Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!bbn!mit-eddie!bloom-beacon!gatech!ncar!noao!mcdsun!mcdchg!clyde!watmath!looking!brad From: brad@looking.UUCP (Brad Templeton) Newsgroups: comp.misc Subject: Re: lotus chairman makes 26 million Message-ID: <1614@looking.UUCP> Date: 5 May 88 17:37:55 GMT References: <380@motbos.UUCP> <9160@cisunx.UUCP> <11334@mimsy.UUCP> <1606@looking.UUCP> <18662@watmath.waterloo.edu> Reply-To: brad@looking.UUCP (Brad Templeton) Organization: Looking Glass Software Ltd. Lines: 26 In article <18662@watmath.waterloo.edu> rwwetmore@watmath.waterloo.edu (Ross Wetmore) writes: > ... a long analogy about "darwinist capitalism" > >There is no morality in nature or a capitalist economy ... except survival >ie it is immoral not to survive (it is also dangerous to your health :-). > This is pretty high on the silly analogies list, Ross. Capitalism is fundamentally based on the concept of private property. A system without a moral concept of property (ie. one where property is protected only through loyalty and strong weapons) can't have capitalism. The big debate in this forum centers in non-material property, such as software. To me, a person's creations are the truest form of personal property. While one might argue that one owns a piece of land only through social conventions, ownership and control of one's own thoughts and mental creations is indisputable -- until you publish them, and then that ownership needs laws to protect it. So to me, software is a more true form of property than land! It is not proper to do something with somebody else's property without their permission. And when you pay for the right to use software, you don't get permission to copy it and give it away. -- Brad Templeton, Looking Glass Software Ltd. - Waterloo, Ontario 519/884-7473