So you're a pirate
post a comment | posted Mar 7
You pirate music, tv shows, and movies. Are you justified in doing so? Are you hurting your loot's creators? -- Yes and no.
If all the media you consume has been acquired for free, then yes, I would call you a pirate. I'd even say what you're doing is wrong--you're stealing and we all know what God has to say about this.
However, I believe the majority of us, the ones who still buy dvds and cds from time to time, aren't pirates at all. To explain this, we're going to have to step into a hypothetical situation involving two dimensions of reality: one where illegally pirated media is readily available via the cloud (our current reality) and another where the idea of media piracy is unheard of and not practised to any degree.
Anything you download in the first dimension that you didn't legitimately purchase in the second would definitely be considered pirating. You are downloading something that you would have purchased had you not known you could download it. This is pirating. You are a customer for this media, but have chosen instead to steal the media rather than acquire it legitimately.
If you had instead downloaded something in the first dimension that you'd never even think to throw money at in the second dimension, then you aren't a pirate at all. You wouldn't be considered a customer for this media and are essentially free to try it if you wish. In fact, this is a benefit to the author since he is exposing his creation to a non-customer, expanding his audience.
The basic idea is if you download the latest Britney Spears album out of honest curiosity, listen to it, bob your head, and move on, then no harm done. You'd have never bought this music had illegally downloading it never been an option. You aren't a Britney Spears customer and, as far as I'm concerned, can download as much of it as you like.
There's no reason to bust you for trying media that you'd otherwise never spend money on. However, if you just download everything, even the media you'd purchase otherwise, shame on you. You are lazy and you are cheap. You're stealing from the very artists you most admire and appreciate. As far as I'm concerned, you're going to hell and the only way out is to support these robbed artists by scooping up a few band tees or concert tickets.