@adachi It is an immense error to regard the unauthorized copying of a file to be equivalent to stealing a car.

The closest analogy would be to rent a car and while you're using it, make a copy of the car without injuring the original in the slightest and then to return the car and clearly no theft has occurred (but this breaks down considering you cannot return a copy of a file).

If a star trek replicator was someone assembled for physical objects, freedom thief's would absolutely lose their minds of course.


Piracy is stealing, as by definition it is carrying out theft and murder with the help of a boat.

Unauthorized copying is not piracy, as it doesn't involve a boat and is not stealing either, as you making a copy of a file of generally useful information doesn't deprive anyone of anything - at worst it can hurt someones feelings.


Such cliche is too simple minded and fails to inform the reader of listener about what is important.

If all copies that you can pay for come with digital handcuffs that cannot trivially be removed, meaning the file can and will be remotely deleted or made to not be accessible in the future, then only a fool would pay instead of downloading an unauthorized copy without the handcuffs.

Many of humanities issues result from people never actually voting with their wallet and always surrendering, taking anything a aggressor can strike them with and still paying.