By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 14/08/2026Every pirate wants to be an admiral - but every admiral must then confront the pirates who rush in to fill the vacuum they create when they switch sides. But that system of beneficial disruption was itself disrupted - not by technology, but by policy. 17/ 1160
By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 14/08/2026In 1998, Clinton signed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). DMCA Section 1201 makes it a felony to practice adversarial interoperability, establishing penalties of $500k and five years in prison for people who reverse engineer and modify products: pluralistic.net/2026/01/14/s... 18/pluralistic.netPluralistic: It’s not normal (14 Jan 2026) – Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow 1206
By Cory Doctorow (GPG 0xBF3D9110957E5F4C) @doctorow.pluralistic.net · 14/08/2026DMCA 1201 created a one-way ratchet that progressively narrowed the possibilities for tech competition. 19/ 1151