You can't steal meme. You can copy it, yes. But not steal.
this post was submitted on 14 Apr 2026
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Would you download a meme?
yeah don't tell me what i wouldn't do
You wouldn't download someone's awesome tile art
Yes OP: it may prove affirming to refamiliarize yourself with the definition of a meme. Replication = success
Would you screenshot a car?
Memes are meant to be stolen. If they're not being stolen, they die. Copying is the life-force.
Memes are like the flame of a candle - a million memes can be shared without taking anything away from the original image. Other than jpeg compression, but you know what I mean.
Thanks for fixing it!
Like piracy itself, that's not stealing. It's sharing.
This meme was stolen
Hat and all.
Copying is not theft: stealing a thing leaves one less left while copying makes one thing more, that's what copy is for. Example?
I if steal your bicycle, you have to take the bus. But if I just copy it, there's one for each of us.
(Thanks Nina Paley https://archive.org/details/CopyingIsNotTheft1080p 😁)
So you're completely kosher with AI it seems?
I'm not a fan of AI personally, but the "copying others' work" argument never resonated with me. The internet makes copying data trivial - if you still get worked up over people using a technology that has been trivial since the '90s, well, I don't know what to tell you, but you're just not going to win that one. People are just going to keep doing it anyway and maybe it sucks, but there's nothing you can do about it.
The only reason file sharing is illegal today is because nobody bribed politicians to keep it legal.
🤣👌👍
Copyright is but one of the issues one could have with the planet-ruining, livelihood-stealing, brain-rotting, nadir-of-consumerism generative slop known as "AI".
Wew lad, the hoop dance is real.
The copying isn't the problem, so much as it's the reselling, repackaging, environmental issues, etc.
The training in and of it self. Is literally non problematic.
If AI work is then kept public domain, and nonprofit. Then frankly the artists can fuck off and just deal with it. They are losing nothing. At worse someone tries to claim the work as an original and that's just impersonation and it's the same problem AI or not.
They may still bitch about the environmental, electrical and water usage problems tho.
We do not steal hats. We share them. We teach fraternity and knowledge. We are balance. We are believers in open and free markets. We remain curious, unbridled, and fly no colors.
In time: we may be the only capable navigators of a sea rife with giants and uncouth countries.
We privateers may well be stealing history back from those who would destroy it.
Yo ho my hearties.
Take what you can ...
If nobody steals your meme, is it still a meme?
