Free Information vs Information Protectionism

[Kyle Lahnakoski]

Paul Foley wrote:

> > A society is different than a person.  To arbitrarily restrict society
> > to human rights is naive.
> 
> To fail to do so is insane.  A society is a collection of people.  It
> can have fewer rights, as an entity, than they do individually, but
> from what source can it claim more?  Are you trying to invoke Godwin's
> law?  Do you hold that "rights" are some sort of emergent phenomena
> that just spring into being if enough people think they should?

I claim a society can have more rights as an individual because
societies have done so in the past.  There is no body that governs a
society's actions; just a like a person without law can do as they
wish.  


 
> On Sun, 27 May 2001 23:38:11 -0400, Kyle Lahnakoski wrote:
> 
> > May you clarify the distinction between "idea" and data.
> 
> Data, in this sense, is a physical, tangible thing -- patterns of
> magnetism on the surface of a disk or tape, electrical impulses inside
> a computer, etc.; an idea given form, if you will.

I was hoping that you would apply these definitions to your recent post
to Mr. Rideau.  You also say: "You own the copy, but still not the data,
because it's *not* a product of your labour."  Of course, with your
above definition, any person that copies the data has not stolen the
original data.  You could see the copy process as a transfer of ideas.


-- 
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Kyle Lahnakoski                                  Arcavia Software Ltd.
(416) 892-7784                                 http://www.arcavia.com