Copyright clarity at last
AT LAST we have legal finality in this wretched case of the macacque monkey that took a selfie deep in the forests of Indonesia.
Readers might recall that British wildlife photographer David Slater set up his camera in the forest to record the antics of the macacques. At which one of them somehow tripped the camera, producing a grimacing close-up of himself.
The photograph was used in various newspapers and magazines about the world (including this one). It was a hit.
But then Naruto – the name bestowed on the macaque – sued Slater in America for infringement of copyright. Well, not Naruto exactly – he's still cavorting in the forests of Indonesia – People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) sued on his behalf.
Peta took it to the US Court of Appeals. But the court ruled against Naruto/Peta this week, according to Huffington Post.
Said Judge Carlos Bea: "We must determine whether a monkey may sue humans, corporations, and companies for damages and injunctive relief arising from claims of copyright infringement.
"We conclude that this monkey - and all animals, since they are not human - lacks statutory standing under the Copyright Act."
Phew! That's a relief. There's a yak in Borneo that's been threatening defamation for this column making fun of his kind, not to mention that bushbaby in Dukuduku.
But I decline to describe Peta as a pack of absurd, trouble-making, monkey-hugging sentimentalists. They are not beyond bringing an action claiming this column is in fact written by the troop leader of the Morningside vervet monkeys. Peta stops at nothing!
Disgusting tide
IT WAS Earth Day last Sunday. Our TV screens had all kinds of people, all over the world, telling us about the disgusting tide of plastic throwaways – wrappers, bottles straws – that are actually destroying our oceans as the objects eventually come to outnumber fish. Plastic, of course, doesn't biodegrade.
There was much talk about recycling and the need to step this up. I did not hear a single pundit suggest the swift and effective shortcut – stop using plastic for wrappers, bottles and straws. Go back to what we used in the fifties – paper and glass. It's not rocket science.
Mind you, we did hear it from local Greenpeace Africa, as reported in yesterday's paper. Nhlanhla Sibisi said: "There seems to be a public perception and expectation that the recycling industry will save the planet. Reactive clean-ups are not the solution, only once we have a clean-up of the systemic reliance on plastic will we see the change we want to achieve."
Hoor hoor! Well said!
Punctures
READER Andrew Scott points out, however, that glass also doesn't degrade. It just breaks down into sharp pieces that give him punctures on his morning bicycle rides.
So much so that he has fitted a box to his bike carrier, into which he places all broken bottles he encounters, then puts them in a recycling bin – probably 10kg a week.
This is most commendable but, with respect, it addresses a slightly different problem. A bottle in the sea will sink and eventually be ground by the motion of the waves into tiny, smooth granules of sand.
What do we do about the oafs who throw glass bottles onto cycle paths? That's another problem.
Contact sport?
MENTION this week of rugby and ballet reminds my retired colleague Clyde Bawden of Heyneke Meyer, when he was the Bulls coach, responding to a comment that rugby is a contact sport.
"No," he replied. "Ballroom dancing is a contact sport. Rugby is a collision sport."
Dinosaur enlists
YOU can do just about anything in the forces, except mock tradition. A senior non-commissioned officer in the Tennessee National Air Guard had a video made, replicating her enlistment oath.
The difference this time though was that the words were mouthed by a dinosaur glove puppet on her hand.
Master Sergeant Robin Brown says she did it only to amuse her young children. But somehow the video got onto Facebook.
The Tennessee brass are not amused. The issue is being addressed, a general says. As they say in the forces, HKK – hier kom …
Tailpiece
OUTSIDE of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read.
Last word
Hope is tomorrow's veneer over today's disappointment.
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