Screaming Penguin

I am writing to voice my opposition to H.R. 801, the "The Fair Copyright in Research Works Act". In the Information Age, the idea that government funded research should be a walled garden, hidden from the view of researchers, students, amateurs, and the public in order to protect an aging monopoly on publishing is unconscionable. The marginal cost of sharing knowledge has become near zero, and yet, this bill would require, not even a tax, but a private sector toll be paid for Americans to gain access to the fruits of their own tax dollars. We all hope that you, Congress, and President Obama will deliver on the promise of a more free, open, and transparent access to government information. This is obviously critical to the democratic process. Access to information is even more critical to the scientific process. The scientific community has understood this since Francis Bacon introduced the world to modern science in the 16th century. The world has changed drastically in the intervening centuries, but the belief in freely shared knowledge has not. Of course, through the history of science, the spread of knowledge has been beholden to those that control the physical presses. Today, knowledge has let slip the bonds of cellulose and glue and even that of space. To forcibly restrain this, perhaps the most important of human endeavours, simply to protect the pocketbooks of those who still control physical presses is to do harm to all mankind. "I have taken all knowledge to be my province," should not be constrained to protect outmoded business interests. Moreover, the stated constitutional purpose of copyright is, "To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts." For research funded by the American people, protecting markets ex post facto does little to spur further innovation. The American People through their government have already decided that the effort was a worthy one and funded it. To apply the language of copyright to curtail the further progress of science in both the private and public sectors is not what our founding fathers would have wanted. I urge you and your fellow Congressmen to vote against this act, and any legislation that denies the American people open access to information discovered, developed, or created with their tax dollars, whether scientific or civic in nature. Thank You.