U.S. Court: Lexmark Can Tie Rebates To Refills

SteveOU writes "Lexmark won a favorable judgement in its attempt to prevent competitors from refilling its cartridges. The judgement, issued by Judge Saundra Brown Armstrong of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, was a big loss for 'the rest of us,' reading in part "Because of its patents, Lexmark has the right to impose conditions on the sale of its patented product. It may restrict a purchaser's ability to repair it, which is what in essence the single-use condition does." What now? Will GM prohibit unauthorized repairs of its patented car components?"

Comments

Re:Market can solve this, buy Canon

[JayBlalock]

It's not moral feebility, it's a lack of education. People have been trained that "morals" come from the outside, that what is Right is whatever message is most barraging their mind. Look at the people who have actually managed to buy the RIAA's propaganda that Fair Use rights are a myth - it does completely contrary to all theories of property rights, economics, consumer power, and just plain common sense. But people have gotten programmed to believe it.

What we need is a way of training people to THINK. To make decisions for themselves on occasion rather than just accepting whatever message is most prevalant. That's the real root for our moral instability, and it starts at *birth*. "Moral Laws" have nothing to do with it whatsoever.

Teach children in such a way that they rely on their own judgement, and are encouraged to draw conclusions on their own, even if they're contrary to what's being taught, and you'll fundamentally have a more stable, morally-centered populace.

Attempt to treat the children like robots, don't let them think for themselves, don't even TEACH them except so they can bubble in the right answers on standardized tests, and you have a whole new generation of people with no sense of self, who'll just drift on the waves of public opinion for the rest of their lives.

Re:Market can solve this, buy Canon

[JayBlalock]

Yes, and the mental techniques to which you refer are called "critical thinking skills". There are actually courses taught in this at most major educational institutions,

And that's the problem. By the time people hit college, they're already developed. If they went to a typical American school, 12 years of being encouraged to simply parrot whatever they're told and not think for themselves (except in specific well-defined areas of doubt and uncertainty ;-> ) aren't going to change their behavior upon reaching University.

This would require a change in teaching techniques from the bottom up.

And yes, some days, I agree with your conspiracy theory. From the point of view of the entrenched powers, an unthinking citizenry is FAR better than a thinking one, whether you're running for reelection or trying to sell the latest New And Improved Super-Widget.