods and services.
Sure, but an idea is not a (physical) good, nor is it a service. Coming up with an idea or writing a book is a service and should be paid for (probably by commission), but (and Stallman would agree) the idea or book itself should be free.
He was also famously staunchly against proprietary software in any way, so therefore he wouldn't have been spending money on software unless there was no other option that came close to meeting his needs.
He was not opposed to paying for the software. He was opposed to being limited in what he could do with it after it was paid for.