The Beginning of the End?

Wired News: Eyes on the Prize Hits P2P: "'If people had stuck to the law, black people wouldn't have the right to use restaurants and hotels. If people had stuck to the law, women wouldn't have the right to vote. If people had stuck to the law, women wouldn't have the right to own property,' Guyot said. 'Our country has a history of laws that we are very proud we have moved away from.'"

So, who are the current copyright laws protecting? If I had the rights to an important or historic piece of media, say a film or a picture, what reason would our society have for supporting my copyright? Well, what if I were not allowing this media to be accessed, in any current form, by the public?

Tough question. I know how I react, though. I will not get in the way of people who think they need a piece of information that I possess. That is always a losing fight. I will, however, try to make it in their best interest, through ease or cost of access, to do things my way.

Failure to do so will always be meet by a public that feels they have a right to know (or access) something. And this will only get worse, as more works are tied-up in knots of copyright references, as information gets more interconnected and more sources need to be included for completeness.

People are hungry for information. I certainly don't let anything get between me and something I feel would make me a more effective or complete person. I would expect nothing less from others.