"Aharonian's list of inventions" ('twas: Re: [Patents] GregNews: A history of artistic innovation as artistic invention)

[critto@wp.pl]

Date sent:              Mon, 28 Apr 2003 20:46:26 +0200 (CEST)
From:                   Hartmut Pilch <phm@a2e.de>
To:                     patents@aful.org
Subject:                [Patents] GregNews: A history of artistic innovation 
as artistic invention

> From Greg's PatNews:
> 
> !20030427  A history of artistic innovation as artistic invention
> 
>      As part of my new Web site on the global patenting of entertainment
> and art, I have prepared a lengthy (if not the longest) global chronology
> of artistic inventions over the last 4000 years. I argue that innovation
> is invention, and when properly described, patentable.  The chronology is
> available at:
> 
>             www.patenting-art.com/history/histor-e.htm

I've seen this list (Aharonian's list). It's an amazing summary of 
human genious, inventiveness, and creativity. What it shows, is 
that most of the fields of human creativity could flourish in 
abundance for thousands of years _without_ shackles of any kind 
(as patenting). I don't know the intent the author of this composition 
had, but it speaks against patents.

Imagine, how the world would look alike, if patenting of arts was 
possible, and existed for thousands of years; a small caste of 
patent owners would rule the whole civilization telling everybody 
what to speak and what not to speak; what to write, paint etc and 
what not to; I (as a person who was born under a commie rule) 
know this 'institution': it's censorship itself. Anybody who claims 
that censorship may be good for art, or acceptable in any free 
society (call it democratic, liberal, libertarian, or as you wish; I 
mean 'non-tyrannic one') is either stupid, or evil.

Of course, it's possible that art would be patented; Even now, I can 
imagine some cunning folks attempting to prove that '"writing a 
book is using a technology; writings as such should not be 
patentable, but  the writings on paper aren't the writings as such, 
because they are a complex chemical process (of printing), and 
the wawes the curves of the letters on a page create could be 
described by very complicated mathematical functions", and so on. 
After all, chattel slavery has been instituted in Georgia because of 
_heavy lobbying_ (see http://foundingfathers.info, and then the ;
pages on Georgia Colony), and it was fiercely opposed by her 
conservative and puritan governor. It reminds us, that _THE PRICE 
OF LIBERTY IS ETERNAL VIGILANCE_, and we may never go 
idle. 

It's also a wrong course to criticize the _whole_ USA as the 'pro-
patent country', because it gives the pro-software patent folks a 
'great' argument (you are either with USA and patents or against 
them both); it's a bullshit; there are lots of good, anti-patent folks in 
the USA (after all, the first anti-sw pat organization, League for 
Programming Freedom, has been established in the USA); we 
should show _their_ voice as the 'voice of dissent' (which it is) in 
the country that is wrongly supposed to be pro-sw patent.

Yours,
  Krzysztof (Christopher) "Critto" Sobolewski
  critto@wp.pl, http://www.libertaryzm.prv.pl

PS. In no way this letter was meant as a discussion with Mr. 
Aharonian; only to point out some conclusions based on the list; 
and yes, I want to thank him for this composition, because it 
contains most of the great inventions and progresses in humanity, 
and proves most patenting as unneccessary.