At
the time, Stallman says, he wanted a way to "poke fun
at himself," to remind listeners that, though stubborn,
Stallman was not the fanatic some made him out to be.
It was only later, Stallman adds, that others seized
the persona as a convenient way to play up his
reputation as software ideologue, as Eric Raymond did
in an 1999 interview with the linux.com web site: When
I say RMS calibrates what he does, I'm not belittling
or accusing him of insincerity. I'm saying that like
all good communicators he's got a theatrical streak.
Sometimes it's conscious-have you ever seen him in his
St. Ignucius drag, blessing software with a disk
platter on his head? Mostly it's unconscious; he's just
learned the degree of irritating stimulus that works,
that holds attention without (usually) freaking people out.See "Guest
Interview: Eric S. Raymond," Linux.com (May
18, 1999). http://www.linux.com/interviews/19990518/8/
Stallman takes issue with the Raymond analysis. "It's
simply my way of making fun of myself," he says.
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