Subj : Re: GNU Public Licences Revisited (again)
To   : comp.programming
From : Arthur J. O'Dwyer
Date : Wed Sep 21 2005 12:35 pm


On Wed, 21 Sep 2005, Willem wrote:
> Antoon wrote:
> ) Op 2005-09-21, Chris Sonnack schreef <Chris@Sonnack.com>:
> )> Antoon Pardon writes:
> )>
> )>>>> How does that differ from me, just brewing my own?
> )>>>
> )>>> I think the key factor here is the recipe - assume that Chris has
> )>>> a particularly good recipe for beer and is making a living brewing
> )>>> beer to that recipe.
> )>>
> )>> I could have a good recipe too, just as others. Maybe Chris got his
> )>> his idea for a recipe from a public source.
> )>
> )> And then spent years and funds developing my own "touch".  If you
> )> steal the fruits of that effort, you are stealing from me.
> )
> ) No I'm not. You don't have any less than before, so you were not
> ) stolen from.
>
> Yes you are.  Let me explain.
>
> The value of something that you create (such as beer) is partly determined
> by how much effort is expended in creating it.

   Labor value of goods? I think one of the major problems in this thread 
is that half the participants (David, Antoon, myself, perhaps Richard)
don't believe in the labor value of goods, and half (Gerry, yourself,
Chris, perhaps Randy) do.  I don't care how many years it took you to 
develop your new and improved sporkula; if it's not useful to me it's not 
valuable to me.
   The concept of "intrinsic value" is also a dangerous one, in my view; 
"value" in a capitalist system is determined by market value, not by 
"effort." You may be confusing capitalism with Tee-ball. ;-)

> So, if you develop your own touch, that means that the value of beer is
> now partly determined by that effort.  If, however, you copy my touch,
> which takes a lot less effort, that means you have decreased the value of
> beer by your act of copying.

   So in your view: Making a copy by expending a lot of effort is hard 
work, and is all right. Making a copy by expending little effort is easy, 
and is theft.
   I don't think the amount of effort expended in the commission of an act 
should determine whether it's theft or not. For example, consider a "beer 
genius" who can just effortlessly create new and innovative beer recipes 
off the top of his head any time he feels like it. Nobody else can make a 
living the old-fashioned way anymore; is the beer genius "stealing" from 
the oldsters, because he can effortlessly render their efforts useless? 
(My answer: obviously not.)

-Arthur,
can't believe this thread hasn't died yet

.