If only our DMCA notices were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we file


"Wine glass breaking into pieces on a blue surface." Shutterstock.

A few months ago, I posted about a copyright troll calling itself On Press Inc., which issued legal threats whenever someone tweets "If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak." The troll has now issued dozens of DMCA takedown notice to Google, ordering it to wipe my article–and many more at sites such as Techdirt and Popehat–from its records. Google laughed it out of the house.

Even as a marketing campaign for the poet it makes little sense; with the DMCA abuse, the trolling tilts into illegality in its own right. I can't help but wonder if there's a sad story behind it all, someone obsessed with trying to control the viral spread of that trite line and incapable of comprehending why they can't, or why it is unreasonable even to try.

For example, check out the weird YouTube video you get googling the line:

I love the way he reads it like a drill sergeant, slaps the book back on its stand, then barks "THIS POEM OR ANY OTHER POEMS IN THIS BOOK CANNOT BE REPLICATED IN ANY MEDIA WHATSOEVER." It's gotta be a hoax. It's just so bizarre.