After months of discussing how Hbomberguy's plagiarism video is an ethical argument for intellectual property law, despite many claiming it was merely about individual behavior, I've stumbled upon a prime example that showcases the ideology I've been critiquing.
Essence of Thought, whom I believe I've had run-ins with before, released a video accusing another YouTuber of plagiarizing her Lily Orchard series. The video, lasting over an hour, revolves around eight screenshots that Essence of Thought claims were “ripped directly from her own work.”
Vangelina Skov presents eight screenshots, eight pieces of visual evidence which she then spends the remaining time talking about, and it's those eight screenshots that allow me to confirm without a shadow of a doubt that they were ripped directly from my video.
- Essence of Thought
The absurdity here is that Essence of Thought is upset over someone using screenshots of someone else's material, which she herself used in her video. This is akin to photocopying a page from a book, displaying it, and then being outraged when someone else makes a copy of your photocopy.
But the real kicker comes when Essence of Thought, embodying the very ideology I critique in my documentary Plato Is A Bitch: A.I. and Bomberguy, becomes a leftist landlord engaging in rent-seeking behavior. She demands 30% of the video's monetary value as compensation for the alleged plagiarism, encompassing AdSense, Patreon earnings, and sponsorship revenue.
Plagiarism is not only morally wrong but also a violation of copyright law, so I expect this to be corrected. We feel we are entitled to 30% of the video's monetary value as compensation.
- Essence of Thought
This is the logical conclusion of plagiarism as an ethical concern; it’s about property dynamics and lands on leftist landlord-ass, rent-seeking behavior. I've been saying this for months, and here we have a perfect example. Essence of Thought’s actions are a form of small-scale intellectual enclosure, akin to the British crown stealing the commons and making it into private property.
These screenshots are not her own content; by her own standards, they are screen captures of someone else's content. Yet, she acts as if she is morally superior for claiming them as her own and demands compensation for their use. This is ridiculous and exemplifies the ideology I've observed. The Breadtube adjacent folks have gone from “capitalism is wrong" to “capitalism is wrong, and also, I'm gonna do capitalism!”
It’s time to recognize that the concern over plagiarism is an ethical justification for bourgeois property dynamics. Intellectual property law is the legal justification, and this ethical stance serves as both a justification for the law and a reinforcement of the ideology.
This situation is an open-and-shut example of how the ideology surrounding plagiarism and intellectual property is exactly what I described in my documentary. If you haven't watched Plato Is A Bitch: A.I. and Bomberguy yet, I am again asking you to.
Have a good day, and remember to question the ideologies that shape our perceptions of right and wrong, especially when it comes to property and creativity.
i wish i could believe Essence Of Thought was pranking their audience by complaining about *plagiarism of their screenshots* b/c that’d be actually be creative...dare i say, art-like.
but i went to their channel and whoooboy. nope.