The Dark Origins of International Copyright Law

In this episode, we uncover the "mercenary genesis" of the Berne Convention, exposing how the cornerstone of international copyright was never truly about artistic justice, but rather a tool for state censorship and protectionist mercantilism. We explore how powerful publishing cartels and colonial powers used the romanticized rhetoric of "natural rights" to mask their economic self-interest, "shaming" other nations into a system that enclosed the global information commons.Drawing on a profound theological and natural law critique, we examine why treating non-conflictable ideas as physical property is a perversion of justice that contradicts the biblical mandate to love one's neighbor and imitate the Creator through sharing. From the "coercive expansion" of these laws into India and Africa to the "retroactive theft" of the public domain that continues to stifle community arts and education today, this episode frames the Berne Union as a rigid hegemony that has hindered human progress and flourishing.