It is year end and like all business folk, we are looking back over the year and seeing what and who have most impacted our business this year.

Personally, family health issues have kept us at home instead of “enjoying” the life of show gypsy, but life happens and you have to roll with it. Instead we have been working on new products and the development of retail & wholesale websites.

The second biggest impact on our business has been what some like to call infringement, but what is in reality the rampant stealing of intellectual property.

Our YARNandTHREAD businesses are heavily involved with the Design Community so tend to be publicly proactive regarding copyright and intellectual property issues.

Sooner or later in any On-Line group discussions, someone starts spouting what I call the

Robin Hood Rationalization

These are the most insidious of the offenders. And, once introduced to the discussion, It is also the point at which further discussion becomes pointless.

They have decided, (without ever checking on the facts) that because they disagree with a law that protects Intellectual Property, and because these laws only exist because of their lack of respect for anyone or anything that stands in the path of what they have decided they are entitled to…

They attempt to cloak their criminal activity by Rationalizing their behavior by saying the law ONLY protects “BIG CORPORATIONS” so they are only stealing from those bad nasty people.

Like Robin Hood, these Thieves, these Pattern Pirates,

believe it is okay to STEAL

Apparently without any thought or concerns for who might be hurt.

Recently one person ranted that their action was justified as an act of Civil Disobedience. She made mention o f the Boston Tea Party. I would respond that there is a vast difference between Civil Disobedience to protest an unjust governmental policy – be that policy about where to sit on the bus to Taxation without Representation.

In fact, the reference to the Boston Tea Party, an act having to do with Taxation and how that was
considered Robbery without at Gun, is used to justify a similar act, the Stealing of a livelihood from the individual who has worked to create the pattern, chart or instructions you are enjoying.

I submit that behavior has more in common with Machevelli than Robin Hood.

Ignoring the fact that without BIG CORPORATIONS with the Deep Pockets to defending their Coroporate interests, there would be no viable protections for the tiny Microscopic Business of the Needle & Fiber Arts Independent Self-Publishers to have any protection at all.

Next time, you download a copy that someone else is illegally offering

Next time, before you STEAL (not share) an illegal copy of a pattern or chart –

Next time you offer to make Counterfeit copy of a Pattern or Chart or other Intellectual Property

Ask yourself,
Do I really want to be a petty criminal?
Do I really want to teach others that Stealing is Okay?

Everyone loves the myth of Robin Hood, and we seem to live in a Machiavellian Society.

Yet, it that really who you want to be. When all is said and done, nothing more than a common thief?

This has been in interesting few weeks. As several of us are working together to keep a good thing going – the community of the KnitDesign group – I have been amuzed to see how many folks do not read even the simpliest of directions,

And while doing my monthly “delete messages” I re-read a number of thoughts written by others …. well lets just skip the rest of the twisted paths of my thought processes…. Here is what they led to:

It occurs to me that part of the problem in understanding, among other things, copyrights are the underlying semantics for words used in the discussion.

The following definitions are from the online version of Merriam-Webster

PATTERN:
1: a form or model proposed for imitation
2: something designed or used as a model for making things i.e., a sewing pattern

DESIGN:
1: to create, fashion, execute, or construct according to plan

AUTHOR:
1 a: one that originates or creates :

– as some have mentioned, There are many elements to “Design” but I think if we put the three words together,

PATTERN DESIGN AUTHOR

It gets a bit easier to see at what point “it becomes your own” and when you can lay claim EVEN for utilitarian objects, to copyrights. (or see where you may be infringing)

In other words,

If you did not start with a blank piece of paper, then you did not DESIGN it and so have no copyright to claim.

Peace of the Season

Wheat

Day

When you try to cut & paste to the yellow legal pad

Week

When you do this more than once

’nuff said, now back to htm-ELL

When you read as many NeedleArts related groups as I do, hardly a week goes by that someone is not looking for instructions related to a “licensed” logo they want to use in an afghan or a pillow or any other number of useful things to decorate the TV room of devoted team fans.

The NFL & MLB have a web site set up JUST to give out preliminary licensing info, including if you don’t have $100,000 to hand over up front for the minimum first year royalties, do not even submit an application.

Here’s the excerpt that proves yet again, if you have to ask the price, you probably can’t afford it

2. Minimum Requirements. In order for your unsolicited proposal to be considered for the NFLP licensing program, your company MUST: …

c. Have the ability to pay 100% of minimum royalty guarantee upon execution of a license agreement (typically about $100,000 per year) and be able to generate sales sufficient to meet the minimum royalty guarantee on a yearly basis;

d. Maintain from a licensed and admitted insurance carrier with a rating not less than A-VIII from an A.M. Best-rated insurance company a Comprehensive Commercial General Liability policy in an amount of Three Million Dollars ($3,000,000.00) per occurrence and Six Million Dollars ($6,000,000.00) in the aggregate; and

Probably explains why there are no “team” needlework patterns & charts “in print”

I doubt we could sell enough before some of Robin Hood Rationalizers had them copied and “Mulitplied” throughout the internet.

Today was one of those days (well actually it is one of those weeks) where I “allow” myself to wander both studio and web strictly in search of things to awe and entertain me – reading to catch up on, whatever I please.

You may remember months ago, the note about making lemonaide
and of course

Lemon Spinning Wheel –

That was for fun – but this, oh my!

As an admitted sufferer from the Magpie factor (attraction to shiny things), Glass working is also one of my secret (well until now) passions – and we already know I save spinning “just for me” – no business attached.

Andy Paiko’s definitely qualifies for a “Takes My Breath Away”

Andy Paiko’s Glass Spinning Wheel

And to have him combine two of my passions in one sculpture, well let’s just say the rest of the next hour or so was lost in exploring and contemplating the wonders of this glass artisan.

Do visit AndyPaikoGlass – this is only one of the great pix of this functioning sculpture and there is just so much more wonderful stuff – but remember to breath