So I take it those weren't "Crunch Berries" in your cereal this morning? A bit over the top, man... Comments in-line:
David Gillett wrote:are the various rights of the owner of the CPU, the *operator* of the CPU, and the owner of the *data*, each of whom may have a more or less legitimate say in what code actually gets executed.
Nonsense. Absurd, ridiculous nonsense.
There is only one party who has any say over what code gets executed by a CPU: the owner of that physical property.
Everyone else can go fly a kite.
Take your intellectual property fantasies and your heady legal concerns to law school, they have no place in security technology.
The reason we have security technology *in the first place* is because the masses DO NOT have any say in what code gets executed by the CPU's they own in real life. While I may conceptually agree that we *should* have the exclusive control (but I'm still out on that- I'll have to give it more thought) that is not the way it plays out every day. If this were the case, many reading this message would not have the jobs they have now.
Intellectual property is not a fantasy- you're making it sound like your stance is that since I own a CPU, I can run whatever code I want regardless of whether I own the right to that code or not- and that just scratches the surface of the implications you make here... I normally try to understand your mindsets as I respect your points of view (though they are often contrary to my own) but this one is kind of out of left field. You are (seemingly) dismissing a host of copyrights, privacy rights, etc that may be present based strictly on the ownership of the CPU. If I take your point incorrectly, please don't "smash my head with it," but rather try to articulate it in a more civilized manner that promotes the intelligent exchange of ideas.
Give me a computer that is defensible, so that *my* intellectual property and *my* personal legal liability exposure (both civil and criminal) can be defended, and stop trying to give me the ability to control other people's computers and impose my intellectual property “rights” on them by force.
The more you try to stuff Intellectual Property down people's throats as though it is “Property” that grants its “owner” rights equivalent to rights of > real property ownership, the closer you push us to a complete abandonment of all IP protections.
If this came from someone else, I would not hesitate to say that they were
totally full of shit. You were clearly set off by Gillett, but you can't
possibly be suggesting that physical possession or ownership of some
asset/object obviates the rights that others may have to that property
(directly or indirectly) or that it absolves you from responsibility in the manner in which you choose to use that
property, can you? You're a smart man, and I have to assume that I'm
missing something-- I'd appreciate it if you would take a moment to
elaborate on this particular point.
Intellectual property only has value as long as I cooperate with your belief in its value.
No, sir. IP has value as long as everyone else believes in its value. More specifically, IP has value as long as a judicial body exists to uphold laws drafted by a legislative body whose determinations are accepted by everyone else whether they really "believe" in the specific value or not, but who do so because they trust in the operation of the overall system. Much like how we all trust the operation of the code we run on our systems.
Tangible property has value because I can smash your head in with it, whether you believe in its value or not. Get a clue, please. You're a danger to our collective future as a civilization.
Come on, Jason... Totally uncalled for, and a completely unworthy response for a man of your intellect. The real danger to our future as a civilization is when men and women who are in a position to share their gift of logic and perception opt out in favor of belligerence.
T
Regards,
Jason Coombs jasonc@xxxxxxxxxxx
