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Unfortunately the Constitution eventually meets the road: Copyrights and Patents -- in US law -- derive from Acts of Congress. If you think there's any chance
by meanguy 15y ago
Unfortunately the Constitution eventually meets the road: Copyrights and Patents -- in US law -- derive from Acts of Congress.
If you think there's any chance of repealing that stuff and going back to Jefferson's quaint musings on the topic I think you're misguided. There's simply no way to frame an argument on the nature of "property." Nobody understands it and Congress ain't budging anyway.
But Fair Use is inherently flexible, arguable and relatable by the guy who uploads NASCAR highlights he doesn't own to YouTube.
Read up on the DMCA's Fair Use exemptions and the EFF's numerous victories. And think about it in the context of current culture. You're never going to mobilize nascarfan83 to read up on law, but you can probably get him to sign a petition that clips under 20 seconds are okay on YouTube.
- csallen 15y agoI agree with you. I think we're talking about two different things, though. My goals are... well "goals" is a little ambitious of a word. How about: What I would like to see is a complete reform of copyright law. Or, at the very least, the decriminalization of file-sharing. Anything less, and the battle isn't over. I don't expect nascarfan83 to read up on law. Landmark decisions that affect the interpretation of the (and, indeed, the legality of the law) tend to come from Supreme Court cases. And the justices on the Supreme Court are quite fond of reading up on old laws. :)