Today, news broke about Richard Stallman’s comment on Steve Job’s death. The news of the giant’s passing has stirred up a wave of emotions ranging from utter sadness to feelings of empowerment to do great things. Tributes were paid to Steve Jobs all over the internet. His life is described as one of a genius. Technology celebrities have publicly commented on his death.

Richard Stallman said the following:

I’m not glad he’s dead, but I’m glad he’s gone.

While this could have been said better, I’m absolutely shocked by the harsh comments the community has made towards Dr Stallman. I’m not trying to defend him. He is a caricature like no other. The man possesses no social skills. But he is a respected computer engineer that has changed the way software works today. He has a number of doctorates. Like Steve Jobs, Dr Stallman is a programming genius. His work on the GCC compiler is substantial.

Articles like the on ReadWriteWeb are very disappointing. Let’s all be civil and respectful of each other.