So is it then OK to steal from musicians because it's an insecure, ill-paid profession? Because it's hard, we should all make it harder?

If you look at the individual elements, they kind of run the gamut from ridiculous to cliched. And yet. . .

How about the Ornette Coleman solo hidden at the end of Joe Henry's Scar?

I agree about Stoppard - that was injudicious and unnecessary of me.

Plus, Mr. Burns' shells worked.

Right - the skinny educated guy who could type was a coward. That's not a cliche at all.

Hegemonic is definitely apt.

I don't like Jesus, either. It's probably a character defect.

I take your point - and it's certainly fair - but it's kind of like disliking gravity: it just is. Plus, I really do love Shakespeare, so there's that too.

Nobody's perfect

Shakespeare is like the King James Bible: if you speak English, it permeates everything. John Webster is great though. So is Kip Marlowe, but I doubt we unconsciously speak their words in the same way we do with Bill the Shake. I respect anyone who has an opinion on the merits of John Webster though.

Let's not go crazy. Plus, you've got to admit the Dutchess of Malfi -which is awesome, don't get me wrong - turns the whole Jacobean revenge tragedy thing up to 11.

What can I say? I'm a sucker for John Webster jokes.

I have seen the movie - I know what happens. It is emotionally manipulative shit with utterly no moral ambiguity or subtlety whatsoever, in my opinion. Spielberg doesn't do subtle, except with big flaming letters. I liked The Thin Red Line a great deal. It succeeded in what you are describing. I don't know you. I…

You call it contrarian, I call it good taste. I think Steven Spielberg is an excellent propagandist: I hate pretty much everything he's done (with a couple of exceptions). His movies actually make me angry they are so manipulative. And don't get me started on his idiot buddy Stephen Ambrose. Aparently, you like…

Just so my opinion is known, as soon as the Omaha Beach landing sequence ends, Saving Private Ryan devolves into a "greatest generation" propaganda movie that even Leni Riefenstahl would have found a tad much. The fucking Sands of Iwo Jima had more nuance. Shakespeare in Love - written, in part, by Tom fucking…

No doubt, although I've found that most judges really do take their jobs seriously- and I practice in a state where they can be elected. Which is not to say there aren't plenty of hacks out there.

As I recall - perhaps incorrectly - the damages were based on actual earnings from the song. There may have been punis, but I think the damages were mostly compensatory. That said, I'll bet the better basis of the appeal is strictly a question of what legally constitutes plagiarism. Again, I don't actually know.

Probably not. Too bad, though.

Only punitive damage awards, and that varies dramatically by jurisdiction. I don't do much appellate work - I find it boring - but I definitely keep track of the law in my jurisdictions, and I don't see any decline in the deference to jury verdicts. I mainly practice in a fairly liberal jurisdiction, however, so…