Mcleod

Kembrew Mcleod begins his book with a variety of examples geared to show how copyright laws may be taken over the top. He first argues that Fox News, and talk show host Bill O'Reilly in particular, have a tendency to take things too far, thereby waging a war against individual freedoms. Bill is no stranger to going over the top, as seen here (warning: contains strong language). Mcleod continues with his examples, this time moving from Fox onto Donald Trump, who apparently trademarked his infamous phrase "You're fired," and his arrogant hand gesture as well. Mcleod likely incorporated this series of examples at the beginning of his book to get readers emotionally involved in the issue at hand. When hearing multiple absurd stories one after another many people are likely to get fired up and will be more receptive to the message to come.

Other ways in which Mcleod presents his argument are close to home for our class. Mcleod discusses methods used by seed companies to prevent farmers from reusing seeds year after year. I was slightly caught off guard by the fact that Mcleod introduces this section of the reading with a description of Iowa that is stereotypical at best. I feel like most Iowans constantly work to encourage others to dismiss the stereotypes commonly held toward our state, but Mcleod furthers these views with his overview of Iowa: "surrounded by corn, pork, pickup trucks, and. . . meth labs." That aside, he moves on to demonstrate how a situation in rural Iowa may be relevant to anyone living in the most urban of areas. Despite the drastic difference in the objects being patented, I find Mcleod's analogy of seed patents very effective in facilitating an understanding of how ridiculous copyright laws can be. Overall, it is through Mcleod's effective use of examples and the relevant comparisons he is able to draw that makes this reading helpful in understanding how copyright laws in this country are ridiculous.

-Ryan Stefani