RANT: PIRACY
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--- rant editing began at 6:15pm on 2007.12.12
the MPAA complained to Cox that I was sharing a movie (I had actually downloaded a fucking TON of movies the last month and a half) and they blocked internet service -- so i called them and was like, alright, what's going on? and they talked to me and told me blah blah DMCA blah blah MPAA blah blah and I said, yes, right right, yes, i'll find the file and delete it
so, i wait around a few dozen minutes, squeeze one off (BECAUSE I GOD DAMN CAN, to a downloaded copied porn too) and called back after a shower and was like "Alright, I searched all three computers and didn't find that, could you let me know if there's any mac address or computer description or anything? I have 3 different computers on this network here and it would be easy to know which pc it was with a mac address or a manufacturer name"
"no, all we have is a reported IP. That doesn't mean it was even you who downloaded it. Do you have a router......"
went on a little speech about different ways someone could have used my connection and when she mentioned wireless security I said "SHIT! Oh shit, that's right..." and she stopped and I told her about the connection problem a few days ago (which honestly, I called and had them reset their neighborhood router which fixed it -- i know cox and their area routing system i've had so many problems with them haha) and mentioned, oh fuck, i forgot to turn the wpa security back on after i tried the wireless access without it on
but it makes me feel so much better that all they (MPAA) would have had to fuck with me on the subject is an IP address. retards
-Erik
--- rant editing ended at 6:20pm on 2007.12.12
for an unmatched rant on piracy and the record industry, read here
--- rant editing began at 6:25pm on 2007.12.12
As far as Piracy goes... I was never very concerned about it. When I first learned you could download MP3s I had already bought many dozens of CDs. I was already getting pissed off about the fact that the majority of the songs I actually kind of liked or really liked on the radio had a ton of shit on the CD among the radio play songs. Mix that with reading extensively about the record industry purposefully manufacturing CDs to wear down with use (it's heavily researched, wouldn't take long for a skilled google user to find plenty of articles.) It wasn't hard for me to go into downloading MP3s with a clear concience. At first I only downloaded shit I wanted to check out and decide if I was going to buy it. Then once Metallica opened their big fucking mouths and I was making music, I really totally quit caring about it being "illegal."
As far as Movies go, I always bought DVDs and never gave any kind of a shit about downloading them. I had tried here and there and the quality was either terrible or not good enough. Either that or the speed was so horribly slow that I really never cared. That was probably in the first part of this decade. And I believe it was at the very beginning of torrents when none were really worth a shit. Then the comment.
Paraphrasing the president of the MPAA in a press junket where he was asked about his stance on parents making a backup copy for their underage children to use -- thus making it cheap to replace when the kids inevitably destroy it.
"I think it is a great thing when parents let young children use new technologies, such as DVDs. The problem I have is that making replications of copyrighted materiel is highly illegal. No, it is not OK. It's not something we take lightly. If that parent wants a backup copy, you go to the store and buy that backup copy."
That set me off. At that point I immediately found a couple movies and started downloading them. Just as the main times I really download anything over the last several years is when the RIAA or MPAA do or say something completely stupid. In which case I get pissed off and download a small inferno of things. Other than that I don't bother.
As long as the RIAA and MPAA openly flaunt their greedy, money loving, customer hating attitudes, I will do everything I can to download as much as I can.
As far as buying CDs, DVDs, going to concerts and movies goes -- I do NOT buy CDs anymore. I have not. The only time this is untrue is when a Nine Inch Nails, Tool or A Perfect Circle albums come out. I go to concerts whenever I can. That's where the artists make their money anyway. Ticket sales and Merch sales at those concerts. I dropped a little over $300 at a NIN concert on 2.16.2005. I do buy DVDs from time to time. And I do not see myself getting away from the love of going to the movies. So the MPAA at least gets a good chunk of money from myself and those who go with me a year.
--- rant editing ended at 8:10pm on 2007.12.12