Schoolyard bullies spend years honing their bullying skills, and a crackdown on bullying can destroy the value of those skills overnight. Does it follow that any crackdown on bullying should be gradual? Slaveowners build great enterprises that will become worthless overnight if slaves are emancipated; does it follow that any emancipation should be gradual?
I am not convinced (or at least not as convinced as I think cos is) that intellectual property lawyers are engaged in antisocial activities. But for one who DOES believe that, I don't see where the "gradual change" argument should hold any water. There's an argument for sending the message that "If you're doing something antisocial, even if it's legal, nobody's going to have any sympathy for you when we eventually get around to outlawing it".
I can also see arguments AGAINST sending this message, because the stuff we get around to outlawing isn't always antisocial. But I do think your argument is a lot more problematic than it looks.
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momijizukamori
no subject
Date: 2011-12-25 14:12 (UTC)Schoolyard bullies spend years honing their bullying skills, and a crackdown on bullying can
destroy the value of those skills overnight. Does it follow that any crackdown on bullying
should be gradual? Slaveowners build great enterprises that will become worthless overnight
if slaves are emancipated; does it follow that any emancipation should be gradual?
I am not convinced (or at least not as convinced as I think cos is) that intellectual
property lawyers are engaged in antisocial activities. But for one who DOES believe that,
I don't see where the "gradual change" argument should hold any water. There's an
argument for sending the message that "If you're doing something antisocial, even if it's
legal, nobody's going to have any sympathy for you when we eventually get around to
outlawing it".
I can also see arguments AGAINST sending this message, because the stuff we get around to
outlawing isn't always antisocial. But I do think your argument is a lot more problematic
than it looks.