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Lessig on the World Social Forum
Raindance writes "Lawrence Lessig has a great article up on Technology Review about the World Social Forum held this past January in Brazil. In addition to telling an engaging story, it covers topics ranging from GNU and DRM to Brazil's interesting stance on the rights of foreign copyright holders, and is a good introduction to the permission culture/remix culture debate. It also makes me want to live in Brazil."
I'm tempted to mod you down for this, but I'll reply instead. The article you linked to shows that Brazil disregards patents on AIDS.
Good on them! There is no way that drug companies factor profits from Brazil into their feasibility studies for the simple reason that Brazil cannot afford AIDS drugs. Since drug companies are making AIDS drugs, we know they are making a profit without support from Brazil. I'm glad that Brazil has enough guts to stand up to the US, Germany and France over drug patents.
As for respecting the GPL in kiddie porn, would it really make it that much better if they did respect the GPL? All they would have to do is provide the source code along with their kiddie porn program. The GPL permits anybody to do anything with the software, including run spam sites, distribute kiddie porn or program the guantanamo bay gas chambers.
If Brazil was taking my GPLed software, turning it into a commercial product, and then selling it around the world then yes I would be pissed at them ignoring the GPL. But guess what? Even in that hypothetical scenario I don't have to worry about Brazil not respecting copyright because I can just go to a local court to have their actions banned and a fine imposed.
Or, for the shorter story, your analogy is useless.
"It also makes me want to live in Brazil."
here is a real reason to live in Brazil
I read the article. A very different socio-political environment indeed. And I think it sounds wonderful.
I honestly like what I'm hearing from Brazil though. This sounds beautiful. We all know that free software is a good thing. I don't think there's anything wrong w/ someone retaining rights to their intellectual property. The right thing to do if you don't agree w/ how they want to license the rights to use their product, is to *not* buy it. But I *do* think there's something strange w/ someone trying to tell me how many times I can read the e-Book I've purchased, or listen to the MP3 I've downloaded, until I have to buy a new one. One could of course, liken this to renting a movie, but it's still a bit different.
I think that what we're grasping at here all comes from the folly of trying to set up of a system of rules to govern the consumption of intangibles so that they can fit our existing econonmic model built largely around the consumption of tangibles.
...
This article is vaguely reminiscent of articles published by hippies in the 60s about the wonders of the perfection of simplistic primitive cultures. Probably, ironically enough, in Brazil. And how all of our problems as a society would be erased if we'd just follow the simple principles of the __insert name of tribe here__ people.
And, of course, we merely giggle at them 4 decades later.
I suspect the same will be said 40 years from now. =P
I'm sorry. The number you have reached is imaginary. Please rotate your phone 90 degrees and try again.
Well, other than being one of the most bizarre straw men I've ever seen, this post demonstrates a stunning ignorance of the GPL.
This may seem good in the short term, but when your beloved GPL application turns up in a Brazilian program designed to create and share child pornography you won't exactly be laughing.
The GPL offers no means whatsoever for the programmer to limit how people choose to use or adapt their software. That is the entire point, and this applies just the same in Brazil as out of it.
I spent two years living in Brazil, in large cities (Porto Alegre, Santa Maria, others) and small towns (Sao Luis Ganzaga, Erichim, others) and experienced NONE of the bad events you describe.
It is dangerous for any one person to claim that their experience is representative of everyone's, including those that have not expericed it yet.
This may seem good in the short term, but when your beloved GPL application turns up in a Brazilian program designed to create and share child pornography you won't exactly be laughing.
You may as well say "This may seem good in the short term, but when your beloved printing press is used to create and share child pornography you won't exactly be laughing."
The GPL doesn't differentiate with regard to what code is used for; it just mandates that derivitave code be released under the GPL.
The parent is using child pornography for shock value exclusively.
I submit that kiddie porn may be poised to replace Hitler as the new Godwinesque indefensible extreme.
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The woman like Americans because Brazilian men are notoriously unfaithful, cruel and not around much. One town I was in the ratio of women to men was 8:1!
You've got to be shitting me. THIS is modded insightful?!
I'm Argentinian - that's right, we're Brazils' next door neighbours. Been there myself a lot of times. How the fuck can you tell that Brazilians are "cruel and unfaitfhul" to their women? How many couples have you met? Because i've meet a lot, and they were quite happy. Where were you visiting anyway? If anything, they're mostly great people, which is more than i can say of other countries i've visited. And yes, Brazilian women are usually fun and sexy. Not bimbos.
These bullshit generalizations drive me mad. So, all Americans treat their women like shit, dress like fucking idiots and shoot each other? Because they surely seem to do in those nifty rap videos!
And yes, electronics are expensive (not insanely expensive though), mainly because of the dollar-real ratio and import taxes. Deal with it. And you can have a decent salary as well - just stop thinking in dollars for two seconds.
Because living in dirt huts without electronics,
and focusing on developing your nation's IT infrastructure with an emphasis on software which is or can be locally developed while allowing your people access to AIDS medication,
are really fucking similar.
Irritable, left-wing and possibly humorous bumper stickers and t-shirts
No company should make anything that could possibly have evil uses. For example, Microsoft Word could easily be used to write a pamphlet promoting child pornography. Outlook Express could be used by terrorists trying to overthrow the government. Too bad the folks in the marketing department didn't thing of these dangers before wildly releasing them into the public.
Often, there are foreign influences that either depose one set of thugs for another, or else prop up clearly illegitimate governments. They'll supply weapons, military advisors, training, secure loans, add an air of international legitimacy or help cover-up atrocities.
Integrity is an important part of the equation to be sure, but also add generous amounts of money, popular support, transparency, accountability, a free press...We have corporate socialism. In the end its really no better then medieval systems of governance. Its just wrapped up in platitudes about democracy and the market.
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CINC, 4th Penguin Legion
Actually yes you can. The numbers are a central point to abstaining since so very few people are capable of living their lives without sex. Keeping in mind that many people who claim to be chaste are simply lying, the small number of people who manage to make it to marriage without any sexual encounters are not just ineffectual they're also not normal.
So why advocate a type of behavior that most people cannot adhere to considering the stakes which are disease? Its much more logical to give people who are sexually active the information and tools they need to protect themselves then to expect them to live up to some ridiculous conflicted fundamentalist standard of sexuality.
Mac OS X and Windows XP working side by side to fight back the night.