On Wed, 15 Mar 2006, Jimmy Wales wrote:
Furthermore, our *goals* -- neverminding the legal
problesm that
Jean-Christophe Chazalette wrote about -- our *goals* include a very
high degree of reusability. Hosting materials that are subject to
copyright everywhere in the world except in the USA is a mistake on the
simple grounds that such work would not be redistributable anywhere else.
This is why we should take a very very skeptical eye toward the use of
"fair use" even in English.
In counterpoint, Wikipedia is a prime example of the importance of fair
use as a catalyst for better information and education. To the extent
that the world is still working out the 'right' way to allow commentary,
satire, and analysis while protecting author's rights, it is relevant that
Wikipedia takes advantage of fair use. Changing policy to stop doing so
would likewise influence those ongoing "fair use standards" debates.
This is an interesting and important strategic point. One can go
overboard when it comes to being squeaky clean. There is always a need
to maintain a certain dynamic and avoiding interpretations of the law
which our adversaries design solely for their own benefit. Many
copyright notices serve only to deter the ignorant.
Ec