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I had a DRM

Though the dream was more like a nightmare, which is not at all unusual when it has to do with DRM: some might dream of possessing unjust powers over others, like Digital Restrictions Management, but when the unjust power is over the dreamer, the dream is usually a nightmare.

(Apologies to MLK for twisting his famous opening phrase.)

A binary blob containing the kernel Linux as object code was contributed to linux-firmware.

The blob was accepted, and remained there for months. Several major GNU/Linux distros distributed it.

By distributing Linux without corresponding sources, they all triggered GNU GPLv2's automatic termination, so before they could legally modify or distribute Linux again, they'd have to beg all of the thousands of copyright holders of Linux to reinstate their licenses.

Businesses and developers with an interest in the survival of Linux organized to adopt GPLv3's termination provisions, that provide a softer path to reinstate one's license after a violation.

Meanwhile, those with an interest in killing Linux sought heirs of early Linux developers and offered them a small fortune for the copyrights of their contributions, so they could refuse to adopt the softer GPLv3 provisions, and block the distribution of anything containing those early contributions, and anything derived from them. The copyrights are assigned to a consortium named GPLv2C, short for Gonna Phuck Linux with GNU GPL version 2 Consortium.

After complaints from GPLv2C, European Internet filter bots started blocking GNU/Linux distros that had distributed the offending linux-firmware.

GPLv2C targeted DMCA take-down requests and billionaire lawsuits at ISPs connecting those distros and their mirrors in North America.

Intel and AMD published newer BIOS/microcode blobs that purportedly fix yet another Spectre variant, but as part of an agreement with GPLv2C that both companies were forced into, they included code to detect and block Linux in IntelME and AMD PSP, stopping it from being transferred over any network under the control of these technologies, from being copied to storage devices or RAM under their control, or even from running on processors under their control.

Software execution isn't a copyright matter, but it's not at all unusual for Digital Restrictions Management to overstep the boundaries of copyright.

Linus Torvalds stepped out of Linux development for good, in shame for not having listened to our calls to stay away from binary blobs, to oppose Digital Restrictions Management, and to upgrade the Linux license to GPLv3.

Hey, it was my dream! :-)

But nobody could see his apology, because by then all mailing lists and archives containing Linux patches were blocked, and nobody who'd care could even boot up their computers after the BIOS update was force-installed over the network, exploiting IntelME's and AMD PSP's remote control, and a bug in Libreboot.

Hey, it was my nightmare! :-)

So blong, Freddy...