Bookmarks: Some stuff to read on the internet - Lily Allen

Gary Marshall has done a lovely piece for TechRader responding the Lily Allen's use of a copied article¹ and a scanned letter to fight copyright infringement:

It's clear that Allen doesn't see that she's done anything wrong - her apology isn't exactly graceful or particularly apologetic - and that's the point.

Many, many illegal downloaders don't see that they've done anything wrong, either - and by doing the very thing she's campaigning against, anything Allen has to say on the subject of respecting copyright is going to be ignored.

That's a shame, because there's a debate to be had on the issue of copyright and fair use. But there's another debate to be had, too, which is whether the existing system is even worth protecting in the first place.

¹ - Oh, yes - she pinched a piece from TechDirt and passed it off as her own. And when caught, she says it was obvious she wasn't trying to pass it off as her own work, despite not having mentioned it wasn't. It's quite fun to read the comments, where Allen's supporters try to explain that THIS ISN'T THE SAME THING AT ALL.