I hate to break it to you, but if you bothered to RTFA, you would know that this case did not occur in the US, but rather, in the UK. Unless of course Bedworth, Warwickshire has been recently annexed without my knowledge.
Today, you can merrily write about vampires without worry of a lawsuit, but if you try and write about another fictional villain, say a Star Wars Sith Lord, and you will find your ass sued into the ground. This SHOULD be troubling.
Why should this be troubling? Dont get me wrong, I see your point on the insanity of century-long copyright, but I think you are missing an important difference between vampires and Sith Lords. IANASTE (I am not a Sith Lord expert) but they have been around for, what 10 - 20 years? No matter how you spin it, these characters are still under the limited monolpoly granted by copyright. George Lucas is being rewarded for putting in the effort to invent and develop Sith Lords by being granted this exclusive use. This is exactly what copyright is set up to do. Now, IANAVE (I am not a vampire expert) either, but I believe that vampires have been part of popular culture for many hundreds of years. The exclusive use rights on the concept have run out and the idea of vampires has reverted to the public domain. This is why George Lucas can sue my pants off for using his concepts but Ann Rice can't (unless my vamipre is named LeStat and won't come out of the closet).
Why do YOU have a monopoly on your property? I should be able to take whatever I want, sure you can stop me or try to but I should be able to freely shoot you dead as well.
Hear that whooshing? That's the sound of the point blowing right past you. I have a monopoly on my (non-data) property because it is (collectively) a physical entity and thusly is subject to the limitations of scarcity and reproduction. That is to say, my car is a real object in space; there is only one of it and I am unable to create a replica of it for a reasonable cost. It is because of the inherent physical limitations that I can hold this "monopoly" on my car; I put the effort into obtaining it (I paid for it), therefore society grants me exclusive use. My MP3 collection, on the other hand, is not a phsyical entity and (surprise) is not limited by scarcity or reproductive restraints. I can make a perfect 1:1 copy of my MP3s with three mouse clicks. Since the cost to reproduce this property is so low, I no longer can claim the right to exclusive use through effort.
So with that in mind, an answer to your query: No, you cannot take my car, the cost of obtainment and replacement is high enough that society bans that behavior. Yes, you can take any MP3 you want; I can always make another copy.
You may want to read The Future of Ideas: The Fate of Commons in a Connected World by Mr. Lessig if you are looking for a more expansive explanation of these concepts. It is really a great read.
Why do you think "antibiotic resistant infections" are on the rise?
Because God obviously replaced the older, defective bacteria with new resistant ones on account of our gay/interracial-marriage approving sins; the same way He hit Louisiana with a hurricane and Aceh with a tsunami (can't let those Muslims slide, can we?) At least that's the way Pat Robertson explained it to me.
but the public library system in San Francisco has numerous books of sheet music, from classical to fairly contemporary works, for free to the general public (well, they do charge you $0.50 for the card).
We all remember the library, right? Its that place with all the books that people used to frequent for information before the internet was invented and we all became scared of venturing outside.
Given that I pay $85 a month just for cable here in California (thanks Comcast!), getting phone/tv/connectivity for the same price is a freakin sweet deal...even IF everything is in French.
"Man, it's the same bullshit they tried to pull in my day. If it ain't that piece of paper, there's some other choice they're gonna try and make for you. You gotta do what Randall Pink Floyd wants to do man. Let me tell you this, the older you do get the more rules they're gonna try to get you to follow. You just gotta keep livin' man, L-I-V-I-N."
- Wooderson Dazed and Confused
Slashdot Mirror
I hate to break it to you, but if you bothered to RTFA, you would know that this case did not occur in the US, but rather, in the UK. Unless of course Bedworth, Warwickshire has been recently annexed without my knowledge.
Today, you can merrily write about vampires without worry of a lawsuit, but if you try and write about another fictional villain, say a Star Wars Sith Lord, and you will find your ass sued into the ground. This SHOULD be troubling.
Why should this be troubling? Dont get me wrong, I see your point on the insanity of century-long copyright, but I think you are missing an important difference between vampires and Sith Lords. IANASTE (I am not a Sith Lord expert) but they have been around for, what 10 - 20 years? No matter how you spin it, these characters are still under the limited monolpoly granted by copyright. George Lucas is being rewarded for putting in the effort to invent and develop Sith Lords by being granted this exclusive use. This is exactly what copyright is set up to do. Now, IANAVE (I am not a vampire expert) either, but I believe that vampires have been part of popular culture for many hundreds of years. The exclusive use rights on the concept have run out and the idea of vampires has reverted to the public domain. This is why George Lucas can sue my pants off for using his concepts but Ann Rice can't (unless my vamipre is named LeStat and won't come out of the closet).
Why do YOU have a monopoly on your property? I should be able to take whatever I want, sure you can stop me or try to but I should be able to freely shoot you dead as well.
Hear that whooshing? That's the sound of the point blowing right past you. I have a monopoly on my (non-data) property because it is (collectively) a physical entity and thusly is subject to the limitations of scarcity and reproduction. That is to say, my car is a real object in space; there is only one of it and I am unable to create a replica of it for a reasonable cost. It is because of the inherent physical limitations that I can hold this "monopoly" on my car; I put the effort into obtaining it (I paid for it), therefore society grants me exclusive use. My MP3 collection, on the other hand, is not a phsyical entity and (surprise) is not limited by scarcity or reproductive restraints. I can make a perfect 1:1 copy of my MP3s with three mouse clicks. Since the cost to reproduce this property is so low, I no longer can claim the right to exclusive use through effort.
So with that in mind, an answer to your query: No, you cannot take my car, the cost of obtainment and replacement is high enough that society bans that behavior. Yes, you can take any MP3 you want; I can always make another copy.
You may want to read The Future of Ideas: The Fate of Commons in a Connected World by Mr. Lessig if you are looking for a more expansive explanation of these concepts. It is really a great read.
Why do you think "antibiotic resistant infections" are on the rise?
Because God obviously replaced the older, defective bacteria with new resistant ones on account of our gay/interracial-marriage approving sins; the same way He hit Louisiana with a hurricane and Aceh with a tsunami (can't let those Muslims slide, can we?) At least that's the way Pat Robertson explained it to me.
We all remember the library, right? Its that place with all the books that people used to frequent for information before the internet was invented and we all became scared of venturing outside.
Wow! $1.23 - 1.93 cheaper!? Thats almost a half gallon of gas! This Walmart you're driving to had better be across the street from your house.
Given that I pay $85 a month just for cable here in California (thanks Comcast!), getting phone/tv/connectivity for the same price is a freakin sweet deal...even IF everything is in French.
http://www.generalrobotix.com/en/index.htm
"Man, it's the same bullshit they tried to pull in my day. If it ain't that piece of paper, there's some other choice they're gonna try and make for you. You gotta do what Randall Pink Floyd wants to do man. Let me tell you this, the older you do get the more rules they're gonna try to get you to follow. You just gotta keep livin' man, L-I-V-I-N." - Wooderson Dazed and Confused