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We Americans have a long history of fighting 'big,' wisely or not. That we could be motivated to fight 'big' again is not something new. It would be something new, and something very important, if an equal number could be rallied to fight the increasing extremism built within the idea of 'intellectual property.' Not because balance is alien to our tradition; indeed, as I've argued, balance is our tradition. But because the muscle to think critically about the scope of anything called 'property' is not well exercised within this tradition anymore. If we were Achilles, this would be our heel. This would be the place of our tragedy.

Lawrence Lessig#45

PoliticsIntellectual propertyBalancePropertyExtremismTradition

About this quote

What does it mean?
Lessig warns against extremism in intellectual property, urging Americans to fight for balance as a tradition, noting our critical thinking about property scope is declining.
In plain terms
We need to fight against extreme property ideas.
What can you take from it?
Balance in property law is a forgotten American tradition.

Where it applies

  • public mobilization
  • policy debate
  • cultural critique

Putting it to work

  • speech
  • advocacy

Questions to consider

  • Where is the line on property?
  • Why do we ignore balance now?

Another view

Not all agree property rights should be balanced against public access.

More from Lawrence Lessig

  1. The danger in media concentration comes not from the concentration, but instead from the feudalism that this concentration, tied to the change in copyright, pr…

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  2. I've told a dark story. The truth is more mixed. A technology has given us a new freedom. Slowly, some begin to understand that this freedom need not mean anar…

    Permalink to quote #46
  3. It might be crazy to expect a high government official to speak the truth. It might be crazy to believe that government policy will be something more than the …

    Permalink to quote #43

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