To Ben Dover:

You said it all. “It isn’t that bad.” If not being that bad is the standard you hold for yourself, go ahead, DL all you want.

Where is your respect for those who say, “It isn’t that good.” It isn’t about art, it’s about personal standards.

I don’t really think that DLing is all that bad. People are starting to forget what music is about… its not the money… Its what its should be doing to the listener of the the music and that would be making them enjoy themselves. I’ve downloaded it music, but in all honesty its probably made me buy way too many cds than i really need. If i DL’ed it… and liked it.. i went out and bought the CD. before all this i would go buy a cd hoping it would all be good. To get home and realize that i wasted my money. Thats changed. Anyway. that was about the money again. People just need to let the “art” part of music take over.

Art - the products of human creativity

Enjoy it…

You do realize that in many countries (most even), there are no retarded digital rights laws like here in the USA, so the record compainies really cannot do a thing about downloading.

It is not theft as theft is defined in most dictionaries.

Illegal DL-ing is just that: illegal.

Too bad for the ppl DL-ing, and too bad for the record companies, because if it was legal, record companies would have better public relations and they’d sell more records. As it is, ppl who DL say “those greedy record companies can bite me”, although some do end up buying the good albums that they DL and preview.

So it’s illegal, and the record companies are hard at work trying to find a way to sue or fine every single person who DL’s in whatever country they can catch them in. It’s shortsighted on their part, but that’s the way it is, and most ppl will let them pursue the DLers as criminals.

It could be so different, but it isn’t. This is digital media, not a hard physical product, but it’s still copyrighted.

So what kind of theft is serious? Is this a moral or value based issue? Is a legal issue? The legality of it is fairly cut and dry: it’s illegal. But as for the moral issue, many see DLing copyrighted digital audio or video files illegally as no worse than picking a flower out of a neighbors garden, or… borrowing a friends cd and burning a copy for themselves. How bad is it to DL copyrighted digital media illegally? How bad is it to smoke pot, j-walk, turn right without signaling, or not claim under the table work? What about serious crimes… is DLing a serious crime like car jacking or assault?

Theft is theft. Still, we’re talking about digital media. The industry shot itself in the foot by going digital, and now they’re being greedy, which is making things worse, but else do we expect from the music industry? They are capitalists, and must chase their bottom line. I don’t feel sorry for the big record companies. I look forward to a day when these manufactured superstars of little to no talent have to work their way to the top like every other local artist. I look forward to the day when the public sees the demise of the record industry, and we can all go back to seeing live music in local venues, buying their music directly, or at the local vendors.

One day the laws might change in favor of the DLers, but until then, be careful what you DL, where you DL it from, who your ISP is, and what anonymizing software you use.

Go out and support local live music.

So this is what he does when not Waffle House brawling?

I think less of kid rock than I did before watching this.
Nothing is stolen. There is no physical theft and only physical theft can be theft. They have lost nothing except a possibility of a sale which they cannot prove they would have made. In the process of losing this possible sale they get free advertising and a possible future customer. They are foolish and shooting themselves in the gut in viewing the situation as a loss.
Perspective is everything.
How is it that authors still make money with libraries existing? Maybe we should outlaw libraries.
Kid rock has obviously sold out to money. Greed is what it is. Good thing the locomotive manufacturers did not have the clout of the record companies or we would not have cars. In other words the music business is dead as far as record companies go once the internet came. If kid rock were smart he would release his own music for free and make his money himself off of tours.

Stealing music from Best Buy is the equivalent to stealing a pair of jeans. Maybe Kid Rock should stay off the drugs?

The music industry could care less if people stole their music from stores, cause the stores would have to buy more copies.

I second the Douche comment.

