The power we have as bystanders

Bystander.

It seems such a passive word for a passive role.

Let's consider how it is instead a position of power.

First, as a bystander, I can observe what is happening which nobody else sees, because nobody else is standing exactly where I am. Nobody else has my mix of genes and history and all of what makes me who I am and so I see uniquely.

As bystanders each of us has power we often do not grasp. It is of the moment. We can plan, and prepare so that we are ready to act, intervene if necessary; build up potential energy. While remaining polite, I can step in to help, intervene, participate, engage. I can ACT.

Pro-tip: run this program (courtesy of the Linuxchix:

1. be polite
2. be helpful
3. iterate

Boom! You have a team.

Supporting free software is one of the things I do. Right now is a great time to help support KDE.

KDE Powers You - You Can Power KDE, Too! 

https://www.kde.org/fundraisers/yearend2017/

Snowden -- see this film!

You've seen the news stories, and maybe the documentary. The film Snowden will still scare and inspire you. Oliver Stone has made a film that will draw you in, engage you, and even feel anxious about Snowden's safety. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is amazingly like the man you've seen on TV or Youtube.

Imdb says about Snowden: Its performance during its opening weekend was the lowest opening of Oliver Stone's career for a film playing in over 2,000 theaters. So go to a theater near you, and see it!

Then come home and join the Electronic Freedom Foundation (EFF). And thank goodness you still have the freedom to do these things.

I'm so happy that the time I've spent working with KDE and Kubuntu support freedom and privacy too. These issues grow more important as the attacks on both grow more frequent and bold.

Akademy! and fundraising

https://qtcon.org/

Akademy is approaching! And I can hardly wait. This spring has been personally difficult, and meeting with friends and colleagues is the perfect way to end the summer. This year will be special because it's in Berlin, and because it is part of Qt.con, with a lot of our freedom-loving friends, such as Qt, VideoLAN, Free Software Foundation Europe and KDAB. As usual, Kubuntu will also be having our annual meetup there.

Events are expensive! KDE needs money to support Akademy the event, support for those who need travel and lodging subsidy, support for other events such as our Randa Meetings, which just successfully ended. We're still raising money to support the sprints:

https://www.kde.org/fundraisers/randameetings2016/

Of course that money supports Akademy too, which is our largest annual meeting.

Ubuntu helps here too! The Ubuntu Community fund sends many of the Kubuntu team, and often funds a shared meal as well. Please support the Ubuntu Community Fund too if you can!

I'm going!

I can't seem to make the image a link, so go to https://qtcon.org/ for more information.