In a world where knowledge is the only source of authentic power, intellectual property is the ultimate act of theft. So it is of the first importance to pay close attention to every loophole and scam in the grey sea of copyright protection.
Here's a simple one: damn near every book published in America gives the reader explicit permission to excerpt at will as long as the excerpt occurs in the context of a review of the work cited. That's a pretty bad presentation of copyright law, but the following quotes are still legal.
Consider the following excerpt from Carlos Castaneda's semina work, The Teachings of Don Juan, a Yaqui Way of Knowledge:
" 'Are you angry at me, don Juan?' I asked when he returned. He seemed surprised at my question.
" 'No! I'm never angry at anybody! No human being can do anything important enough for that. You get angry at people when you feel that their acts are important. I don't feel that way any longer.' "
Copyright 1968, by the Regents of the University of California Press.
Consider this, from a much later book by Castaneda: The Power of Silence: Further Lessons of don Juan:
" 'The modality of time is the precise bundle of the energy fields being perceived,' [don Juan] answered."
Copyright 1987 by Carlos Castaneda
Years ago, when I expressed admiration for the former book, some people felt a great need to disabuse me of my naivete and inform me that Castenada was just a shyster who made the whole thing, or at least most of it, up. I already knew this, and I always told people that they didn't understand the book if they thought that was important. The line from the second book cited, nineteen years down the line from whatever decisions led Castaneda down the path he took, is from page two of the introduction, which is exactly how far I got before I had to put that worthless piece of crap down and vow never again. I bought the first don Juan book at my favorite used book store for one dollar a couple of years ago and I do believe I've filled my essential Castaneda shelf with that single purchase. I do not have room in my head for dialogues on the spirit that start with phrases like the modality of time. I'm trying to discover something in this life.
Mr. Castaneda? Can you hear me? Hello? Hello? Mr. Castaneda, it's time to go out into the desert and eat a whole bunch of peyote and try to figure out at what point in your life you went terribly, terribly wrong and started retching out this odious new-age pablum. Jesus, as if the world wasn't complicated enough, without this sort of money-making shyster rip-off being sold to unsuspecting tourists on the weird side of the street. Repent, Mr. Castaneda, repent!
There, my duty done for another day. I don't even know if the man is alive. I don't pay very much attention to the news. Someone at work had to tell me that Captain Kangaroo was dead. It ruined my day.
klik if you demand tedious explanations of every little thing.
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