[MEncoder-users] Free of patents codec

[Phil Ehrens]

Reimar Döffinger wrote:
> 
> It does not matter whether they affect anyone or not. The point of laws
> is having rules, so that you can estimate what the risk of doing a
> certain thing is (the german word is "Rechtssicherheit"), otherwise we
> wouldn't need any laws and could just say "let the judges decide
> whatever they think is right".

Ah! That is wonderful! There is a German word for everything! ;^)

In the United States, we could never have such a word, because
here we are not supposed to consider things in relative terms.
We expect to go to jail for life for petty crimes if we are black,
and to receive probation for murder if we are white... and everyone
in between had better just figure that they are black if they
know what's good for them! No estimates of risk required. Everything
is black or white.

Okay, we are hellishly off-topic now. I quit.