Well, it wasn't due to a lack of warning. The crisis was completely telegraphed. When we give people permission to do things, they tend to take full advantage of it. When everything is given away with no strings attached, all possible leverage is given away along with it and there goes our negotiating position. Not sure what people expected.
This would have been fine in a world without copyright. They can copy ours, but we can copy theirs. Permissive licensing in a world where they get to reserve all rights? That's just wealth transfer. From nice and well meaning individuals, straight into the pockets of corporations.
I simply can't take these posts seriously anymore. It makes no sense to speak of "parasitic" relationships when they're just doing exactly what the license allows. The truth is these people didn't actually want permissive licensing at all. They wanted to look permissive, but deep down they had countless unwritten rules and expectations of others. Obviously, none of these rules are being followed, nor are these expectations being fulfilled.
They wanted to be nice and release this MIT licensed thing that anyone could use with virtually zero legal deliberation. The magical thinking starts when they start expecting it to come back to them in some way. Maybe a job. Maybe some kind of salary. Maybe a sizeable amount of donations. There is no such deal in place but people act like it is there like some unwritten rule that says you're gonna get rewarded somehow. Of course disappointment and disillusionment will follow when the billionaires take your thing, make millions off of it and give nothing.
In a world with copyright, there are only two real choices: the most extreme copyleft license you can find, or no license at all with all rights reserved. Those are the only choices that don't result in eventual disappointment. If the corporations want your copyleft thing but don't want the copyleft license, they can get in touch with you and buy permission to use it via other terms. With copyleft, you support freedom so hard it actually gives you leverage. And with leverage comes negotiation and hopefully business.
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18687498