The movie industry gets their movies stolen every day as well. Make a movie that people just have to see in a movie theater and people will go (ei- the dark knight which made over $100 million so far). Make a boring movie and people will most likely download it or rent it for a dollar to watch it. Same goes with the recording industry; make an album that the fans want to see in concert and make money that way - make crappy music and of course people are not going to pay $12.99 or more because they like one song. As for the metaphor that if its okay to steal music then its okay to steal cars and gas; well if a person could sit comfortably in their computer chair and with one click have a new pair of jeans for free they are going to do it.
Advise to musicians - Make your money by going on tour, involving the fans, selling T-shirts and sticks. Not making a record and trying to sit on your butt and collect. It seems like some musicians would like to get paid an honest weeks wage for an honest days work.

The only argument against downloading music is simply that those in charge of the system have determined that it is illegal under this-and-that circumstance. If you walk into a shop and take a CD, you haven’t stolen a physical object that is the direct product of manufacturing which has data on it that gives that object appeal. If you download that data online, all you’ve taken is the data, which is electricity generated by a third-party which a computer interprets as information and thus the computer itself generates what you would have otherwise required transfer by means of a physical medium which is what you purchase at the store. If I download engineering schematics of a house, I haven’t stolen that house. The existence of that data is not dependent upon a medium manufactured and distributed, it is mere electricity which performs work on my hard drive and effectively copies that information. If I build myself a bently from scratch using my own hands and machinery, I have not stolen a bently, I’ve used machinery which has interpreted information derived from original schematics to make one for myself.

The entire issue is a sort of philosophical black box.

What Kid Rock, Metallica and the other douchebags of the world don’t realize is that downloading is the modern equivalent of the Boston Tea Party.

We’re tired of record companies ‘taxing’ us with outrageous prices on a CD that has one or two good songs. We’re tired of the artists ‘taxing’ us with half hearted work and BS like “The Best of…” releases.

Most ironic of all is too have a no-talent like Kid Rock preach to the world when he steals the music to all of ‘his’ songs. STFU you hypocritical little douchebag.

Ya know Kid Rock is about as sharp as a bowling ball. He of all people should know that artists make only a small fraction of the money gained from record sales. The real money is in touring and merch sales. So download all the free music you want, and when the band comes around bring all your friends and buy some shirts and stuff. That’s the way you really support a band. Why do you think bands like NIN are providing us the means to do exactly that?

just in case some of you didnt notice, this is a satire. an excellent one at that. he does a great job of making the point that stealing is stealing. i feel that downloading music is fine, but if you really like the stuff, buy the album. radio trash? not so much.

Perfect! So you mean to say they’re not missing anything by people downloading music for free? All that money would just got tot the record company and nothing to the artist, huh? No harm, no foul. I’m with you!

artist make little to no money from cd sales.

A friend of mine owns one of the few independent records stores still open around here. He’s been doing this for 35 years or so - he’s an original left wing local counterculture icon. He is having to phase out of the music sales business - his shop still has awesome music, but its also filled with cards and goofy stuff, along with a load of anti-Bush stuff. The markup is higher than on any of his music.

He has a real rough time with shoplifters, particularly the canny ones who bring razors into the shop. They can razor a CD out of its antitheft packaging in seconds, leaving the husk in the shelves for someone to find a week later.
His CD markup is so marginal that for every disc he loses to a shoplifter - he has to sell six more just to make even.

I would love to see outfits like SONY (”we don’t distribute defective disks”) brought to its knees, but stealing from someone else is not the way to do it.

The way to do it is to develop a discerning ear for new music and to do business with independent publishers and musicians.

When you try and hit SONY by stealing stuff, the only one who feels it is the local independent guy who can’t afford theft.

For those who may not have seen these, here are two very interesting articles on downloading music written by Janis Ian (”At Seventeen”, “Society’s Child”). They are a few years old, but still relevant.

http:// janis ian.c om/article-internet_debacle.ht ml

It’s a rule of thumb for me not to buy anything from a guy who has had sex with Scott Stapp. Sorry.

My purchased music library has only increased since the onset of Napster. Torrentz have allowed me to listen to the album in full so I can avoid the X&Y’s of the world. I’ve found out about My Morning Jacket, Spoon, Fugazi, Pavement and others I would never hear on mainstream radio. I use iTunes for the Spacehogs of the world. And if I don’t get around to buying a CD the first week for $9.99, I just use the internet and record stores with used departments to fill holes in my collection. But I do try my best to buy from the corner record store because they have an awesome collection of vinyl and indie music I can’t find anywhere else. If Kid Rock is pissed than maybe he should write better music. Coldplay seems to have little trouble selling albums these days,lol.

