dump self-replies since:2023-01-01

content/_dump/copyright-is-theft.md

@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+well opposing copyright isn't thievery, for a start. theft is the act of taking something without returning it, removing the original. digital information can be infinitely and perfectly copied.
+
+copyright enforcement is instead about giving certain parties exclusive monopolies on the spread of information. this gatekeeps culture and stifles free expression. in return for what? trying to sell access?
+
+note also this monopoly is only enforced via the threat of state violence.
+
+tangentially, there's also the fundamental inversion of value that occurs when artists try to fund themselves by selling art as if it were a commodity. the value in art is not necessarily in the final product alone but moreso in the creation of it. 
+
+copyright asks us to perform creative labour for free, and hope to recoup our losses via the market (in which you must differentiate yourself from millions of functionally equivalent forms of art and entertainment -- good luck!)
+
+when you recognize this inversion of value, you recognize that the real answer to making sure artists get paid is to actually pay them for the work they do, not to commodify what they produce. things like commissions, patronage, public works funds, etc. all get to the root and heart of the issue.
+
+copyright is in effect more akin to theft -- theft from the public, from the commons, from culture. it benefits no one except those who "own" a lot of art -- the disneys of the world.
+
+in short: if you want artists to get paid, copyright is a really poor and ineffective way to do that. it just leads to big monopolies on art, at the expense of everyone else.

content/wrong/personal-websites.md

@@ -9,4 +9,16 @@ if you go searching, all you find is SEO bullshit about "personal brands" and "s
 
 where's the advice on how to make a personal website? a noncommercial one, i mean. one that's about a person. self-expression. how to self-reflect and introspect and know yourself. how to identify and introduce yourself. how to be genuinely engaging. stuff that gets to the heart of who you are.
 
-i suppose part of this is the difficulty in finding purpose with such a website. good communication has occasion-purpose-audience, and you might be able to figure out occasion and audience (someone visits your profile and wants to read more about you?), but not purpose (why are they here and what do i want to tell them?)
+i suppose part of this is the difficulty in finding purpose with such a website. good communication has occasion-purpose-audience, and you might be able to figure out occasion and audience (someone visits your profile and wants to read more about you?), but not purpose (why are they here and what do i want to tell them?)
+
+---
+
+it's so hard to find inspiration for good design, partly because people pump out so much bad design and try to promote it for profit
+
+all the stuff that floats to the top of the SEO bullshit puddle is really cookie-cutter website templates from some listicle titled "25 best free templates" or "40 free site themes" or whatever
+
+the thing that really gets to me though is that it's so hard to tell a narrative about myself. and i suspect other people might have this issue too. it's easier to build a website when you have a clear flow of the information and how to architect it. that comes less naturally when you're trying to differentiate one person from a billion others.
+
+i mean, who am i? who is a? what information do i *really* want to impart on anyone who wants to know more about me? no clue...
+
+and then if i manage to come up with some info about me: how do i present that visually? ordering, layout, style, etc. and also, what story am i telling? how do i tell it?