Blogger closed down my favourite copyright violation site!

Hasta luego Edgar León, but what’s the real solution?

Few Venezuelan sailors do not know las Tetas de María Guevara. Photo <a href='http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Free_Documentation_License'>GNU</a> by <a href='http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Wilfredor'>Wilfredo Rodríguez</a>

Few Venezuelan sailors do not know las Tetas de María Guevara. Photo GNU by Wilfredo Rodríguez

Although it was blatantly and grossly illegal, I was sorry to hear of the closure by Blogger of Edgar León’s massive blog of MP3s and transcriptions of music for the cuatro venezolano. A few great songs I wouldn’t have learned without it:

  1. El marciano – Astolfo Romero
  2. El clavel celoso – Los Tucusitos
  3. Las hormigas – Cecilia Todd
  4. El mango y la manzana – Luis Mariano Rivera/Jesús Sevillano
  5. Madrugada llanera – Juan Vicente Torrealba/Mario Suarez
  6. Y ni na ni ná – Otilio Galindez/Quinteto Contrapunto
  7. Corrío – José Romero Bello/el Carrao de Palmarito
  8. Las tetas de María Guevara – Perucho Aguirre/Quinto Criollo
  9. La pulga y el piojo – Iván Perez Rossi/Serenata Guayanesa

I sympathise with the libertarian argument that copyright law constitutes illegitimate market distortion and misdirects human resources which would be better employed growing turnips towards the production of mediocre literature and music.

I also regard current legislation as absurd and abusive–I’d go for something like {author’s life + 20} so as not to have to suffer tabloid photos of trophy spouses in the gutter.

However I still think we should be attempting to force by democratic means changes to laws designed purely to benefit accountants, publishers, musicians’ unions and other parasitical fuckers.

Now that Google is cracking down, it will be interesting to see what happens to all the Spanish blogs which earn modest amounts from Google Ads by pirating paid-for content presented inaccessibly (sometimes by intent, more often by incompetence) by the bankrupt traditional media.

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Some more cuatro / venezolano links:

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Comments

  1. I’ve always found the libertarian attitude to copyright law puzzling, surely it is an even more valid form of property than tangible property, as it is created without the appropriation of natural resources, which is often effected by coercive measures.

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