The Use of My Words

I'm rather annoyed right now.

Yesterday I got an e-mail in connection with my website. It was a positive one, from someone thanking me for posting all of the information on the site, and praising the Youtube video.

I don't have a Youtube video. I haven't the slightest idea how to create one, nor am I particuarly inclined to learn how.

I wrote back, thanking the person for their e-mail, and I asked them to send me the URL for the video, and they did so. The video basically is like a PowerPoint presentation with heavy metal music - a black background with white words showing up. MY words, from MY website. Nowhere do they credit me, and people who have commented have praised the creator of the video for getting the word out about Pagan bullies.

I commented on the video, pointing out the fact that the words are mine - MINE - taken from my website, and wrote to the creator of the video as well, telling them that I wanted my URL added to the presentation. The comment has yet to show up on Youtube.

I deliberately choose to be anonymous as the author of the website because frankly some people are very hostile towards me and the site, and I don't want them tracking me down. However, my very anonymity is sometimes a problem, because more than once I've had people claim that the site was theirs. Really. I've always disputed these claims when I've become aware of them, and they do occur quite rarely.

However, people frequently quote parts of my site, and then take credit for my words.

I don't mind if people quote my site; I don't even care if they ask my permission first (although I appreciate the courtesy). In fact, I'm quite happy that the information is getting out to the world. However, the site has been up for several years now, and I add stuff to it all the time. I've done tons of research, and I've written a lot of words.

I want credit for those words. If someone quotes my site, I want a URL telling people where they got the information. Is that too much to ask?

If the video is not altered in the next few weeks to include my URL, I will be writing to Youtube to complain about it. Enough is enough.

Tags: annoyance, anonymity, bullies, plagiarism, writing, youtube

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Comment by Ron Dean 09 on November 9, 2008 at 10:26am: www. . Its a new evolving communication system , that relies on some amount of self policeing .
So many of our modern systems , have begun their infantcy , ( cause their new ) by relying on
selfrule . Something that is new , dosen;t have established rules to follow . There are so many
examples , of everyday accepted stuff , that was once groundbreaking stuff . Is that not change ?
I feel passion for your injustice , but isn't it about continuing injustice ? The heart of it seems to
be , how society ( the general population ) just rolls along , in an established way . Speak out
loudly , about your injustice , but realize the din ( of others speaking out ) an feel pride , that you
did something worth ( some lowlife ) stealing . Small consolation eh , but does it open something
known as pride . Sincerly Ron

Comment by Wayfinder on November 1, 2008 at 11:04am: Greetings my Friend,

I have included your blog entry(with a link back to your blog) in this month's (November's) issue which will be out Tuesday 4th November. I understand fully your distress and annoyance as I myself have been often plagiarized.

Plagiarism has to stop! It is Copyright thief and little more than stealing. Ownership of Intellectual property belongs to the creator of the property.

Pagans and Wiccans alike expect tolerance from Christians and others yet most find it hard to tolerate each other and when it comes to ethical misconduct many of those who scream out loudest against the Christians are no better than the hypo-critics who hide within the Christian faith.

The biggest copyright thieves and Plagiarists can be found hiding in a great many Yahoo groups and forums and you would be surprised how many times I have found my words in some groups without credit to me ...and the post of my words signing their own names at the bottom ... and these cretins are only too prepared to take the accolades for someone else's work.

Take heart that there are many on your side

~ The Wayfinder ~.

Comment by Spiralle on October 19, 2008 at 12:31pm: As a follow-up to my message to WitchyShaman:

I wrote to her, saying that I wanted my URL on the video somewhere, and didn't hear anything back for a couple of days. This morning I opened my G-mail and found two messages from her. For those of you who don't have G-mail, messages with the same subject line are grouped into "conversations" and if you get several responses to a question, the thread just goes on and on - and so at first I didn't realize that there was more than one message from WitchyShaman.

Her first message to me was, and I quote, "So what do you want?"

This upset me (I'm sooo unreasonable), and I clicked on where the e-mail said "You can reply to this message by visiting your inbox" to tell her what I wanted in no uncertain terms, and that's when I realized that there was a second message. This one simply said:

"Sorry about that...I have deleted the video your refering to.

Have a nice day

Witchyshaman"

I checked Youtube, and it seems that it's no longer there, but I'm still seething.

Aaargh!

Comment by Lady Jessi Kiesling on October 18, 2008 at 10:11am: I don't think I would wait weeks, do something about it now. People should not "steal" from others, even if the messagae is one that helps......plgerism is plagerism.

Comment by Suzanne on October 17, 2008 at 11:27am: I think you should complain to Youtube anyways...
That's awful, yet typical of the "if it's on the internet, it fair game" attitude that seems to be growing.

Hang in there.
Suz

Comment by Lady Crystal-Raven on October 16, 2008 at 10:23pm: I agree with you! I'm always asking to put things on my page. Even if it was something said in an email. One never knows what is 'anothers'. I don't have anything at utube nor how to do a video. I think that you should keep up the pressure on them. Funny thing, I have an article that I want to publish as a blog. But, many of the words are not my own. It's old, but, is someone else's. They have not responded yet. If ever I did use a piece of work, not my own I would say so...and that's also why I have the little message on the bottom of my site. If anyone notices something I've not given proper credit for, they should let me know etc...

Hang in there,
Crystal

ps...I don't think that I"ve ever been to your website. I will go see it.