The final task of the Commons course is to pull all the elements together. So this is a start, as a blog post and to be copied to the Leuphana site.

The trouble is that I am going off the track. The course content has been very useful as a challenge to assumptions about the commons. I now realise that any attempted commons exists in a society and there are other challenges and forces at work. The history of enclosure is very relevant and a useful warning. In reality there is a high chance that some form of enclosure will happen unless there is a strong struggle to protect a commons space.

I have tried to relate these ideas to Creative Commons as a legal option on YouTube, Flickr and other sites. Over time in most social media there has been a trend towards advertising and monetisation. The original culture is still part of the scene but may be obscured. It is hard to establish the basis for Remix on YouTube in the context of the extra adverts.

So what is taking me off track is an awareness of myth and delusion. During and after the Sidmouth Folk Week I have been noticing the Myth Circle on Facebook and the related blog. Most of my understanding comes from conversation though. I have also done several radio shows including folk music. I now realise that an FM station such as Phonic is paying to the PRS to cover all the copyright issues. so the freedom of presenters to mix things up is conditioned by this, not a model for normal life. Performers of cover versions in pubs are also covered by PRS paid by the premises. What will happen with social media? It may be that the promotion function is already understood by the record labels.

But even if the Commons as a resource for content is not actually happening it remains important as a myth. The myth allows creativity and appreciation.

More later, just thoughts so far.