The frustrating thing for some is that universally, Copyright Law is not consistent.
Example...
In the US [where this site is hosted] there is a reference in Copyright to 'fair use' which is often argued as the 'get-out-of-jail-free' card for fan art.
This is NOT the case in Australia. [for example] Copyright law here [there] does NOT allow the making of that 'backup' copy of your music CD [as everyone likes to do].....the interpretation of the Act is literal not liberal.
Although, as is stated, 'everyone does it', or in the case of fan-art walls, etc.....you can get them anywhere so do we as Administrators of this site have a 'holier than thou' attitude or right to restrict their being hosted here?
In an ideal world I think everyone would love to have it all totally black and white, but we don't run the world, only a wee bit of it.
My personal preference for a 'fair' and equitable solution to this whole situation is to demand that any images or works not wholly owned by the submitter be provided with links to the copyright holder so it is clear to everyone who genuinely OWNS the works, so WHEN their removal is demanded by said owner the Admins know the request is legitimate.
Needless to say the prime areas of issue with all this are those that are wall related.....walls, logons and bootskins.
Generally these areas have works submitted to them sitting there waiting for someone with enough strength of will [read 'thick skinned'] to sift through and reject those which are too 'not quite right-legally'....then of course be bombarded with upset rejectees...
When it is all said and done, it is the cumulative policy agreed upon by the site's community as a whole which determines what and how things are handled and or accepted.
Now and then someone from left field or the far right will come along and claim we as a whole are not doing enough or are doing too much....
But 'mostly' I think we're getting it right...
