Husar, you're quite right, if nobody ever violated copyright laws, no matter how broad and ill-defined, there would be no problem. And then man and beast could live together as one, and death would have no sway over mortals, and we would spend eternity dancing to heavenly choirs.
Short of that scenario, however, a large portion of people
are going to engage in filesharing. How we deal with that is the question.
Does it make sense for the music labels to sue single mothers into permanent, crippling debt, as in the case of
Jammie Thomas? Does that strike you as a fair, just and equitable way to cope with worldwide filesharing? If not, why not? Consider the ill-will and horrible PR the labels reaped by suing computerless grandmothers, dead people, and two year olds. Consider how this behavior turned the public against the labels. Consider the millions of dollars they lost through this tactic.
If your position is that the labels should be able to do as they like to those who violate the law, where does that stop? Should we castrate filesharers? Should we kill them? Imprison them for the rest of their natural lives?
If your answer to any of those questions is "no," then maybe we need to consider
proportional response to a crime. And once you've ceded that point, it's a short step to admitting that mass lawsuits against your own customers is madness.
Bookmarks