An Interview With Linus Torvalds: Linux and Git (Tag1)
The Tab1 Consulting site has posted an interview with Linus Torvalds.

So I think the GPLv2 is pretty much the perfect balance of "everybody works under the same rules", and still requires that people give back to the community ("tit-for-tat"). And everybody knows that all the other people involved are bound by the same rules, so it's all very equitable and fair.

Of course, another part of that is that you also get out what you put in. Sure, you can try to "coast" on the project and be just a user, and that's ok. But if you do that, you also have no control over the project. That can be perfectly fine too, if you really just need a basic operating system, and Linux already does everything you want. But if you have special requirements, the only way to really affect the project is to participate.