Quote:
Originally Posted by taosaur
Or perhaps it's because of the lack of theft. Copyright infringement is copying something to which you lack the rights. Even in terms of physical goods, a knock-off Timex is not a stolen Timex. Attempts to equate file-sharing with theft are the kind of dishonest, bad-faith tactics consumers have come to expect from media industries. These tactics, including hobbling products with sanctioned malware (DRM), only promote disrespect for copyright.
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I disagree in every way possible. I think people just get into cutesy lawyer mode when they refuse to acknowledge something pretty basic, which is that you're supposed to pay for consumption and instead choose to partake for free. Sneaking into a movie theater or amusement park is dishonest; whether there were seats that were going to be unused or not doesn't matter. If an item is up for sale and you and 20,000 other people get the free version via download you're not in any kind of gray area, it's just taking something that doesn't belong to you (belong in the ownership sense of purchasing).
I find attempts to paint pirates as care-free Robin Hoods to be far more dishonest.