Cory Doctorow on Giving Away Free E-Books and the Morality of “Copying”

Insightful and interesting comments by Cory Doctorow (and surprisingly sound, given that Doctorow unfortunately favors socialized medicine (see this Free Talk Live interview):

Why do you give away your books?
Giving away ebooks gives me artistic, moral and commercial satisfaction. The commercial question is the one that comes up most often: how can you give away free ebooks and still make money?

Constitutional Ignorance Forfeits Our Rights

September 17 is Constitution Day, marking the anniversary of its 1787 signing. Schools will teach about the Constitution, but not for the obvious reason. Their reason will be that it is now required of every educational institution receiving federal aid. However, they won’t teach about the irony of that requirement, which came from the man described as the Senate’s leading Constitutional scholar, yet clearly conflicts with the Constitution.

Oh to Have China’s Troubles

Here are the headlines from Bloomberg

•AIG Plunges After Cut in Credit Rating Jeopardizes Effort to Raise Capital

•Overnight Interest Rate Doubles as Banks Hoard Cash on Failure Speculation

•Federal Reserve Adds $50 Billion to Money Market, Sending Funds Rate Lower

•Barclays Discussing Purchase of Lehman Assets, May Seek Broker-Dealer Unit

•Wall Street Convulsions May Further Erode U.S. Growth, Put Pressure on Fed

•Goldman Profit Slumps 70%, Biggest Drop Since Company Went Public in 1999

Are Fannie and Freddie Too Big to Fail?

The seizure of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac by the government cannot help the housing market or the economy. Most people hold the mistaken view that the government has extra real resources that can be used in emergencies. This is erroneous. The government is not a wealth generator; it can only consume and redistribute real wealth. What is needed to revive the economy is a growing pool of real savings.

The Glories of Change

Everyone has reason to celebrate the end of Lehman and Merrill. Overnight, while we slept, the seemingly mighty were humbled, the first made last and the last made first. The greatest became the least, all without a shot being fired. The market is the great leveler, the force in the universe that humbles all people and reminds them that they are no more important than anyone else and that their wishes must ultimately be shelved when faced with the overwhelming desire on the part of market traders that some other reality emerge.

The Social Imperative of Sound Money

We don’t use the word nationalize any more. We can try an experiment and read the new term “conservatorship” back into history. In fact, we might say that Stalin and Lenin put Russia’s industries under a kind of conservatorship. Or we might say that Mao pushed a kind of land conservatorship, or that Hitler’s policy was one of national conservatorship. Marx’s little book could be retitled The Conservatorship Manifesto.

FairTax Folly: A Real-World Example

After recently purchasing a new car and paying 6 percent of the purchase price to the state of Florida ($2,184.08) and an additional $75 to my county, I drove home outraged about having to pay this sales tax. I took comfort, however, not only in the fact that Florida has no state income tax, but that at least I didn’t have to pay a national FairTax on the purchase price. That would have set me back an additional 30 percent ($10,920.40). Does anyone really think that the FairTax wouldn’t destroy the market for new goods?

Do Hurricanes Cause Shortages?

Hurricanes reduce supply and increase demand, but it’s price controls that create shortages. The additional misery of gas lines and long postdisaster recovery periods are tragic but easily avoidable. If we are serious about minimizing damage and maximizing recovery, price-gouging laws should be one of the first things to go.
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