On Fri, Mar 23, 2007 at 03:18:40AM +0900, Kyle Schmitt wrote:
> OK guys, stop jumping down my throat for using the common term for 
> something.
> 
> Legally is it theft?  Maybe not, but commonly it is referred to as such.
> 
> He did ask for something illicit, knowing full well it was illegal.
> Why was the use of one word in a response diverting all focus from the
> original intent of the post?

I think the problem is that by using the term "theft" you're assuming
not only an inaccurate premise, but also an ethical premise that many
people aren't prepared to stipulate.  It's like calling a nice juicy
steak "murder"; many people who like juicy steaks would argue with that.

I, for one dispute the notion that there's anything ethically sacred
about copyright law.  Copyright is, by definition and according to the
letters of some of the men who provided for it in the US Constitution, a
temporary monopoly granted and enforced by governmental fiat, not a
natural right.  That's why copyright is infringed, not violated or
stolen.

I still wouldn't go around passing out illegal copies of books, of
course.  There are other reasons to avoid such behaviors than the
strictly ethical, such as professional integrity, et alii.

-- 
CCD CopyWrite Chad Perrin [ http://ccd.apotheon.org ]
"The ability to quote is a serviceable
substitute for wit." - W. Somerset Maugham