It appears that the RIAA is now saying that ripping a CD is not a fair use. In some ways, I think I agree. By classifying this use and that use as fair or not fair, we run the risk of creating a copyright framework which is fragmented and difficult for the average person to make sense of. Instead of letting the law enter so deeply into our lives and our interactions with technology, it might be wise to have personal use be off limits for legal action. Copyright ideals like the threatened “first-sale doctrine” (which gives one an unlimited right to sell a work they already owned–and threatened because of Digital Rights Management which limits one’s ability to transfer ownership) may serve as a precedent for conceiving of copyright in this way.
I would call this framework: “You own it, it’s yours.”