> In what sense is music software? > In the sense that it is a digital file of copyrighted material.
> Labelling copying of files as "piracy" or "theft" (probably before long > it'll be "blasphemy" or "terrorism") makes the act evil by definition. It's not the "label" that makes it "evil." It's the fact that it's wrong to steal, and has been since at least biblical times. If someone puts something out there with the explicit notion that he is to be compensated for his work, and you take it without compensating him for his work, you're stealing. End of discussion. > Intellectual property is an abstract concept, and using terms > appropriate > for armed robbery causing death to describe copying a file is not a > useful > way to discuss it, despite what Sony and Disney say. > Intellectual property is most definitely NOT an abstract concept, and even if it was it's still covered by the law, which makes your hypothesis moot. I am definitely in the camp of people who think that the copyright holders of this world have WAAAAAY overreacted to the P2P phenomenon, and that the reactions so far (such as copy protection, stripping of consumer rights, region-encoding and the whole abomination known as the DMCA) have been excessive and abusive. HOWEVER, as a professional writer and graphic artist I make my living off my brainpower. The products I produce are as real as machine parts, and deserve EXACTLY the same protection against theft. People who claim that IP is "abstract" are just rationalising their theft, IMHO. > Also, I've noticed many, many posts discussing the merits of P2P apps > (eg > Limewire) that did not draw this level of abuse (or any at all). Why > now > has it become unmentionable? Because we are not out to censor free expression about P2P software (or anything else on-topic), but we reserve our constitutionally-protected right to a) discourage ideas we find objectionable and b) correct opinions that are based on mistaken on ill-informed basises (<- did I just invent a word?). Discuss the merits of Limewire over Acquisition all you like, you won't hear a peep from me EXCEPT a reminder that stealing software/music/movies/etc is wrong, because STEALING is wrong. When Limewire and Acquisition come up with a way to automatically compensate the copyright holder for the theft, I will welcome them with open arms. I wish people would use P2P the way it's meant to be used, WITH the cooperation of copyright holders as a way to experiment, to try new things. But it's not, and while I know somebody on this list is going to claim that they ONLY use P2P software to obtain legal MP3s, we all know that's bullshit. It's like saying you've never in your life seen a pornographic picture. Yeah right. _Chas_ Come to ... The CHASbah! http://thechasbah.blogspot.com Chas' CULTural Calendar (for Orlando): http://ical.mac.com/chasm/Chas'CULTuralCalendar -- The iMac List is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives | - Epson Stylus Color 580 Printers - new at $69 | & CDRWs on Sale! | Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> iMac List info: <http://lowendmac.com/imac/list.shtml> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; Send list messages to: <mailto:imac-list@;mail.maclaunch.com> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:imac-list-off@;mail.maclaunch.com> For digest mode, email: <mailto:imac-list-digest@;mail.maclaunch.com> Subscription questions: <mailto:listmom@;lemlists.com> Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/imac-list%40mail.maclaunch.com/> --------------------------------------------------------------- >The Think Different Store http://www.ThinkDifferentStore.com ---------------------------------------------------------------
