Yup. That's what I said. The user can benefit from my work.
Seriously. Why was what I wrote bad?
I just put enough legal fig leaf on to make sure I don't get sued for anything, do the very best work I can, and put it out there, for all to use.
I literally wrote a post, encouraging people to open-source their software, and I led by example; not decree, which is usually the best way to proceed.
Is the MIT license a bad license? If so, why?
I have found that if I make it GPL, then a lot of folks won't use it. I want people to use my stuff. I think it's good stuff, and can benefit users, by being a high-quality component.
I think I do have one GPL project; an ffmpeg wrapper that uses the GPL H.264 codec. I could probably get away with not licensing it GPL, but why bother? It's not gonna save the world. I suspect no one will have much of a use for it, anyway.
A true free(libre) software license protects the _user's freedom._ Releasing under MIT License doesn't do this because of the problems raised in OP. If your MIT work is incorporated into another product and used (hypothetically) by a foreign government to spy on people, then you haven't protected users, you've protected _developers_ ability to benefit from your work for free.
Yeah...I'm not really interested in making any rhetorical points. I appreciate the passion, but I just like to write great code and put it out there.
I'm not a gunsmith. I write small iOS apps and libraries. I'd rather they didn't get used for nefarious purposes, but I am not interested in exerting any kind of control over what happens after I put them out.
I have done some rather more ambitious and socially-relevant stuff, and that is all MIT. We switched to that from GPL a year or two ago, as the GPL was interfering with the willingness of people to use it.
Since the software is actually a lifesaving infrastructure, every non-use could mean lives lost.
I'm not particularly interested in getting paid. My stuff will never be the "magic beans" that will turn some moribund idea into a unicorn. It's just "window dressing," or simple extensions that will help to improve the quality of the software.
It's mostly "brand reinforcement" and portfolio material. I want people to use it, and am willing to remove any obstacles.
I know that's unusual, but that's how I roll. It's a labor of love.
The infrastructure project that I wrote is designed for as many people as possible to use. We don't care whether or not someone wants to try using it to make money (good luck with that). It saves lives.
But, back to the original topic, if I had released software with a particular coercive license, and some corporation then went and used it against that license, I would probably be pissed. Not sure if I'd be pissed enough to hire an attack lawyer, though. I don't think I'm that dedicated.
