IN GERMANY, as in the rest of Europe, copyright expires seven decades after the authorâ??s year of death. That applies even when the author is Adolf Hitler and the work is â??Mein Kampfâ?. Since 1945, the state of Bavaria has owned the bookâ??s German-language rights and has refused to allow its republication. German libraries stock old copies, and they can be bought and sold. But from January 1st no permission will be needed to reprint it.
Those living outside Germany may not immediately grasp the significance of the moment. â??Mein Kampfâ? has always been available in translation and is now just a click away online. But that is not the point. For Germans, the expiry of the copyright has caused hand-wringing and controversy. The question, as they ring in the new year, is not what to do about â??Mein Kampfâ? as it enters the public domain. Rather, it is what Hitler means for Germany today.
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