Why “free software” is an idea that sends chills through my body.

Computers are terrible things, and I speak as someone who has enjoyed making use of them for thirty years now. The problem, essentially, is not the machines themselves. Nor is it really the software that is used to run them and instruct them in tasks. No. That would be too easy. The real problem is the people who create the softwares (and a lot of the hardware).