BTW - it should be interesting to note that no one is claiming that one form of theft is the same as other forms of theft, That is merely a straw man. Fraud is different from Embezzelment. Embezzelment is different from shoplifting. Shoplifting is different from copyright infringement. There are differences between…

“The reason some people are insistent on differentiating copyright infringement (copying someone’s work without permission) from theft (taking someone’s work without permission) is to examine whether or not the lack of physical deprivation of goods changes the character of the crime”

It doesn’t. The crime is the…

Yet you continue arguing the issue with others (who don’t bring up the issue of permission). It would appear the claim of trying to evade the issue of PERMISSION (which is what causes your ‘principle’ to fall apart like the proverbial house of cards) is indeed accurate.

“you are directly depriving someone else of their property - in this case their money.”

Uh, NO. Fraud is NOT limited to simply directly depriving someone else of property (money).

“it’d be really cool if Bob did allow everyone to use his car.”

Except YOUR principle is that Bob giving permission to ONE person is the same as Bob giving permission to EVERYONE. You EVADED that point - because THAT is a complete FALSEHOOD - ie where your principle fails. It is a fact you realize NO ONE will agree…

“I ignore the point because I don’t see piracy as theft.”

Because you see the life and effort of others as YOURS to dispose of as YOU see fit. YOU see youself as master - THEY as your slaves.

You “ignore the point” that they are NOT your property.

“Point the first) you can’t own people or distribute people freely.”

Disposing of an individual’s body and/or effort absent that individual’s permission is the claim to the life and effort of that individual. It is the claim that they are your property. That is the claim YOU are making upon others.

“Sharing copies of…

“Then sharing games of any kind should be illegal because Devs don’t explicitly give you permission to say, give a game to someone you know personally.”

One could certainly make that argument in cases where such permissions are not explicit (most games these days, there are explicit permissions and prohibitions). One…

“It’s not theft, guys. ... That’s not my opinion, that’s a ruling from the Supreme Court. You may infer from their name that, at least in the USA, they are the highest court in the land.”

And so their conclusions are unquestionable and can never be challenged? That explains why slavery is still legal. LOL

“ruled that copyright infringement is not theft”

It is properly recognized as a category of theft. It is the disposing of the effort of another absent the consent of that other. Embezzlement, fraud, and copyright violation all are different categories of this same violation: theft.

“most people realize sharing copies of something someone else bought shouldn’t be illegal” because apparently these people think slavery shouldn’t be illegal. One shouldn’t have to get permission of another to dictate how their life and effort are to be disposed of.

In other words, you argument is that some people -…

“Piracy is a way to determine if a game is worth buying or not, same as it would be if I borrowed a physical or digital copy of the game from someone I knew personally who already owned it.”

If the personly you personally knew who already owned it did not give you PERMISSION to “borrow” a copy of the game, then THAT is…

“When you pirate, you are sharing a copy of a game already obtained legally.”

You are given their effort under the explicit conditions that you will not copy that effort, let alone give it to others. BY violating that contract, the initial copy of the game is NOT owned legally. So much for THAT claim.

And yes, that…

“If no sale is being made, nothing is being stolen”

LOL. If a person’s effort doesn’t sell, then taking that effort and disposing of it in contradiction to their express permission is not stealing their effort! That’s because you are the owner of their effort, NOT them. You can’t steal what YOU already own. They are…

“I’m saying that, as a consumer, I am perfectly allowed to complain and not buy games”

Except that’s NOT what you are doing. You are using the complaint to justify theft - of taking the effort of others in contradiction to their consent. It’s like saying you’re allowed to complain if a woman doesn’t want to have sex…

“I took a copy of an object bought by someone else.”

Did you acquire the effort of other people with their permission - or without it? Without it. Since the life of others is NOT yours to dispose of as YOU see fit - ie they are NOT your property - you have NO right to it whatsoever EXCEPT with their EXPRESS permission.

W…

“It isn’t stealing”

“I am entitled to the money I earn and deciding how to spend it. And part of that transaction is deciding, quite vehemently, to not buy videogames heavily invested in DLC.”

Yes. You are entitled to the money you earn and deciding whether or not to buy something with it. What you are NOT entitled to is the videogame you…

“It’s ludicrous on a pure “I can pay 100$ to do an insane amount of things elsewhere that aren’t gaming,” basis”

Of course the idea that one should not take a game if one doesn’t think it worth what the creator seeks for it in trade? Apparently some people view ‘trade’ as just a suggestion. And if you don’t like a price, then its the creator’s fault for the theft! LOL