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> If it were in any other country but China, it wouldn't be allowed to happen.

IIRC the USA did plenty of that.



Even inside itself: filmmakers went to remote Los Angeles in the early 1900s because Thomas Edison, in NJ, held most of the patents on motion picture cameras and out west they were much more difficult to enforce.


That’s my understanding as well; that the Industrial Revolution in the US was very much based on IP from outside the US.


Enforcing IP laws is merely pulling the ladder up after the US had its success.


What, should we let each country "have their turn" at morals, ethics and ideas from a hundred years ago or more?

I mean if that's the case the so be it, but they should expect protectionism in response - US already bans export of certain technologies to China, if we embrace the differences in views on IP theft, how are Western countries meant to protect the IP they invested money in nowadays?

Or do we just give it away for free? Who pays to develop this free IP then?


But was it state sponsored? My understanding is that it was mostly robber barrons doing their thing, which isn't really "The US", its more "People in the US".


This may be the furthest I've seen the false dichotomy between government and corporations stretched.


I'll admit the failures of the US government just much as anyone, am and will always be a tough critic..

But let's not forget the greater context here.

We are talking about a communist country with very top down, state architected enterprises and actions with the USA, which is certainly not those things.

The US isn't perfect, by any means, I'm not trying to say that. Context, that's what I'm trying to have us remember here.


How is that context supposed to be relevant to the point? That China is doing a poorer job by trying to direct the process centrally rather than something more nimble?


I'm not trying to say anything in particular other than drawing conclusions by making comparisons the US from 100-200 years ago to China today isn't very relevant and therefore is not very useful.

My original comment that started this whole thread is similar. I'm not trying to communicate any kind of opinion on it. It's just an observation of things I've personally seen happen in the world. Others are putting their own opinions on if it's right or wrong. I'm not trying to say any of that, just share my honest observations on the world.



Slavery was once legal here as well.

Just because it was once legal when the world was far different doesn't justify actions today.


China and the US are different today.




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