This quote opens an op-ed titled “I Don’t Want To Own Music, I Want To Listen To Music.” (which is well worth a read):
“Culture is the sum of all the forms of art, of love, and of thought, which, in the coarse of centuries, have enabled man to be less enslaved”
—Andre Malraux
I’m not sure how true this is – think of the many ways different religions have been used to influence and control cultures (including music, art, and the written word) throughout history.
Regardless, the future that the music industry envisions, as well as the one pictured by software patent trolls, is one where anyone who is not approved by their system will not only be deprived of culture, but they will even be deprived from participating in any legitimate economy. In short, one where culture is used to further slavery and impoverishment in the name of enriching a few assholes. It’s human nature that the people whose power is threatened by disruptive technologies should try and minimize that threat so they can keep their influence and wealth. It’s a farce that the government of the USA, which was instituted under a constitution written with such aspects of human nature in mind, is participating in bringing about such a future, while claiming – with completely straight faces – that they’re doing it protect individual rights.
Tags: Piracy
