I really don't like the idea of bringing the handgun debate into the copyright devate, even if the analogy is a good one. In this interview Lessig argues, "clearly there are bad uses of the handgun. But for some reason we don't entirely ban the use of the handgun. If we don't ban technologies that kill people, I don't think we should ban technology that could be used for lots of completely legitimate purposes." OK, sure, but what if you think handguns should be banned? The premise of this argument is more dubious than the conclusion. But despite the flawed presentation, I still think that the principle is correct. "These things that are completely fair uses are now being interfered with by copyright holders' [digital rights management (DRM)] technologies. If we don't have the right to use technology on our side to get around these DRM technologies, the right of fair use will have been erased."
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