Illegal Downloading

Every time you download a song, or an entire CD, you're committing a crime. It is against the law. Downloading movies is against the law. There has been an uproar from people who believe that they shouldn't have to pay for a song or a movie. Why? Who knows. They don't really realize what they are doing when they don't pay for that CD or movie ticket.

You see, you are no longer supporting not just the actors or directors or music artists. You are not supporting the sound crew, the tech support group, the catering company to the crew, the power company, the water company that is needed for the artists and movie companies. You're not supporting the fifteen year old in the movie theater passing out tickets. You're not supporting the truck drivers that deliver the CDs and DVDs. You're not supporting the Walmart or music store employees. You see, your $12 for a CD contributes to more than just your favorite artists.

So do you think your $12 doesn't matter? Who is to know if you download or pay for it anyway? You're just one person. Well, over 4 million people use KaZaA, a popular file sharing network. That's over $480 million if everyone downloaded just one CD.

That's not including all the other network sharing and illegal download programs.

So if you work for, say, Walmart, or at the movie theater, or maybe for the power company, or the trucking company or the CD production line… guess who is missing out? That's right, for every CD or DVD people don't buy, that's less profit for all those companies, which means companies are less inclined to raise wages. In fact, some music stores and movie production companies are forced to shut down, unable to compete with all the music downloads.

Take a look at the facts. When you download, you run the risk of viruses and worms. Your updated virus protection might not be able to catch everything and there might be new ones being shared through networks they haven't caught up to yet. Also, you no longer support millions of people who put time and effort into those CDs and DVDs. This could be your job you are no longer supporting. In addition, it is a crime, something you could pay hefty thousand dollar fines for.

Some might say, well, I don't work for any of those companies. There is another way you're paying for it too. You are paying a lot of tax money to catch those who are downloading illegal music.

Some people create an excuse, saying that they are just listening to the CD to see if they like it. Guess what fellas!

Amazon.com has helped you out. You can now legally listen to the entire CD, albeit only a minute long clip, and see if you like it. Amazon has clips of most musical CDs, even some of the more rare albums.

Every year, music companies are trying to make it easier on you to get your music faster and to produce more of the music you love. If you like your bands, support them and the crew that brought the music to you. If it's not worth your $12, then don't listen to it and don't buy it. So you say you only want one song, well IPod fixed that problem for you by offering 99 cent single songs.

So support your bands, support yourself. Pay for your music. Pay for your DVDs. Pay for a movie ticket. If you hate Harry Potter or Pirates of the Caribbean or Jon Bon Jovi , fine, don't go to the movies and don't download the film. It's stupid, it's illegal.