Open source as seen through the lens of the MIT gift license
has the power to break us free from this overly rational, cost-benefit analysis
bullshit that's impoverishing our lives in so many other ways.
It's a lens that isn't smudged by the tragedy of the commons,
where we "find meaning in our work"
and I mean that in the broadest sense, not just in what you're employed to do.
To go beyond "getting the job done" and to connect with other practitioners
as other humans, and not just as market participants.
A way to create bonds free of quid pro quo reciprocal expectations.
Free from demands. Free from debt.
Free from shame. Free from repayment.
Free from having to sell.
To reject measuring my worth in the same bullshit measures
of engagement that's driving the wider world off a cliff.
Free to pursue intrinsic motivation from a quest for autonomy, mastery
and purpose that isn't shackled solely by employment or business
Free to reach for self-transcendence that lies in giving away
the best of what you got
and asking nothing in return.
[Trade-free means we ask nothing in return]