Eric Schultz1d ago

A small set of people are merging changes to various Linux components to make sure every application knows your birth date.

This is being done rapidly by people with questionable justifications and being merged with no youth and few marginalized people involved.

https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/accountsservice/accountsservice/-/merge_requests/176#0b07c0cc4d49be119f65cdb2037440f56eed647a

user: Add BirthDate with polkit-gated GetBirthDate and SetBirthDate methods (!176) · Merge requests · accountsservice / accountsservice · GitLab

Summary Add a BirthDate field to the user account interface. For non-homed users, the value is stored...

GitLab
Show threadArtemysia1d ago
@wwahammy why the fuck are people complying in advance? Where is the commitment to software freedom?
Show threadJustin Fitzsimmons1d ago

@artemis @wwahammy this isn't complying in advance, it's complying with the law. Which passed unanimously through the California assembly and senate and was signed into law by Gavin Newsom in 2025. It's not going to be repealed.

Open source projects do not have the type of budget that allows them to merely ignore the law and shrug off fines and legal fees.

Show threadArtemysia1d ago
@smn @wwahammy I don't understand how California gets to mandate this. People can download software from wherever they want. Host your project outside of California.
Show threadMaxi 12x 💉
@artemis @smn @wwahammy What if you are Californian? Could get you in legal trouble.
Mar 21 at 2:40amWeb
Show threadEric Schultz1d ago
@frumble @artemis @smn how? Why would the AG of California just decide to sue some random person?
Show threadDźwiedziu1d ago

@wwahammy
If that person would be a maintainer of a “popular” OSS¹ project then the AG could choose to make them an example.

So I could see from their viewpoint not wanting to get in trouble.

…because they don't want to leave the CA jurisdiction so they choose to comply.

1. “F” omitted, as systemd being enforced and feeling pompous enough to consider itself the operating system is definetly not “Freedom”.

@frumble @artemis @smn

Show threadEric Schultz20h ago
@dzwiedziu @frumble @artemis @smn why would the AG do that?
Show threadDźwiedziu19h ago

@wwahammy
Pure speculation on my part.

@frumble @artemis @smn

Show threadgrayrattus1d ago
@frumble @artemis @smn @wwahammy Ok. Now I'm actually concerned of USA. Are you people there OK? Like slowly your country moves to China like spy land. :(
Show threadEric Schultz1d ago
@grayrattus @frumble @artemis @smn no, we're fucking not. But it doesn't help that big companies are pushing these policies either.
Show threadgrayrattus1d ago

@wwahammy @frumble @artemis @smn
Why even implementing such feature? XD I'm really lost wtf.

> and helps support age verification requirements from recent legislation.

Why should we care about any legislation. It's open source for fucks sake. I should be able to can run it on my dildo if I wanted.

Even now I can drop this stupid commit and government could suck my dick. What if I run RToS on Arduino? Do I still need to add age flag XDD WTF.

Show threadEric Schultz1d ago
@grayrattus @frumble @artemis @smn make sure the dildo asks the users birthday first 🙂
Show threadMoth 13h ago
@grayrattus This is also my issue with this. I live across the ocean, I think the U.S.A is going insane. I don't think any legislation should tell people what the operating system they run "needs to have". Let alone when its not even legislation that the user is under 😭. I don't entirely understand whether or not they intend to make this obligatory information to set (or how that would even work) or not but its a bad precedent to set that the legislation of a country that is spiraling into authoritarianism should dictate the software that people use across THE ENTIRE GLOBE.
Show threadSharp Cheddar Goblin12h ago
@grayrattus @wwahammy We're really not ok here. Haven't been for a very long time. Honestly it's best to assume the average American is dangerous and a possible fascist collaborator until proven otherwise.
Show threadChris Goss1d ago
Lobby the fools that inflicted this on you
Show threadPatrick1d ago
@frumble @artemis @smn @wwahammy If you are Californian lobby hard to change a dangerous law.