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schex86 · 02-01-2010, 12:37 AM

An IP Allegory

You live in a neighborhood in which one of the residents, of her own volition, chooses to invest time, money, and labor in the design and construction of an elaborate flower garden. Most everyone in the neighborhood agrees that the garden is beautiful, and they manifest this by regularly strolling by the garden while out walking, and even snapping pictures of the shrubbery and foliage.

But, one day, the garden owner, taking notice of the pleasure others routinely derive from her work, decides she can no longer manage the expense of maintaining her garden without financial compensation of some kind. She mentions this to another of your neighbors, a prominent city councilman, who is a close friend of hers and has been very vocal in his appreciation of her gardening efforts.

The councilman quickly deems that the gardener's concerns are valid, and together the two devise a scheme, I mean, a bill, in which the residents of your neighborhood (including yourself) will be charged a "Parks and Foliage" tax. A large percentage of these funds will go directly to the gardener so that she can feel validated in continuing her gardening.

The councilman slips the bill into one of the monthly council meetings and it is passed without comment. The councilman assures the gardener in private that as long as he remains in his position of prominence the tax will be extended indefinitely, and may even be increased on a regular basis, in the interest of providing further economic validation of the gardner's efforts.

My question is, where are your interests in this social contract? If you chose not to pay the tax once you learned its origins, would that be considered "theft" and if so, who would you be depriving of "property"? If you had enjoyed the garden, and even taken thousands of pictures of it, "hoarding" them in your own photo album, would that somehow obligate you to accept the conditions of the "Parks and Foliage" tax without question?

What should be the maximum penalty for refusing to pay the tax? Death? 20 lashes? What should the amount of the tax be? Is it an arbitrary amount? Who makes that determination?

Is there a point of diminishing returns? Should there be a balance among the interests of all stakeholders? If everyone in the neighborhood refused to pay the tax, does that mean that there could be no more gardens?

02-01-2010, 12:37 AM	#208
schex86 Enthusiast Posts: 48 Karma: 766 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Alaska Device: Kindle 2, Blackberry Mobipocket Reader	An IP Allegory You live in a neighborhood in which one of the residents, of her own volition, chooses to invest time, money, and labor in the design and construction of an elaborate flower garden. Most everyone in the neighborhood agrees that the garden is beautiful, and they manifest this by regularly strolling by the garden while out walking, and even snapping pictures of the shrubbery and foliage. But, one day, the garden owner, taking notice of the pleasure others routinely derive from her work, decides she can no longer manage the expense of maintaining her garden without financial compensation of some kind. She mentions this to another of your neighbors, a prominent city councilman, who is a close friend of hers and has been very vocal in his appreciation of her gardening efforts. The councilman quickly deems that the gardener's concerns are valid, and together the two devise a scheme, I mean, a bill, in which the residents of your neighborhood (including yourself) will be charged a "Parks and Foliage" tax. A large percentage of these funds will go directly to the gardener so that she can feel validated in continuing her gardening. The councilman slips the bill into one of the monthly council meetings and it is passed without comment. The councilman assures the gardener in private that as long as he remains in his position of prominence the tax will be extended indefinitely, and may even be increased on a regular basis, in the interest of providing further economic validation of the gardner's efforts. My question is, where are your interests in this social contract? If you chose not to pay the tax once you learned its origins, would that be considered "theft" and if so, who would you be depriving of "property"? If you had enjoyed the garden, and even taken thousands of pictures of it, "hoarding" them in your own photo album, would that somehow obligate you to accept the conditions of the "Parks and Foliage" tax without question? What should be the maximum penalty for refusing to pay the tax? Death? 20 lashes? What should the amount of the tax be? Is it an arbitrary amount? Who makes that determination? Is there a point of diminishing returns? Should there be a balance among the interests of all stakeholders? If everyone in the neighborhood refused to pay the tax, does that mean that there could be no more gardens?