Legality

I finally bought my first “legal” software in perhaps, my entire life (so far at least) yesterday. It was “The Ultimate Steal” or so the student promo package for the new Office 2010 Professional says.

Surprisingly, it made me feel good. Does this mean I have finally sold out? Well, my old friends who subscribe to the Open Source movement would probably say I sold out the moment I got my industry certification to be a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (whatever that was), back when it was still rare and prized in the industry. That was twelve years ago. Like my old hero Bill Gates though, I have long since moved on from that kind of life. Nevertheless, Tux the Penguin, a gift from a friend during that era, still sits proudly in my bedroom at home.

Anyway, it is a testament to my new course in life that my recent purchase inspired questions that I wouldn’t have thought about if I wasn’t in this business of writing and exchanging legal ideas. My question is – what is it about legality that induces a certain feeling of satisfaction? A feeling that I am following norms that deep down I probably agree with? To be clear, I was not a hippie with anarchist-leanings during those days, I just believed there was no comparison between Linux and Microsoft. Microsoft was selling convenience in the same way that Apple currently is, even if it can be deemed a given that Open Source products are probably superior in quality. Besides, while compiling one’s own Linux kernel is fun for a seventeen-year old with time on her hands, most people are simply not interested in that.

The point is categorizing something as legal or illegal have broader implications and can certainly influence choices. (I don’t mean to talk about, let’s say, criminalizing rape or cannibalism but things that can be arguably ambivalent about its moral value like maybe, ingesting marijuana). I am not familiar with the literature on sociology of law but I suppose lawmakers take these things into consideration when they want to influence the choices people make, a la Cass Sunstein’s choice architecture. Of course, it also implicates a lot of other things like psychology, economics and things related. Now that I think about it, it probably was a good tactic for IP advocates to pursue the piracy/theft analogy but then again, that hasn’t really stopped a lot of people from buying “illegal” software.

Time lapse living

I am fortunate enough to write my dissertation in an office with a view. The best part is that I never liked to write in rooms which induce claustrophobia. The worst part is observing the outside world, well, as an outsider. It is almost as if I am watching the day unfold a la time-lapse photography style. A day in the life of HLS. I see familiar faces come in at around nine in the morning, and I see the same faces leave at around half past five in the afternoon. Only the sun’s position changes. Everything else stays the same.

Well, I suppose not everything. Four days from California, and a week away from Rome, I have made some progress on my research. Not in terms of pages but in clarity of thought. I should therefore appreciate any gains I make, however little. Maybe it will come faster as the days go by. Surprisingly, I enjoy working in this kind of quiet. These days, I leave my office with the sun still out. And with huge sports events currently ongoing, I have been going out with some friends in the evening to relax while watching them. Tomorrow, I am going out with a friend to watch the much-anticipated US v. England World Cup match, and to have a beer in the middle of the day. But not after finishing a chapter of yet another intellectual history book I am reading, and cataloging a list of archives I might have to consult during the summer.

Still, it is hard not to miss Rome. But maybe after I finish this chapter I will feel deserving enough to go on another vacation, provided there is not much financial burdens involved. As a friend reminded me a few weeks ago, I, of all people, have been trained long enough for delayed self-gratification. This shouldn’t be too hard. But it’s always easier said than done.