Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!hao!noao!arizona!rupley From: rupley@arizona.edu (John Rupley) Newsgroups: comp.sources.d Subject: Re: v11INF3: Poll on copyrights Message-ID: <2554@megaron.arizona.edu> Date: Sun, 25-Oct-87 17:56:26 EST Article-I.D.: megaron.2554 Posted: Sun Oct 25 17:56:26 1987 Date-Received: Tue, 27-Oct-87 05:17:55 EST References: <31219@sun.uucp> <1902@killer.UUCP> Organization: U of Arizona CS Dept, Tucson Lines: 31 Summary: Silent protest is no protest. In article <1902@killer.UUCP>, elg@killer.UUCP (Eric Green) writes: > in article <31219@sun.uucp>, chuq%plaid@Sun.COM (Chuq Von Rospach) says: > > the net deleted, in which one person says that if the author is stupid enuf > to post it to the net, the author really doesn't have much to say about > what you do with his creation, and Chuq saying "What about the law?"> > > > Theft is theft. If you break the law, you break the law. You can rationalize > > all you want, but the bottom line is that you are a thief. > > And of course Congressman Greg Tarver (D. Shreveport) is a criminal because > back in the '60s, he used the white mens room at the bus station (he's black), > and was arrested for violation of a city code forbidding just that. > Talk about morality and ethics if you like. But don't interject The Law (in > capital letters) into the conversation. Laws have nothing to do with either > morality, OR ethics. At least we have THAT lesson left over from the civil The Law _is_ the discussion. The equating of software theft to protest against a possibly inappropriate copyright law appears unreasonable. The civil rights protestors suffered or worked under the threat of arrest or physical harm. They were breaking the existing law, intending to be open about it. If you are protesting the coyright law, at least declare to the public what you are doing, and suffer the penalties. Indeed it is possible that some changes would follow. If you break the copyright law surreptitiosly, this would appear to be theft. John Rupley uucp: ..ihnp4!arizona!rupley voice: 602-325-4533