I feel like many people who signed the statement did so not because they really agreed with it but because they want a pause on the churn, just as OP had collea

I feel like many people who signed the statement did so not because they really agreed with it but because they want a pause on the churn, just as OP had colleagues who admitted as much just for their academic reasons. A lot of people don't really think it's smart but find it dangerous for other reasons, or they have issues with the blatant IP violation that is just being assumed to be okay and "fair use."