Law & Disorder / Civilization & Discontents  New short film
asks, “Why Copyright?”  Canadian law professor Michael Geist has
interviewed a long list of Canadians …  50 years ago, did anyone
but big rightsholders and lawmakers care about copyright? It
certainly wasn't the tremendous public issue it has become
today, and a new short film from Canadian law professor Michael
Geist takes a look at why copyright matters to people and what
they think copyright should cover.  Geist's film has a
particularly Canadian flavor, but most of the arguments made are
applicable in the US and around the world. In it, a collection
of artists, thinkers, musicians, and lawyers—even the Privacy
Commissioner of Canada—weigh in on copyright, anticircumvention
law, and the public domain.  What's most interesting isn't
necessarily what they all say, as the general sentiments will be
familiar to anyone who's been paying attention to Ars, Geist,
Lawrence Lessig, etc. over the last few years. What's really
fascinating is just how thought