Letter I wrote to NPR

[Prometheus]

I wrote this to NPR in relation to some piracy groups that got caught and they talked about on the radio.
They then started bringing up other issues etc. I sent it and forgot to address why the FBI cracked down on so many groups in so many countries. (to inspire fear)
Personally I like the ending

This is in response to the Software Pirates that were cracked down on globally



I would like to remain anonymous as "Prometheus" should this go on the air. I am from Mercer Island Seattle



Piracy is on the rise this is true. But not for bad reasons, the target audiences of games and movies ages 12-20 mostly all want the games sure. But the matter of money is large. 12-15 year olds don't have the 50$ for the games and 16+ have other expenses such as gas and college. Now the issue of ethics comes into play. Firstly, most pirated software release groups encourage the downloaders to buy the software in their README files. But it is still wrong to pirate to an extent. For example, if I download photoshop to test it out, and then buy it it is fine. But if someone is just cheap they will download it. 800$ price tags tend to drive customers away.

Now I want to settle Music Pircacy and calm some parents about their childs actions online. First the ethics I will not pay money for a cd when the artists who make money off of them and then just waste the money on "bling-bling" besides I only want 1-3 of the songs on the CD's. Services such as Apple's Itunes don't have the songs I want and they come in a protected copy format so I cant share them with a friend or something (one of the things permitted by the RIAA). Music downloading for the under 18 section has declined massively since the few lawsuits to parents from their children downloading music. Well now the RIAA is making almost NO process due to their subpoenas to Internet service providers for records is unconstitutional.

On an educational level pirating music is an excellent source for learning social skills, learning how to use resources, and learning to use computers. I started learning piracy when I was 12. It was not a thing I read out of a book. I had to visit forums, develop skills with other pirate's to get what I was looking for. I learned different file transfer networks, I learned the basics of networking and software, and I continue to learn all the time. When they get older they may get interested in programming and breaking the copyright protection written in the programming language ASM. Maybe with a child that grows up pirating will grow up to design the best copyright protection ever.

I could lecture about this for an hour or two and would kill for the chance to do it on the radio. But in closing file sharing is fine for the under 18 category and people who test something out before buying. Others who buy because they are too cheap are the people to go after. Dont crack down on us all for people who refuse to buy.



To put this is retrospect,I am 15.



-Prometheus

[Jason425]

yea.. charging $800 for a cd is obscene

[vee_ess]

What artists do with the money they receive is their business.