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The exact opposite should be true, and Anthrax is the perfect example. We should be building great shit because great shit betters humanity, agnostic to possibl

The exact opposite should be true, and Anthrax is the perfect example. We should be building great shit because great shit betters humanity, agnostic to possible criminal misuse of said shit. Anthrax has no utility beyond criminal activity, and honestly I would consider anything that utilizes anthrax in that way to be criminal at all; thats terroristic. Crime is extrinsically motivated, terror intrinsic, and the use of Anthrax can only be physical harm, there is no greater reward to the applier. But Megaupload is a tool that lets us share ideas and forms of art that people in some parts of the world may not have had the opportunity be exposed to otherwise. Even if it can be used for crime, that is not the only function it is capable of performing. Megaupload is exactly the model for products we should be building, because the sharing of ideas helps elevate us as a society. The minor and short term side-effect of piracy is irrelevant.

pcmonk 11y ago
Anthrax has noncriminal uses -- science, for example. Sure, they're unusual, but they're there. I'm not arguing whether or not megaupload was a good service, or whether or not the government should have cracked down on them. The fact is that the government did crack down on them, and the reason is because they positioned themselves as a great avenue for piracy. If they wanted to survive, they should have either not been so pirate-friendly or found a jurisdiction that didn't care about piracy. Maybe it would be impossible to accomplish megaupload's goals without being pirate-friendly. Urbit's goals can be accomplished while staying well within the letter and spirit of the law, so there's no point in jeopardizing its success.
- forgotmysn 11y ago
  It's awesome that you can accomplish your goal without compromising to abate criminal possibilities. I'm just saying that that's a compromise that should never be made, at least in the digital sphere.

pcmonk 11y ago

Anthrax has noncriminal uses -- science, for example. Sure, they're unusual, but they're there. I'm not arguing whether or not megaupload was a good service, or whether or not the government should have cracked down on them. The fact is that the government did crack down on them, and the reason is because they positioned themselves as a great avenue for piracy. If they wanted to survive, they should have either not been so pirate-friendly or found a jurisdiction that didn't care about piracy. Maybe it would be impossible to accomplish megaupload's goals without being pirate-friendly. Urbit's goals can be accomplished while staying well within the letter and spirit of the law, so there's no point in jeopardizing its success.

forgotmysn 11y ago
It's awesome that you can accomplish your goal without compromising to abate criminal possibilities. I'm just saying that that's a compromise that should never be made, at least in the digital sphere.