Piracy

Sit down to watch a DVD and you are likely warned against copyright infringement and the fines and sentences possible to inflict. That is a dandy way to set the mood for a light romantic comedy. A movie industry was established in California not only because the daylight was reliable, but because LA was a long way from NY, where enforcers of patents tended to be based. Hollywood was founded on piracy.

A Chinese company makes a “Rolls-Royce Phantom” for £136,000. I can understand the ten-dollar Rolex and the cardboard Gucci luggage, it’s aspiration for the poor. As soon as you make your money, however, you will want a Rolex that does not turn your wrist green. In a perverse way ,the rip-off pays homage to the real thing though the idea of a “reverse-engineered” Royce which costs £136,000 is beyond me—inscrutable, your Chinese.