I think there is more to be gained by cooperating with veterans' associations than by trying to go around it with lawyers.
To illustrate the difference, just imagine what it would look like in the news:
"PC flight simulator developers and hobbyists take legal action against the defense industry, in an effort to abolish royalty fees involved in the portrayal of historical military hardware in PC software: (insert row upon row of legal jargon)"
as opposed to
"The privatization of history and personal struggle, or how our veterans' blood and sweat became the lawyers' bread and butter:
Dozens of veteran associations across the US and other countries have taken objection to the practice of certain military industry firms to demand royalty and copyright fees for the portrayal of machines of war that they fought in. And while these machines were in fact built by these companies, it's these men, most of them in their late 80s or more, who fought, bled and died in these machines during WWII. One of the most well-known surviving US ace pilots of the time and spokesman for one of the veteran associations, Mr. XYZ, issued the following statement when asked to comment on the issue:
It's almost 70 years ago that we took to the skies in an effort to defend basic human freedoms and rights. Countless people on all sides lost their lives in that struggle and they deserve to be remembered. Just like books and movies, PC gaming software that focuses on WWII and the historically accurate portrayal of this struggle serves to keep the memory alive and the public aware of the great deeds of sacrifice that happened so long ago, yet their repercussions are still far-reaching.
It's a complete disgrace, an awful disservice to and even an obscene slap on the face of the individuals who fought and made the ultimate sacrifice, that the continuation of historical memory and the telling of their heroic deeds are subject to the hurdles and hubris of petty profiteering by companies that already make a killing in their original field of work.
It's also tragically ironic, to say the least, that a company whose designs saved so many of our lives thanks to their robust construction back in the day, is nowadays looking to rob us of the recognition we deserve, by preventing our youth from re-enacting our deeds and putting themselves in our shoes for a little while with the aid of PC simulation software. "
Which one do you think is prone to stir up the most trouble? See, if you want to go against the establishment you're better off fighting it with its own means, sensational journalism being one of them
