They are coming out of the woodwork

Maybe it is just a figment of my overstretched imagination, but plagiarism seems to be a hot topic.
There is a discussion on, of all places, slashdot. Maybe this all a consequence of some of the more ridiculous copyright and patent laws being presented. (I won't provide any examples, as there are way to many to choose from...) or the perception of loss of personal freedom, especially in the USA.

My father had a (tongue in cheek) saying, plagiarized from some unknown person no doubt, "What's yours in mine, and what's mine is none of your business". That seems to be a prevalent opinion of many. I can learn from you, I can take your ideas and expand on them, but you cannot copy my ideas. Maybe that is one reason I really like the open source software movement. This movement basically says we, as a society, are much stronger when we collaborate and share ideas.

Maybe as a society we need to grow up and become less petty. Just let me keep all my ideas to myself...