Quote:
Originally Posted by eschwartz
It is definitely still stealing. That is just a simple factoid.
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Just for the sake of having a nice stimulating discussion...
I'm willing to confess to the theft, but to make this confession valid, I have to (as the German phrase goes) name horse and rider --
what have I stolen, and from
whom did I steal it?
Did I steal from the publisher? But if they
had it, either in print or digitally, they'd sell it to me. Since they don't, they don't have it. The thing I want -- a new pbook, or a legal download -- doesn't exist. So, can I steal something that doesn't exist, from someone who doesn't have it?
Did I steal from the author? But, with the book not for sale as ebook or new pbook, there is no way she can receive any money from me. If I bought it used, or if I borrowed it from a library if they had it (the only alternatives to downloading the pirated copy), she wouldn't receive payment either. So, which amount do I steal from her when I choose one action from which she doesn't profit, over a different action from which she doesn't profit?
Did I steal from the used book vendor, who asked $350? But my only interaction with him was that I walked by his (online) shop window, saw his price tag, and decided not to buy from him. As I did with a different vendor, who asked even more. They both still have their copies -- have I stolen from one of them, or from both, just by not buying from them at the outrageous price they asked?
I still have the
feeling that I've done something wrong (even if morally excusable and legally not actionable), but it puzzles me, what, of which specific monetary value, have I stolen from whom...?