The article assumes that if you defend public libraries, you must defend them for the same reason the author defends them, and that particular reason happens to fit well with file sharing.<p>But there are other reasons to defend public libraries than simply the fact that they disseminate knowledge and this is worth carving out an exception in copyright. I think most people would defend public libraries on the basis of the doctrine of first sale: after an author sells a copy of a work, they can&#x27;t control how you use it. As long as you&#x27;re not making unauthorized <i>copies</i> of it, you can lend it out or do whatever else you like with it.