> I don't condemn people that don't pay for all of the content they use,
> as I don't myself (particularly with movies). We each have our own
> comfort level and the "things that we do" that are based on personal
> decisions, whether it is downloading everything you can get your hands
> on for free, or simply taking copies of music you borrow from friends.
> However, I must say that I do sometimes have difficulty with the way
> some people phrase certain justifications about their rights and
> freedoms that often seem to be cloaked in quasi-intellectual babble.
Personally, I feel that as someone who supports free software, and wants
companies to comply with free software licensing terms, it is my *duty*
to obey the licensing terms of the products I use.
Unlike, say, software patents where it is virtually impossible *not*
to violate any number of patents at any given time, copyright is very
clear. Software patents must be stopped, but copyright is both good
and right. Were it not for the advent of almost free distribution of
large amounts of data, I doubt it would be feasable to even discuss free
licenses for works that fall under traditional copyright laws.
I support freedom because freedom is good. Once you start violating
licensing terms you become two-faced, obeying licensing terms only when
it suits your own interests. This is no better than commercial companies
that fail to abide by the GPL when it doesn't suit their own ends. It is
not supporting freedom, as it doesn't support the rights of the original
authors/artists freedom to choose the license of their works.
If you want to promote free licenses you *must* support the decisions
of people to choose *not* to use free licenses. The case must be
won with reason and logic -- because it is clearly better for the
author/artist and the consumer when there is freedom. If it can't be won
with reason and logic, then there is a fundamental flaw and it needs to
be rethought.
I do like the Creative Commons licenses as it gives the artists the
flexability to choose what they are comfortable allowing done with their
work. That being said, consumers must actually obey those licenses,
otherwise it negates the ability of the artists to choose.
--
Steven Black <blacks@indiana.edu> / KeyID: 8596FA8E
Fingerprint: 108C 089C EFA4 832C BF07 78C2 DE71 5433 8596 FA8E
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