I’d like peoples thoughts on this… Is it still stealing if you intend on buying the CD anyway. The music is usually leaked on the internet before the music is commercially available. If I download it (because I want to hear the music ASAP) but I fully intend to buy it, (and actually do buy it) the day it is commercially avaialable, is that stealing?

Ha ha. Do people actually download Kid Rock’s music? But isn’t his music, just Lynyrd Skynyrd riffs over a drum machine with new and worse lyrics? Who’s the bigger thief?

I get that this was Kid Rock’s best attempt at a Swiftian jab against illegal downloading, but the joke don’t fly.

Here’s the thing:

(A) I, for one, have spent FAR more money on music than I ever did before Napster, et al. “Illegal” downloading only increased my appetite for music, and I have since spent more on iTunes and in bargain record stores than I ever did in the previous millenium, when I was reluctant to shell out $14-18 hard-earned bucks for a shitty CD with one good song on it. And there are lots more like me. If the record companies are making less money nowadays, consider it karma. God knows they screwed us over so well back in the day, they should have PLENTY saved up for rainy days such as these.

(B) Yeah, Kid, I agree. You ARE “fucking rich”, as are all the oil barons and fashion designers you mentioned. There was a time (the 90’s) when I wouldn’t have remotely thought about stealing, but the times they have a-changed. The rich are richer and the poor are poorer. The middle class is evaporating. Things cost more and more and people get paid less and less.

Kid, your satirical point makes more sense than your actual argument. In these times, if some underpaid youngster wants to steal from the rich, it’s 100% fine by me, as long as he gets away with it.

I’m no Marxist. I love Capitalism. But I HATE FEUDALISM. If the rich want to separate this country into lords and serfs, then the serfs (aka most of us) still have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness — by any means, legal or illegal.

If the president and his cronies can break the law out of greed, we have every moral right to break the law out of need.

Steal hotdogs so I can nail a fat bitch. Uknowwatimsayin?

hilarious

bad joke, but oh the symbolisim

I can understand some of the hate for Kid Rock. His music can be annoying at times (okay, at almost all times); but separate the messenger from the message. This was clearly intended as satire, and I, for one, agree with him. Illegal downloading is just that: illegal; like stealing cars, clothes, or anything else. And for the people who don’t get that he is against downloading (and stealing), haven’t you ever read Jonathan Swift? Jeezus, people; get a clue.

I would love it if Kid Rock was charged with theft… of illegally stealing copywritten logos from Toyota, Tommy Hilfiger, etc.

He may have INTENDED for it to be “funny”…. but he failed miserably.

Clearly this is meant to be humerous. I actualy think he is making an anti- illegal downloading point.

Here Kid Rock, here’s some gas for you to steal….. ***faaarrttt***, ahhh.

Yeah I agree with Kid Rock. We should be able to steal anything we want. Also it would be nice if we could all walk around naked, smoke lots of doobies and quit our jobs and just live off the earth as Mother Nature intended, man!

Oh yeah? And should we get arrested for stealing and illegal downloading can we send Kid Rock the bill for our lawyer fees, bail money and loss of wages too?

It’s the best argument against illegal downloading I’ve heard. I know alot of people just download music just to own them. I download songs just to see if I like them. If I do, then I buy the albums. There should be a certain responsibility when it comes to illegal downloading.

it’s not funny.

It was a joke you tools. Lighten up.

I’ve always wanted to punch kid rock in his vag and shake hands with his ovaries.

anybody want to come with me to rocks house? probably got a few sweet cars there. douche.

I love it. I just downloaded the video of the PSA myself!

Just remember kids, stay in school and stay off drugs!

If he meant to be ironic and joking, it’s not very funny… and if he is actually being serious, it is very sad.

Tim Russert dies, and Kid Rock lives… It’s an unfair world.