[LINK] Statement of Principles: Copyright and the FTA

[Deus Ex Machina]

Craig Sanders [cas at taz.net.au] wrote:
> On Mon, Jun 28, 2004 at 09:57:45PM +1000, Deus Ex Machina wrote:
> > what you seem to be asking is that we take on faith important policy
> > decisions. all I am asking is that decisions that curtail property
> > rights or
> > directly advocate various types of redistribution should be measured
> > to
> > determine that the expected outcomes actually eventuate.
>
> how about you start the ball rolling?  first provide evidence that
> property > rights are a desirable thing.  or is that something we should just
> take on > faith (on the grounds that your religion is better than other people's
> religions)?

here is a good starting point

The Birth of Plenty : How the Prosperity of the Modern World was Created
by William Bernstein

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0071421920/qid=1088484037/sr=8-1/ref=pd_ka_1/104-1206838-6143934?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

"He identifies institutions ("the framework within which human beings
think, interact and carry on business") as the engines of prosperity.
Boiled down to four (property rights, the scientific method, capital
markets and communications), these institutions come from ideas and
practices that bubbled forth over the course of hundreds of years.
Bernstein is clear in explaining that the civilizations that develop and
implement these systems thrive, and that those that do not, perish"

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0465051960/qid=1088484679/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl14/104-1206838-6143934?v=glance&s=books&n=507846
Power and Prosperity: Outgrowing Communist and Capitalist Dictatorships
by Mancur Olson

"The challenge ahead is not merely to hasten privatization, Olson says.
Instead, economists must work to ensure that a "market-augmenting
government" first secures individual rights to private property and
guarantees the impartial enforcement of contracts--in his view the two
essential ingredients for prosperity"

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0312210833/qid=1088484679/sr=8-2/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i2_xgl14/104-1206838-6143934?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

The Noblest Triumph: Property and Prosperity Through the Ages
by Tom Bethell

"In The Noblest Triumph, Tom Bethell looks at the history of property
rights and shows that the key role played by the institution of private
property has been misunderstood by Western elites for more than a
century. Beginning with the ancient Greeks and arriving at the present
day, Bethell looks at basic ideas about property found in the writings
of Plato, Adam Smith, Blackstone, Bentham, Marx, Mill, and others. He
shows that the institution of property is inextricably tied to
traditional conceptions of justice and liberty, and he argues that
prosperity and civilization can only arise where private property is
securely held by the people"

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0521597137/ref=pd_sim_books_2/104-1206838-6143934?v=glance&s=books

Economic Analysis of Property Rights (Political Economy of Institutions
and Decisions) by Yoram Barzel 

"This book provides the reader insight into how property rights define
how society organizes itself. Building on Public Choice Theory, Barzel
explores how property rights are delineated in many situations,
addressing head on the Tragedy of the Commons."


google on correlation between proposperty and property rights

http://www.google.com.au/search?num=100&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&c2coff=1&q=correlation+prosperity+property+rights&spell=1

http://www.pfizerforum.com/english/odriscoll.shtml
"Property Rights. A well-functioning legal system adhering to the rule
of law and respect for private property, including intellectual
property, create the indispensable foundations for economic growth. As
Professor Robert Barro of Harvard University explained: "If property
rights are insecure - for example, because of high crime rates or high
rates of taxation or high chances of government expropriation - people
tend to work less and invest little." 

I am not asking for rigorous scientific proof, I am asking for at least
some demonstrateable correlation to reality.

> it has already been proved many times (even though you choose to
> ignore it)

where? reference?

http://www.freemarketfoundation.com/catalogue/cataloguetext.asp?catid=1051

"The point was made eloquently by Garrett Hardin in his celebrated paper
The Tragedy of the Commons: .Ruin is the destination toward which all
men rush, each pursuing his own best interest in a society that believes
in the freedom of the commons. Freedom in a commons brings ruin to
all..1 To put the point differently, unless rule of law exists . which
protects property rights, gives widespread ownership of the means of
production and facilitates free passage in economic activity . economic
freedom is meaningless. "


http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/162/3859/1243
The Tragedy of the Commons by Garrett Hardin


> that resisting the expansion of copyright is NOT "curtailing IP
> rights", it is fighting against the theft of the commons.

you have been reading too much Lessig. IP comes from people talents not
from the world at large.

and let me guess you are one of those people whose livelyhood depends
on protecting private information yet declare that no such thing exists?

Vic