Podcasters sue each other offer theft of ideas

[Patrick]

http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf ... xml&coll=1

I think this is pretty ridiculous. Following this logic we should of sued Dave Yates and Timesys for stealing our name. Leave it to the lawyers to ruin everything.

[greggh]

Worse than ridiculous. It's so against the spirit of podcasting. There is no "stealing ideas". We learn and we share.

[allix]

I thought the American motto is "If I can sue you, i will"
I've heard that people sue for someone that bumped into them accidentally...

In the rest of the world this kind of stupidity is laughed at.
I have to admit American habits make good humour.

[Patrick]

I thought the American motto is "If I can sue you, i will"

That's usually what lawyers will say. Ever heard the phrase "an ambulance chaser"? It's the lawyers that will spell our doom. It's no coincidence that most politicians are lawyers.

[allix]

I thought the American motto is "If I can sue you, i will"

That's usually what lawyers will say. Ever heard the phrase "an ambulance chaser"? It's the lawyers that will spell our doom. It's no coincidence that most politicians are lawyers.

That is true, I remember hearing somewhere the most popular profession in the usa is being a lawyer.

[mowestusa]

I thought the American motto is "If I can sue you, i will"

That's usually what lawyers will say. Ever heard the phrase "an ambulance chaser"? It's the lawyers that will spell our doom. It's no coincidence that most politicians are lawyers.

That is true, I remember hearing somewhere the most popular profession in the usa is being a lawyer.

Wait, Chess is a lawyer, and he is cool!

[Tsuroerusu]

That's usually what lawyers will say. Ever heard the phrase "an ambulance chaser"? It's the lawyers that will spell our doom. It's no coincidence that most politicians are lawyers.

That is true, I remember hearing somewhere the most popular profession in the usa is being a lawyer.

Wait, Chess is a lawyer, and he is cool!

Also, Eben Moglen is a lawyer too, and he's on our side, remember?

[greggh]

Also, Eben Moglen is a lawyer too, and he's on our side, remember?

Moglen, like Stallman, rules! Together, they are the dynamic duo of software freedom fighting. They are the supergeek version of Batman and Robin.

Edit: Just got a mental picture of Richard and Eben in tight spandex body suits. Whoah!! Gotta shake that one off.

[diazamet]

It really pisses me off that someone can claim ownership of an idea (or according to Wiktionary "That which exists in the mind as the result of mental activity; a thought or a concept"). It's such a stupid is the notion that multiple people can't think of the same idea completely independently!

This is how bullshit it is, from the article:

After two decades as a successful wedding videographer, Ehrlich said he began thinking about podcasting in 2005, shortly after appearing as a guest on a podcast about wedding planning.

Oh, so Ehrlich can 'steal' the idea from someone but if someone 'steals' from him then he cries foulplay!

[deptrai]

It's the lawyers that will spell our doom.

That's ridiculous. Lawyers don't sue people, people sue people. The lawyers and American judicial system (e.g. the existence of class actions) make it possible, but behind every frivolous lawsuit is someones naked greed (which is also what's behind the current "financial crises"). The lawyers are just responding to a need.

More than a decade ago, I was hit by a car while riding a bicycle in America. It was 100% his fault and I was somewhat seriously injured (emergency room, separated shoulder, etc.). While it resulted from the guy's negligence, he didn't deliberately try to hit me, all of my medical expenses were covered by insurance, and the driver paid to repair my bicycle, so I wasn't out any money other than lost work. Nonetheless, several of my lawyer friends who work in liability litigation told me that it was an open-and-shut case and they'd be happy to sue him, or as they euphemistically put it, "sue his insurance company." I declined even though they told me it was a guaranteed $15k (of which they'd keep about $5k), simply because, while it's easy to complain about all the lawsuits, until people can say no to the cash, they will continue.

It reminds me a little of the people who bitch about the violence on TV, but they can't wait to turn it on and watch. If you don't watch it, the TV stations won't show it. They need the ratings, and they're providing a service in response to a need, just like the lawyers.

It's no coincidence that most politicians are lawyers.

There, I agree 100%! Those fuckers just keep themselves at full employment by making the laws so damned arcane and unnecessarily complex that it's nearly impossible for average Joe to even know when he's breaking the law or not, let alone represent himself in court, etc. On the other hand, that's not an exclusively American problem, either, I think we find a similar situation in most countries.