P2P or distributed systems represent a revolutionary improvement in communications technology. It is an extremely Luddite notion to hold this back so the copyright cartel can continue to sell copies that no-one needs.

Given the promise of instantaneous diffusion we can move to a system of exchanging intellectual work for money, instead of parcelling it into discrete copies whose price is protected by an anachronistic monopoly.

I almost mentioned the depression as a probable consequence of handouts, but didn’t want to bring the tone down. :-/ It could well be the case that we are subject to allegorical determinism (aka psychohistory) and in being doomed to repeat history must go through a depression prior to abolition.

There should indeed be a ’sentinel of liberty’ organisation that supports the restoration of the individual’s natural right to liberty (from its derogation by copyright and patent). That means the abolition of copyright and patent, not simply pussy-footing around with term reductions. It doesn’t require undoing the US constitution, just limiting the government’s power to the securing of authors’ and inventors’ exclusive right without additionally granting them monopolies. They can be incentivised by their customers’ money in a free market like any other craftsman, not citizens’ liberty, nor their taxation.

As for backyard stills, well, individuals are already ignoring copyright, from mix tapes, to exchanging ripped CD and DVD collections via memory stick. File sharing, whether by BitTorrent or anything else, is also comparable. Cultural liberty means to speak, to communicate, to perform, to share, and to build upon human culture – without a license, without having to seek permission. This doesn’t mean stealing it, but that once you’ve purchased it, it’s yours. So, let’s pay the artists we like to produce art, with our money, not our liberty to share or build upon it. If some artists want to keep their art to themselves, they simply shouldn’t release it.

There is a strong risk that taxation will be seen as the answer, but this is just as bad as copyright. It’s also ridiculous to compensate publishers for the fact they can no longer afford to enforce their monopolies, especially given they were granted through the unethical suspension of the public’s cultural liberty in the first place (1790 US). But, hey, handouts to failing corporations are all the rage at the moment. No-one wants to buy your cars? Have some money. No-one wants to buy your collateralized debt obligations? Have some money. No-one wants to buy your copies? Have some money. The taxpayer has bottomless pockets. Their representatives care for the poor corporations.

As a result of that repeal immediately breweries ordered more trucks to do deliveries, they ordered in more bottles, and they increased their orders for hops and other raw materials.

Could it be that in time, the legalization of P2P could solve the current problems of the US, and hence, the global economy?

A) elect an anti-prohibition President
B) Form the AAPLoA (Anti Anti Piracy League of America)
C) All start making copper stills in our backyards ?

Actually – the most interesting point is that after the cancellation of Prohibition – Government then taxed alcohol by the litre – making the stills illegal. In other words – Prohibition ended because the Government could tax the alcohol.

i help

Like in good music ( Not the RIAA crap of course!) history in particular and life in general kind or repeat itself but never exactly.

The moral standard of humanity although improving overal fluctuate widely. When it is down it leads to global wars and often violent revolutions. After a war people learn their lessons behave better and the moral standard rises. Then the society decay again which lead to another conflict.

The next conflict will probably be a world wide civil war of the people against the corporations since they stoped serving the societies and became parasites.

The corporate system is now a threat to the society and therefore will be naturally destroyed and replaced by something else. And the cycle will start over.

Cheers!

The origins of electronic filesharing are the guilty parties that invented the following:

Hpertext A … An assistant of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. He cam up with hypertext, but not havin a computer could do nothing with his idea.
Hpertext B … An american made the Hyperwriter software. It shoed the world what was possible with hypetext.
Web ……….. This was an idea at the USA Defense department so that in case of a nuclear attack, the various defense computers could still communicate with each other.
HTTM………. Based on the above inventions (hypertext and the web) a swiss programme developed a web communications protocol that made the sharing of data and files simple stuff. A tidal wave was begun.

Ok, the so called content/copyright owners, the one percent, did not see their obsolete methods being overtaken at first, and when they do, they don’t like what they see. The 99 percent loves what they see. Actually the content/copyright owners couldn’t do anything about the tidal wave. Now they they have partnered up with pay for play politicians to stop the latest technology (torrents) and the supporters and users of that technology as if that is going to stop a technological tidal wave.

A block of ice in hell has a better chance.