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It seems to me that many if not most people are prepared to act according to their own moral code in preference to the law to at least some extent. It is probably fair to say that even the most virtuous amongst us approve of removing DRM for purposes of backing-up and enabling reading on different devices, irrespective of what the law says.
Legislatures persist in making laws which are bad or effectively unenforceable. They also have a very bad track record when technology renders existing laws obsolete, and when they do ultimately respond it tends to be along the lines sought by interest groups seeking to preserve the status quo, often with legislation which is draconian and effectively unenforceable. Bad and unenforceable legislation tends to create contempt for the law, which seems to be what had happened here. People are behaving in accordance with their own moral codes irrespective of the law.
However, what is enlightening is that most people seem to be willing to pay a reasonable amount for their books (or music or movies) even though pirating is trivial and the risk negligible. And it is because of this that the relevant industries not only survive but continue to thrive. This willingness to pay has been cultivated by the sheer ease and convenience of purchasing online, and by the far more reasonable pricing of many items.
Intellectual property laws in general are long overdue for a review of their very basis as well as their basic principle. Starting from scratch would be very desirable, though of course most unlikely to ever happen.
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