[pp.int.general] Global Dictatorship: Intellectual Property Denaturation or Why a Pirate Party in the Third World?

[Richard Stallman]

I talk about copyright and patent issues frequently, and I have never
once used the term "intellectual property" since I recognized, in
2004, how misleading it is.  From personally experience, I know that
avoiding the term is easy 99% of the time, and the remaining 1% it is
just a little work.

    A better example to cite would be the treatment of trademarks
    and brandnames compared to how the pirateparty views copyright or
    patents. The pirateparty isn't enthusiastic about either of those
    latter two. So about preventing confusion it is better to cite
    that example.

For some purposes, trademarks are better to cite.  However, Pirate Party
platforms do NOT treat copyright and patents the same; they make that
distinction too.

    The pirateparty can not ignore what is being said about "IP".

I didn't suggest "ignoring" it.  The question is how to respond to it.

If someone else makes a statement using the term "IP", and we respond
with a conflicting statement using the term "IP", that encourages
the misguided thinking embodied by the term "IP".  Thus, I always
respond by saying that the term is bogus confusion.

If you argue against the surface point and accept the bad assumptions
underlying it, you end up helping the enemy unwittingly.

    the WIPO is an organization we as pirateparties have to deal with
    sooner or later.

Occasionally (but not often) we talk about WIPO, or about some treaty
or entity whose name is based on "intellectual property".  Usually we
can do so and still avoid the term "intellectual property" simply by
using the acronym (for instance, "WIPO").  The need to push back
against the term "intellectual property" arises only when someone
pulls it out of the acronym, or spells it out in full.


-- 
Dr Richard Stallman
President, Free Software Foundation
51 Franklin St
Boston MA 02110
USA
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