The Public Domain

I agree with Lessig's idea that "building a public domain is the first step to showing people how important that domain is to creativity and innovation." It seems like the public often has difficulty in understanding the value of something until they actually possess it. When I first read Lessig's comment, I was reminded of a scene in Michael Moore's film, Sicko. Some British academic is talking about the existence of universal healthcare in England, and that if the government ever did away with the system, there would be a massive revolt. Right now, we're debating the issue of healthcare in the US, and there seems to be mostly support for adopting a universal healthcare system. Even so, there remains considerable opposition. I would bet that if we ever end up adopting a government financed system, the opposition would mostly disappear, and the possibility of going back to the old healthcare system would not even be considered.