Re: copyright expiration as a spur to creativity

On Sun, 13 Sep 1998, Timothy Phillips <hrothgar[_at_]telepath.com> wrote:
>
> No one owns a work of literature. This is my perferred view. It
> exists in an abstract intellectual space which is accessible to all.
> It is free to all who can incorporate it into their thoughts. Each
> of us "owns" his own thoughts. The works of literature on which we
> draw to shape those thoughts are shared.

This looks like the logic for making historic real estate, such as Monticello, into public parks. I don't see why it should apply to all authors' creations any more than it should apply to publicly used real estate such as the old Penn Station in New York. Penn Station was demolished to make way for commercial development in spite of popular opposition based on its intangibles. The law sided with the investors' financial interests and promises of public benefits -- economic and intangible.

Albert Henderson, Editor, PUBLISHING RESEARCH QUARTERLY <70244.1532[_at_]compuserve.com> Received on Tue Sep 15 1998 - 12:55:51 GMT