A contributor is not allowed to use Fedora legally?

[Sam Tregar]

On Tue, 21 Sep 2004, Michael Jezierski - Systec Conveyors wrote:

> My point is - it's not illegal for OP to *use* the software. It's
> illegal for Red Hat to distribute it to nations which the USA has a
> trade embargo against.  

That sounds right.

> How can OP *use* the software if it's illegal under USA law for it
> to be distributed to him, since it is technically an work of USA
> origins? There's the billion Zloty question.

That's easy.  He isn't covered by US law, so of course US law has no
effect on the legality of his actions.  Just because something is of
US origin doesn't give its license the force of law in a foreign legal
system.  Only the laws of Iran can give it that force.  Since I'm not
an Iranian lawyer I can only guess that he can do whatever he wants
with Fedora.

Consider the possibility that I might possess something exported
illegally from Iran, for example Iranian pornography.  Now, just
because that material was illegal to create and export in Iran doesn't
mean it's illegal for me to possess it in the US.  That's because I'm
subject to US law not Iranian law.  It seems that the issue is roughly
the same with the poster and Fedora.

-sam