Comments on: Copyright and Freedom of Speech

By: Vanmind

Vanmind — Tue, 09 Nov 2004 21:20:20 +0000

Wow. Katie must love her life and her lithium.

Here’s one that’s free to pass around (because I wrote it but claim no copyright):

“Open eyes purge lies.”

By: David Heinrich

David Heinrich — Tue, 09 Nov 2004 15:55:53 +0000

Vanmind,

Now that is definately quotable. Another one-liner I liked:

“When I saw that dead and dying Afghani children on TV, I felt a renewed sense of national security. God Bless America.” — Katie Sierra

By: Michael A. Clem

Michael A. Clem — Tue, 09 Nov 2004 14:51:27 +0000

The flip side to Walt Disney is any number of less successful creators whose works are languishing in obscurity, but would still find their niches if copyright law didn’t artificially raise the costs of making these works available to the public.

By: Vanmind

Vanmind — Tue, 09 Nov 2004 11:20:19 +0000

I wasn’t aware that Moses created the commandments.

Still, I get what you’re saying. Maybe when Jesus makes his second coming he’ll take us all to court…

By: David Heinrich

David Heinrich — Mon, 08 Nov 2004 17:42:54 +0000

Michael,

Apparently, for his grandkids and great-great-grandkits. I guess copyrights should last forever. Moses better start suing all those thieving schein who are violating his copyright on the 10 commandments.

–Dave

By: Ohhh Henry

Ohhh Henry — Mon, 08 Nov 2004 16:37:26 +0000

Walt Disney movies, and I guess most all kinds of American pop culture, are prized the way some countries prize their ancient temples or national literature. This movement to extend copyright is similar to what would happen if the Greeks tried to put a copyright on the Iliad, or ban the export of the marble friezes on the Parthenon. About as effective too.

What the would-be cultural protectors don’t understand, is that a culture is either alive, or dead. Living cultures don’t hold any strong attachment to what they valued in the past, because they are too busy creating and living in their own contemporary culture. Dead and dying cultures go to extraordinary effort to try to preserve their cultural remnants, because of the inescapable feeling that things are not as good anymore as they used to be, and are not likely to improve anytime soon.

Imagine what disgust the old builders of Venice would feel, if they could see their wimpy, socialist descendants trying to preserve and shore up the decaying, centuries-old palaces. “Why don’t you get rich in business, and build yourself a beautiful new palace?” they would ask.

A culture is dead the second that a government starts taking steps to preserve it.

By: Michael A. Clem

Michael A. Clem — Mon, 08 Nov 2004 15:00:09 +0000

Walt Disney’s long dead–just who is this extended copyright protection supposed to be for? His great grandkids?

By: David Heinrich

David Heinrich — Mon, 08 Nov 2004 12:59:38 +0000

Great commentary. One relevant issue is the 1998 copyright act, which retroactively extended copyrights to much longer terms. Thus, due to the lobbying of Disney, copyrighted works that were going to become public domain got an additional many years. This goes to show that no “agreement” with or “arrangement” with the State, no promise made by the State, can ever be taken seriously or counted on.