Re: Apple II Reference Manual ("Red Book")

[Roy and/or Janet Miller <millers@inetnebr.com>]

Paul Schlyter wrote:
> 
> In article <38FC8DAB.8625279D@inetnebr.com>,
> Roy and/or Janet Miller  <millers@inetnebr.com> wrote:
> 
> > Paul Schlyter wrote:
> >>
> >> Crossing the street against a red light is illegal.  Is it also immoral?
> >
> > Short answer: Yes. Why? It endangers a human life, or even more than
> > one. Therefore, it is immoral.
> 
> OK, at least you're consistent... :-)))   Now I know you must consider
> me a lowlife since I've crossed streets illegally many times.  :-)))))

No, I don't. I've done it too, but not when there was traffic - which is
what is implied in endangering human life.

> 
> > Now, what if it is 3:00 a.m., and there's no traffic, auto or foot. Aye,
> > there's the rub.
> 
> What rub?  Didn't you just say it's immoral, period?  :-)))))

No, I didn't say it was immoral period. I said "short answer." Implied,
there is a long answer, and complexities in life.
 
> Btw if there's no foot traffic, no-one will be there able to illegally
> cross the street... :-))))

The obvious implication is foot traffic other than the person crossing.
 
> 
> Now lets consider another situation: suppose you did live in Nazi
> Germany under the rule of Hitler.  Also suppose you heard someone, a
> friend, a family member, or a stranger, say something unfavourble
> about Hitler.  Then it would have bene your legal duty to inform
> Gestapo about this.  Suppose you didn't do it -- then you surely did
> commit an illegal act, which could easily have sentenced you to to
> prison, perhaps even to death.  But would you have done something
> immoral, just because it happened to be illegal in that country at
> that time?
> 

No, because there are times when it would be immoral to obey laws. For
example, what you cited. Or if the Gestapo comes to my home and asks if
I'm harboring Jews (assuming I was) to give them the truth would be to
violate a higher law. And that was what the Nuremberg trials were all
about. (I misspelled that didn't I?)

Perhaps the best way to look at this question of copyrights is that it
is impolite to copy without asking first. Someone used the analogy of
two shovels. Even if I'm not using my shovel, and haven't in years (it's
time to take it out and work the garden again), even if I didn't mind
you using it, to just TAKE it, without asking, is rude. As well as
illegal.

Roy