Here’s a thought experiment for proponents of perpetual copyright.

Imagine all of the cultural treasures of the past put behind a copyright paywall.

You want to play “Pomp and Circumstance” at a graduation, you’re violating copyright or paying off the rights holder.

Ditto for a performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. All of Shakespeare’s plays. Etc. Etc.

Bear in mind that violations of copyright law in the US, including infringement without monetary gain, can be criminally prosecuted. So we’d end up with a nation of criminals, where just about anyone, especially creators, could be criminally charged based on more or less inevitable infringement of copyrights.

I was not exaggerating above when I called this madness.