This seems to creep up in the news a few times a year. The RIAA publicly announces their intention to pursue illegal downloading cases focusing mainly on students on college campuses. What would you do if you got such a letter? Would you admit you've been downloading illegally and pay the fine or just ignore them? What do you think?
http://www.cnn.com/2007/EDUCATION/02/28/music.college.reut/index.html
Harper's magazine recently published this piece by author Jonathan Lethem. Here's a quote to give you an idea of where he's coming from:
"The kernel, the soul—let us go further and say the substance, the bulk, the actual and valuable material of all human utterances—is plagiarism. "
In a recent Apple news posting, Steve Jobs outlined his company's position on the future of selling music online - it's very interesting, and promising if he really means it. Could this be a step away from the era of ridiculous downloading lawsuits?
Not only does the last Soviet leader and current charitable foundation guru Mikhail Gorbachev make it into the news, he does it by begging Windows magnate Bill Gates in an open letter to show mercy for Aleksandr Ponosov, a Russian school principal who is accused of knowingly buying computers with pirated Windows software for his impoverished school:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/02/05/gorbachev.gates.reut/index.html
Should school officials and teachers in impoverished regions of the world be able to circumvent copyright in order to attempt to bridge the Digital Divide? Do you think appealing to Bill Gates himself is appropriate? Shouldn't this be pursued in a court of law instead of playing out in front of the court of public opinon?