[Phil Thompson]
Actually, it's simpler than that. From the GPL FAQ:
"I'm writing a Windows application with Microsoft Visual C++ (or Visual Basic) and I will be releasing it under the GPL. Is dynamically linking my program with the Visual C++ (or Visual Basic) run-time library permitted under the GPL?
Yes, because that run-time library normally accompanies the compiler or interpreter you are using."
My (incorrect) understanding was that "operating system" was meant rather than "compiler or interpreter".
Heh. That's what I meant by Regardless of internal consistency, I expect they'll develop a rationale for saying "sure, fine". I quoted the relevant part of the GPL verbatim before, and it does indeed say specifically and only "operating system". This is why you have to ask the FSF directly about what they mean: since the meaning of the GPL has never been clarified via court rulings, in practice it means whatever the FSF says it means, and that can't always be predicted from what the GPL actually says.