
Winnie-the-Pooh brought joy to readers, but misery to the Milnes - sohkamyung
https://www.economist.com/blogs/prospero/2017/09/beary-sad
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mncharity
> Winnie-the-Pooh brought joy to readers, but misery to the Milnes [...]

[...] and, functionally, a constitutional amendment to the United States.
Disney's Winnie-the-Pooh annual merchandising revenue are said to be north of
5 billion dollars a year. As much as the mouse, preventing the escape of the
bear has paid for two copyright extension acts, defeat of various
constitutional challenges and copyright reform attempts, support for US
adoption of the Berne convention, and for TPP's Investor State Dispute
Settlement provisions (aka regulatory capture insurance - "if we pay your
legislature to get us a windfall, and you someday change it's mind, you'll
have to reimburse us for our lost windfall - it's only fair"), and for a
multi-decade press PR campaign.

While the bear remains in bondage, so long will copyright law remain unable
"[t]o promote the progress of science and useful arts". Free the bear! ;)

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shakna
Worth noting that almost all the rights for Winnie-the-Pooh rest with Stephen
Slesinger, Inc and Walt Disney, and not with the Milne family.

In '98, Clare, Christopher's daughter, attempted to prevent Slesinger from
expanding their copyrights, but the US courts didn't agree.

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shakna
Always interesting to see people's take on my family's history, but I can't
agree that the original Winnie-the-pooh books were rosy and cheerful.

The philosophy of A.A. Milne bleeds through into them, in ways that few
children of today could be expected to grasp, and life and death aren't dealt
with as something as taboo as you find today. Poverty, hunger and war all
appear in their own small ways, if just by their impacts.

Being said, I do think most people of today think of Disney's rendition when
they think of the bear and his boy, which is far more light-hearted and rosy.
It may be a shock to see the dysfunction between father and son, who birthed
such a famous story.

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athenot
I enjoy reading Winnie-the-pooh to my daughter. Every character is
dysfuntional in their own way, but at the end of the day they all stick
together. I find it a great tool to plant the seeds of diversity: the world is
not made up of "all the people who share my interests and live like me", it's
colorful, messy, sad, spontaneous, full of surprises and generally a much
better place when sticking together.

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jasonmaydie
The biography of the kid obviously shows he disliked the way he was exploited
but this review sounds like it was something completely horrible.

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mfoy_
I mean, if he didn't speak to his mother for the last 15 years of his life it
was probably pretty horrible.

~~~
pacaro
I’ve spoken with my father just once in the last 15 years or so, and that 9
years ago. It happens, not all people are good parents, not all relationships
can or should be healed. I doubt I’ll speak to him again before he dies, that
could be tomorrow, it could be in 20+ years. I’ve made my peace.

Does that mean my childhood was “pretty horrible”? Parts of it weere, and I’m
not sure that there is a calculus of human experience that would allow me to
calculate a net horribleness quotient. But even with my father I remember
happy and sweet moments.

~~~
Razengan
As someone who has lost people that I wish I could have done more with, I
think you should still talk to him now and then, if only because you and him
and your relationship with each other is never going to occur again in the
infinity of this Universe..

~~~
BrandoElFollito
As someone who lost some people who I should have done more with (or see more)
AND people I am so happy to see dead that I almost celebrate their funeral
every year by a big party - I think one should not offer such philosophical
ideas to a random stranger without knowing the whole story.

~~~
Razengan
I still think it's a terrible thing to live with resentment for anyone,
especially long after they are gone, and I'm free to voice my thoughts, but of
course I'm not telling anyone what they should do.

I've had people I despised too, where the best course of action for all
involved was to completely cut contact, but letting them influence my feelings
after they're out of my life just means allowing them victory over me.

