Open Source is Charity; It should not be poison

Open Source may look like charity to the uninformed but often it is not. Instead of being gifted, it is typically licensed.

The end result is that it should be treated like potential poison when evaluating whether or not to take it and make use of it.

A range of negative effects are possible but these usually boil down to the simple fact that users are assuming full responsibility for something they don't own, can't control and often do not fully comprehend. Included in this are popular viral licensing requirements which can invade work beyond the scope of the original entity being used.