"Which is to say, the concept of intellectual property is indefensible from a populist viewpoint."

Though it may well be justified from an ethical, rational and legal point of view...

Umbert Eco discussed this in his paper "how culture conditions the colors we see" Haven't found a link to the paper itself but is anthologised in his book signs
On a personal note - i was very suspicious that the color I thought was green was not the same color that everyone else thought was green - existential crises - they're everywhere

moby dick is my favourite book as well - i think it is about both homoeroticism and whaling

"then the best — and perhaps only — place to turn"
I read spec fic from time to time, less now than I used to. No question it does provide a useful arena for the kind of allegories that allow for the exploration of sensitive issues, but to suggest that it is the "only" place you will find "profound philosophical" issues discussed is to wilfully ignore extraordinary writers who are making significant contributions to the world of ideas, many at a much greater level of sophistication than the vast majority of spec lit. Off the top of my head, Coetzee, McEwen, houellebecq, Peter Carey, Rushdie, Easton Ellis, Will Self (spec fic element sure)Tim Winton, Don DeLillo, sorry thats a pretty wild list from my bookshelf, but nonetheless, if you start cozying yourself into a world where you only read spec lit because straight lit doesn't deal with pihisophical issues, then you're not being entirely honest with yourself. thanks