I don't believe in intellectual property, but I wish I did, so I act as though I do.
I do this because I respect the efforts of those who create, and I want them rewarded for what they have done.
But I still see it as wishful thinking.
If intellectual property were a real thing, a person who invented self-replicating nanobots would own the rights to them all, no matter who bought some from him, no matter how many generations removed from him the nanobots you are talking about were, and no matter how many there were throughout the Universe.
What would make sentences different than nanobots, concerning IP?
If intellectual property were a real thing, a person would own all rights to a new dog breed he worked a lifetime to create. He would own all the offspring of the dogs he had sold- on through the years and generations.
Both of these examples are the same as saying the author or composer owns the book or song he created.
It would be nice, but it just isn't reality.
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