Self Publishing and Copyright

Authors who would be extremely agitated if someone stole their work seem to have no problem "borrowing" the work of others.

Most publishers receive manuscripts filled with copyright infringements, and they do not publish such material. Justification ranging from "Bibliography Use" to "Fair Use" claims don't hold water and if argued, should at least contain the flip side of the coin - the fact that copyright infringement is illegal and could ruin an author's reputation as well as bank account.

Why do colleges encourage this copyright infringement abated with their "bibliography" requirement, which then leads professionals to believe that they can copy as much of somebody's work as they want, provided they "reference" it within the form of foot notes or bibliographies. Perhaps for college papers that is true, but for professional works that are sold for profit, that is not allowed. This should be something professors and teachers inform their students.

I wonder if the POD guys have this problem -- or if they even care about it. Things that make you go hmmm...