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not a very apt comparison. people weasel free crap out of the healthcare system because the healthcare system has been transformed into a profit centre designed not to help sick people, but instead to help a handful of individuals live in excess. the system is like this because it can be like this. people need healthcare, therefore it is expensive.
ebooks, on the other hand, are luxury commodities with a very specific target audience. people buy ebooks because they are willing to pay for the convenience of ebooks. in fact, ebooks are just data. what you're really paying for is the right to access that data at your leisure. pirates merely bypass the paying step, because they can.
a 'reading tax' would in no way encourage idiots to read. nor would it simply the current ebook market system. it would stop 'piracy', yes, but only because downloading books would suddenly be legal. doesn't mean people stop downloading ebooks...
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