Copyright—Copywrong

and one smart contrarian

There’s a lot more on the story of copyrights. It was kicked off in [Copyright—Copywrong—CopyMe]. To continue with another view to the copy/intellectual rights issue that keeps getting more and more convoluted, I’ve found a few links for you to examine. The complexity really needn’t be so. If only we back up and take a look at who, what & why these rights are intended to protect. Are we going to put the rights of the individual or a corporation in the priority position, the rights of the people who produce the products, or a faceless corporation, the right to know or secrecy? We deride the tyranny of dictators, but forget they can’t do it alone. They need our apathetic consent. They need a compliant army behind them to force their way. If the law continues to provide protections for tyrant multinationals, who’s going to protect the average individual? And yet, there’s always another wrinkle.

The subject of intellectual rights wasn’t even a subject a century ago. Scientists considered their discoveries as something out there waiting for someone, anyone, to make the observation. Knowledge builds on knowledge. Science depends on the free exchange of knowledge. We are all dependent on the discoveries of those before us, or to take Newton’s words, to stand on the shoulders of giants. Turning data, knowledge, ideas into property; commoditizing them, using them as tools for power and control, this attitude is new, and it raises questions.

How can an idea be property?
Is knowledge a privilege or a right?
Who has the right to withhold knowledge?
What if everyone kept everything they know secret?
What do I have to lose if you know what I know?
Do people have the a right to know; a right to knowledge?
What are the consequences of keeping others ignorant?
Do ideas have value?
How can ideas be valued?
What explains two or more people getting the same idea independently?
Does it matter who’s first?
What’s the cost of secrecy?
What’s the cost of ignorance?

Here’s something to contemplate. Tesla Motors believes sharing is more profitable than hoarding : [Tesla Press Release]
[Some of Tesla’s Patents] 

Read this link and get a taste of confusion.
[How Much More?]