Posted on 01/23/2003 11:49:40 AM PST by freepatriot32
Hilary Rosen paces the creaking oak floor of the Oxford Union debate hall, eyeing the empty pews the way a Roman gladiator might have surveyed the Colosseum. Rosen is the chair of the Recording Industry Association of America, and in a few hours she'll be standing here in a black formal gown, getting ripped to pieces. Along with several other industry executives, she's charged with defending the proposition: "This house believes that the free-music mentality is a threat to the future of music."
Of course, the students of "this house" believe nothing of the sort. "I myself have about 900 megabytes of music on my computer," Dave Watson, the union's president, tells me before the debate. "You'd be hard-pressed to find a group of students who've never downloaded music. You can't stop them, as long as it's free."
"Are you nervous?" I ask Rosen. She's checking out the two doors students will exit through to cast their votes - one for "ayes" and another for "noes." She looks a little hurt by the suggestion. "I just want to win," she says.
(Excerpt) Read more at wired.com ...
"Rosen and her colleagues have failed to grasp the fact that they've already lost. File-sharing has become part of pop culture; witness the Intel ad that shows a scruffy guy happily burning tunes onto a CD-R. To some extent, at least, the record companies have themselves to blame. Whereas blank CDs sell for pennies at the nearest CVS, the price of new releases continues to creep up in most stores, to the point where movies can be cheaper to own."
|
|
|
 |
FreeRepublic , LLC PO BOX 9771 FRESNO, CA 93794
|
|
|
|
...snipHilary Rosen would prefer it if the world's youth didn't think she was hopelessly uncool. She has an iPod. She counts both Al and Tipper Gore, as well as the rapper Chuck D, among her close friends. She helped found Rock the Vote, for God's sake.
I was kind of ambivalent about this issue 'cuz I hate most of the popular music....
Now, I can hardly wait to install a PtP program and start downloading songs!
Defund the Left! Download your music!
You DO realize that stealing music doesn't "defund" the left; NOT BUYING the music defunds the left.
I see that you're perfectly willing to jettison others' property rights when you find them inconvenient to your political agenda. In this respect, you're no different than the Earth First! folks.
Yes, and so did you when you were a Marine. War is a continuation of politics by other means.
We are going to be violating a lot of Iraqi property rights when we go to war over Saddam's 'inconvenience' to the US political agenda of national security.
You know, a lot of armchair commandos and windbag politicians love the rhetoric of "war," because it lets them posture instead of actually doing anything useful.
You can simply NOT PURCHASE MUSIC and have the same effect regarding their funding. But that's obviously too subtle for you.
We are going to be violating a lot of Iraqi property rights when we go to war over Saddam's 'inconvenience' to the US political agenda of national security.
If you can't see the difference between sovereign nations fighting a war, and stealing from your fellow Americans, then maybe you should be sent to Heinlein's Coventry.
I am advocating doing something useful and you know that I am not an armchair commando.
You can simply NOT PURCHASE MUSIC and have the same effect regarding their funding. But that's obviously too subtle for you.
Downloading it certainly isn't purchasing it...
If you can't see the difference between sovereign nations fighting a war, and stealing from your fellow Americans, then maybe you should be sent to Heinlein's Coventry.
Al Qaida is not a sovereign nation, yet we warred against them. These are not my fellow Americans, nor are they yours.
You're a bloviating armchair commando trying to justify his own thieving ways.
Downloading it certainly isn't purchasing it...
Indeed. But it's also stealing, which is immoral AND illegal.
Al Qaida is not a sovereign nation, yet we warred against them.
After they physically attacked the citizenry of the United States, which, for all their many faults, these people have NOT done.
Freedom of speech means that you have to tolerate those who you disagree with.
These are not my fellow Americans, nor are they yours.
Until such time as they are actually convicted of high crimes or misdemeanors in a court of law, they are your fellow Americans, with all rights, priveleges, and immunities thereunto pertaining, LIKE IT OR NOT (and I don't).
If the music is so awful, why do you have to spend the time and energy necessary to steal it?
Actually, no. Furthermore, I actually haven't stolen anything yet. Now that I realize who these bastards are, I'm going to investigate the whole 'peer to peer' thing.
Indeed. But it's also stealing, which is immoral AND illegal.
Yes, and so is killing, yet I would kill those who would come to kill me and take my rights. Is defunding those who would take my rights immoral? It's an interesting question....
After they physically attacked the citizenry of the United States, which, for all their many faults, these people have NOT done.
Rock the Vote and the whole 'throw out the Electoral College' crap did more in an attempt to destroy this Constitutional Republic that Saddam has.
Freedom of speech means that you have to tolerate those who you disagree with.
They cannot tolerate my views, my guns nor my rights. Through the organizations they support, run and fund, they have incrementally diminished my freedoms. I (and you) are in these peoples' crosshairs. Why should we not incrementally diminish their funding? After all, these people hate me for who I am. I hate them for what they do. If I can do some small part to make it financially harder for them to do it, it's worth it.
Until such time as they are actually convicted of high crimes or misdemeanors in a court of law, they are your fellow Americans, with all rights, priveleges, and immunities thereunto pertaining, LIKE IT OR NOT (and I don't).
Of course this all works best when they are the ones helping to populate the judges benches of the courts. The 'high crimes and misdemeanors' level is for public officials. These are the exactly the people who said that Clinton's crimes 'didn't rise to that level'.
If the music is so awful, why do you have to spend the time and energy necessary to steal it?
It really has nothing to do with the music. I want to defund these bastards and thus defend the remnants of my rights.
And stealing does nothing more to diminish their funding than simply not buying the music...but it's morally wrong.
It really has nothing to do with the music. I want to defund these bastards and thus defend the remnants of my rights.
THEN SIMPLY DO NOT PURCHASE THEIR WORKS.
Stealing from them doesn't accomplish anything beyond that--except, of course, damage your soul beyond salvation.
No, It would hurt them worse to download some popular crap and then share it in a peer-to-peer environment.
Stealing from them doesn't accomplish anything beyond that--except, of course, damage your soul beyond salvation.
An interesting point. If thou shalt not steal, is stealing a drunken friend's car keys damaging to your soul? Is stealing a murderer's knife damaging to your soul? If thou shalt not kill, is killing someone strangling you damaging to the soul?
It was the whole 'Rock the Vote' thing that got Clinton on MTV talking about his underwear. They are the rent-a-mob crowd as well....
Norah Jones seems to be having no problem selling CDs, because she's a unique voice with a genuine musical talent, and she records good songs with melodies that people want to hear more than once. I don't even have a CD burner, and I'm a record collector who buys CDs from all kinds of people in every genre, but the only thing I've bought in the past two years that was on a major label is a Verve collection of Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong tracks. That's because it's the only thing I've seen on a major label in two years that was actually worth buying. When major labels start signing people based on their musical talent instead of on their looks, attitude, fashion sense or age, then maybe I'll start buying their product again.
Ah, you're going to perpetuate the mistranslation of "Thou shalt not do MURDER."
However, "THOU SHALT NOT STEAL" is pretty unambiguous.
Fine, go ahead and do what you want, hope the Express Elevator Ride to Hades is worth it.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.