Puhleeze. I'm sorry, I thought this was about an application, not a "work of art." Sounds like someone is a little too full of themselves.
Yeah... except... it kinda is about a work of art. While a woodgrain pattern is simple and not entirely that interesting, it's still a copyrighted image and protected the same way as a painting or a photograph.
Your speeding example is also apples-to-oranges. The key element is that a speeding isn't something done against someone else, it's just violating a code in a book. If I walked into your house and took your favorite pair of scissors, I have a feeling you'd be pissed. I mean, seriously, I didn't touch the TV or the computer, it's a just a stupid pair of scissors. What right do you have to be pissed off about it?
Memory fault - where am I?