Quote:
Originally Posted by Dusty Bottoms
This isn't about Utopia, but it is about human nature as you point out. Guess what? One of our basic human, and even animal instincts, is to share... If you take sharing out of society, then every single episode of Sesame Street would make no sense.
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Guess what? The world isn't Sesame Street. There isn't enough of everything to go around. Sharing doesn't work when there are too many people, and not enough supplies. That's why there is commerce, and money, and property, and
society... a collective of people agreeing to a system that manages what they have as fairly as possible.
That's why creators often need financial incentives to create, instead of simply plugging away at their day jobs and creating nothing at all. That's why copyright laws are in existence... they address a basic fact of practical, real life. I'm not saying that social or financial experimentation isn't worth trying, or might not succeed. I'm simply pointing out the stark reality, like it or not, of where our last few millennia of social and financial experimentation, when set alongside human nature, has gotten us.
You mention that Genies don't go back in bottles. I agree: You're trying to suggest that some basic tenets of society and human nature will somehow reverse themselves and go away, thanks to modern technology; and I say that despite our technology, people haven't changed significantly in a few hundred thousand years, and the basic laws of society haven't changed in over 5,000 years.
The economics of the digital age are certainly different, but not
that different. And society has demands that sometimes outweigh what is possible, forcing it to adhere to what is practical. It is that practicality which is at issue here: The practicality of making sure creators create, and are treated fairly when they do, so society can enjoy the fruits of their labors. It takes more than simply saying we'll do it... we have to put laws in place to guarantee it, since we know that without those laws, creators are taken advantage of (a historical fact).
And since those laws have been enacted, we have seen greater innovation, cooperation and development than at any other point in history. I take that as clear and indisputable proof of a system that works.
So, debate the finer points of copyright if you will. But the system does work. The digital realm will writhe like a released demon for some period of time, but eventually, it too will have to find its niche in the current system... and will introduce some adjustments to better fit its existence there... and again, one day we'll hardly be able to remember a period where anarchy ruled the Internet.