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Friends,
We have been simply overwhelmed by your support. The speed with which we reached our first Legal Fund milestone of $2000 was simply stunning and the developers, admins, forum moderators and other users would like to thank all those who contributed and who showed their support by bringing our plight to the world's attention.
In all discussions regarding intellectual property, there is one fundamental right that is never in dispute: the right to be recognized as a creator. This moral right transcends arguments on whether copyright should last for 50 years or a hundred, whether software should be patentable or not, or even what a fair price price for an MP3 file is. Being able to say to the world "I made this" and be acknowledged for it is, for many people, the only reward they receive for their work. To deny that right is to is an insult to the creative forces flowing through every writer, performer, musician, actor and programmer who brings their work to the world.
So where does this end? Is this how the new kings of the information age will be born; by the appropriation of another's identity? Who be the next one to have their name and reputation yanked out from under them? It happened to us. Maybe you will be next.
To all those who have supported us, we ask you now for more. More blogging, more Digging, more Slashdotting, more researching and above all, more money. We're setting up an unlimited donation fund which will give us more fighting power when the time comes. The one single advantage our opponents have over us is deeper pockets, but your generosity and outrage has piqued the interest of several powerful entities whom we hope will become our allies in this fight. Let them see your commitment to an open culture, one where individuals matter more than corporate interests. A culture where saying "I made this" truly means something.
To our opponents: You have brought this on yourselves and our community stands firmly behind us. Take this moment now to reconsider where your course of action will lead. By all means sell your service, collect your statistics, allow people to discover new artworks. Just don't steal our identity or theirs to achieve it. Our identity is all we really have. That, and our passion for freedom.
Let us have that, and enjoy your own.
We have been simply overwhelmed by your support. The speed with which we reached our first Legal Fund milestone of $2000 was simply stunning and the developers, admins, forum moderators and other users would like to thank all those who contributed and who showed their support by bringing our plight to the world's attention.
In all discussions regarding intellectual property, there is one fundamental right that is never in dispute: the right to be recognized as a creator. This moral right transcends arguments on whether copyright should last for 50 years or a hundred, whether software should be patentable or not, or even what a fair price price for an MP3 file is. Being able to say to the world "I made this" and be acknowledged for it is, for many people, the only reward they receive for their work. To deny that right is to is an insult to the creative forces flowing through every writer, performer, musician, actor and programmer who brings their work to the world.
So where does this end? Is this how the new kings of the information age will be born; by the appropriation of another's identity? Who be the next one to have their name and reputation yanked out from under them? It happened to us. Maybe you will be next.
To all those who have supported us, we ask you now for more. More blogging, more Digging, more Slashdotting, more researching and above all, more money. We're setting up an unlimited donation fund which will give us more fighting power when the time comes. The one single advantage our opponents have over us is deeper pockets, but your generosity and outrage has piqued the interest of several powerful entities whom we hope will become our allies in this fight. Let them see your commitment to an open culture, one where individuals matter more than corporate interests. A culture where saying "I made this" truly means something.
To our opponents: You have brought this on yourselves and our community stands firmly behind us. Take this moment now to reconsider where your course of action will lead. By all means sell your service, collect your statistics, allow people to discover new artworks. Just don't steal our identity or theirs to achieve it. Our identity is all we really have. That, and our passion for freedom.
Let us have that, and enjoy your own.
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