Copyrights and Copycats

[Exile714]

Lately I've begun to think that, in the same way our knowledge of science has made it impossible to be a polymath anymore, the diversification and specialization of knowledge, professions, hobbies, and technology has made it impossible to have a jury or Congress that is qualified to decide on matters pertaining to those specialized areas. It's just one more way that an 18th Century constitution is fundamentally unable to create a government capable of dealing appropriately with 21st Century issues. Yeah we can amend the thing, but it's so difficult to do and so many amendments are needed.

I think we need a Constitution for the world that electricity, petroleum, and the internet have made. Overhaul copyright law, overhaul the voting system, overhaul how jurors are selected, overhaul who is permitted to decide on what in Congress.

Otherwise the insanity created when law and reality clash will only get worse.

This, the original article, and several other posts on this thread worry me. As a lawyer, I know how to the law works and where it does not. I know there are problems with copyright law, but I also know that it's 99% perfect because 99.99% of cases turn out exactly like they should. You may not like the EFFECTS of copyright law, but I guarantee that if we remade the law to be "perfect" then you'd end up with pretty much the exact same thing. The same goes, even more so, with the US Constitution itself.

On another note, I think people absolutely misunderstand the role of a jury. They are not there to research and know about a topic, they are there to LEARN and then DECIDE. It's best to leave them as a blank canvas and let the lawyers (lawyerS, there is at least one for EACH SIDE) paint the picture for them.

There is no "insanity" under current law. Maybe companies and individuals suing with frivolous claims, but look at the outcomes and you'll see a system operating exactly as it should. Until you understand that system and look at it through adult eyes, you'll never see the remaining 1% of the law where true reform is needed.

 

[Erana]

I still feel like it wouldn't be too difficult to make a case against that Chinese TF2 knockoff...
I honestly feel like many gamers couldn't honestly define the line between clone and a new, but similar game. I suppose I'd go start with Roguelikes, considering the genre title...

 

[Revnak_v1legacy]

I'm pretty certain civil cases don't necessarily have juries, so I'm pretty certain your misanthropic fears about the intelligence of the common juror are misplaced.