Is it plagiarism or..?

In an article  that I read this morning about Bob Dylan plagiarizing, what I found more interesting was not the accusation article but the subsequent comments.  Bob Ross, a public television wet-on-wet oil painter, uses photographs and memories of mental images that he and countless others over time have seen through their eyes; so, is he plagiarizing?

In response to the article, Johannes Nesciens replied, “Plagiarism,” until very recent times, was considered high praise in the creative arts.  Dude Skoodle, also replied with, The unforgettable river scene in Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra was lifted word for word from another source.

I have read Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,   and one of his habits is begin with the end in mind.  I attended a company sponsored workshop by The Pacific Institute that revolved around the achievement of goals, where it was reinforced that one should begin with the end in mind.  I am currently teaching a class in Strategic Management that begins with creating a Vision where companies begin with the end in mind or what do they want to become.

So, if I like how someone wrote something down to describe their feelings and that basic concept is described in 2-3 other sources as well, is that not part of the public domain? And, then should not be considered an example of plagiarism?

Years ago, I visited a box company in North Carolina and after touring the company learned that the Art Department takes a graphic image that a competitor is using for a client; then, there is a series of drawings that are done, similar to that graphic image but different, so that after 10-12 drawing there is so much difference between the 12^th image and the original graphic image (but subliminally the same) that this box company is able to take business away from their competitor.  Is this plagiarism?

So, what then is intellectual Property?  If I look back on my career to a time about 10-15 years ago when I was teaching somewhere for someone, I had an idea in the classroom about how to create a 2 page, viable, strategic plan, unlike the 150 page document that gathered dust sitting on top of a filing cabinet.  To whom did that idea belong?  Now, let’s take that same development scenario and play it out a little differently where the idea did not originate in the classroom but in the confines of my home on the weekend, while I was still working for that company.  To whom does the idea belong now?

And, what if I shared that idea with a colleague over lunch and that colleague published a paper using my original ideas is that plagiarism?