I'm content to think that even the whole nature/nurture/choice component isn't binary….for some folks environment/upbringing may make all the difference, and for some folks it doesn't make any. Some folks may make something of a definite choice in gender and sexuality while some may be driven entirely by biology or…

Bruno is almost blind, has to operate wholly by touch. Klaus is a moron who knows only what he reads in the Daily Mail.

Yeah, I'm kinda uneasy with painting Silence of the Lambs as some kind of trans-attack piece, or even an offensive cultural nugget of the past. Maybe if Ed Gein didn't actually exist.

I tried photoshopping steroids, but I didn't even have the patience for that.

This show fucking blows. It's entirely based upon the idea of obfuscating even the most basic pieces of plot and setting, handing them out in tiny pieces at a time, as if it's some great puzzle, but it's so obvious that whatever 'answers' the viewer crafts in their head are going to be a million times more interesting…

Jesus, man. It doesn't matter whether you brought them up or not, I brought them up as applicable, and you did not answer with "yes, those things are also theft" you immediately dismissed them or tried to rationalize why your supposedly rigid set of rules didn't apply. Likewise, an hour ago your contention was NOT…

Just because copyright infringement meets part of the basic definition of theft does not mean it's equal. That's not legalese or semantics, it's like basic language skills. Nobody's denying the taking part, but someone necessarily loses property in theft. Manslaughter and murder both involve killing somebody, would…

Sure….but I didn't say anything about selling used CDs or copying/distributing mp3s. I specifically noted I was talking about the moral analog between BUYING used media and DOWNLOADING mp3s (and there is a distinction between downloading and copying/sharing mp3s, as thin as it may be). Regardless, when we get to the…

The owner of a copyright has five exclusive rights: reproduction (copying), preparing derivative works (adaptation), distributing copies to the public, performing the work publicly, and displaying the work in public. Playing licensed music publicly at a party (outside of your 'normal circle of friends or family') is…

Actually, I'm using the completely correct term that was coined specifically for this action, and you're the one trying to adjust the terms according to your morality. All of your apple analogies are contingent upon nobody buying the apple, and that is why they fail. Arguing against your points doesn't mean I'm …

No, that isn't analogous. Why do you need some sort of hypothetical shopping example? The only analogous example would be if I could take a COPY of that apple without paying for it. No merchandise is being lost and no sale is being denied, a right to copy is being infringed upon. I'm not saying it shouldn't offend you…

Lotsa folks are probably young enough to think Warren Oates is speaking figuratively, so it seems worth pointing out that the country's 5 largest recording companies were literally sued by the states in 2000, and found guilty of over-charging the public $500,000,000 for compact discs:

Yeah, video games is a great example of an emerging market for bands that didn't even exist pre-millenium.

I really don't know what the hell I'm talking about, I've just fallen down the wormhole of researching copyright laws/cases a few times, and/or went to the trouble of reading the fine print of the copyrights on a handful of articles/sites.

Hellz no…some might say my intellectual property needs a remodel.

Also, I think it's worth pointing out that as far as I know, nobody has ever been prosecuted for downloading or possessing any kind of copyrighted content. Everyone ever prosecuted (in the US) or even charged civilly for copyright infringement has been charged with the act of copying and disseminating those…

Well, most of those are admittedly shaky 'gotcha' points, but I think the one you left out is both the most common, and the best analog: people copy and paste headlines/parts of newspaper/blog/ESPN/CNN articles to each other all the time, which is a direct violation of copyright and deliberately circumvents whatever…

Regarding your comment that "it seems like the action is behind the scenes" I think that's something that doesn't get discussed much in this relatively tired conversation: though album/music sales have deteriorated drastically in the new millenium , there's also a ton of new avenues for artists to make money that…

It's entirely different from shoplifting, or any other form of theft. Actual theft of an item would not only provide me with said item, it would crucially prevent you from purchasing that item as well. I don't know why people get so bent out of shape trying to redefine what kind of crime copyright infringement is, or…

HAS ANYBODY HERE SEEN RICHIE?? ANYBODY KNOW WHY RICHIE DID BOBBY LUPO??