There's been a lot of arguing over semantics, in this thread, for sure. In many ways, semantics seem to be the root of the justification for a lot of this.

But, as a cartoonist, Internet contributor, and working to get his Graphic Design degree SO HE CAN MAKE A BETTER LIVING DOING HIS CRAFT, I feel compelled to (Long windedly) comment... down votes be damned.

Whether, or not, "piracy" is the right term, it's still theft.

Sure, you could argue that it can't be theft, since the original hasn't been stolen, per say. But theft is happening when you take my work - as an example - and offer it for free, without my permission, and rob me of the possibility of earning from my work and effort.

And the asinine argument that you shouldn't have to pay for things from huge corporations because they cost too much and those corporations have too much money? Wow; try again, guys. That, too, is still theft.

Mind you, I think things like Photoshop, and Office Suite, are massively, and ridiculously, over priced. Obviously price gouging is taking place. And, in a lot of cases, using Intellectual Property (IP) theft as their justification. (The total cost of a CD - packaging, and all - is as low as $.05 per unit, now. Prices are still what they were over a decade ago. RIAA is quick to claim "piracy" as the cause for high prices; not the crappy, formulaic music being pumped out with little, or no artistic intent other than to score our hard earned cash.)

If you don't like the company, record label, software company, whatever, then don't buy from them. Use Open Office instead of Office Suite. Buy from indie music labels, or from your favorite local bands, directly, instead of the commercial fed noise from RIAA establishments. Subscribe to Netflixs instead of enduring what has become the horrors of modern cinema.

These options not only save you money, headaches, and grief, but tell corporations exactly what you, the public really want, and will actually pay for; IN THEIR OWN PROFIT BASED LANGUAGE.

And providers? Yeah, you're going to learn how to put away the old 20th century business model, and move up into the future with the rest of us. Use you business savvy, here. You're going to need to let go of your greed. You're going to need to start offering better content, at better prices. You're going to need to get back to actually working to provide us with something we're willing to pay for; not just expecting we ought to be buying whatever you're selling.

I, in no way, support corporate sponsored, greed based Internet censorship. SOPA, PIPA, and ACTA are the proverbial wolf in sheep's clothing, for sure. And, as others, I can see there's more going on here than just the battle of the greedy versus the self entitled.

I also must recognize that not all file-sharing is bad. I, myself, use a file sharing site to send work back and forth with my partners, so that we can complete illustrations and other endeavors that I legally own. What happened to Megaupload is, at best, a disgusting perversion of the legal system. And should be a warning to us all about the alignment of law and corporate greed.

Look, deep wallets and Capitol Hill are a frightening combination, yes. And, thanks to the efforts of Disney, and other entertainment powerhouses, copyright has gotten twisted and perverted a great deal in the past fifty years. Creative efforts, and the values we give them, do need to be addressed; as well as ownership and owner retention.

But, we still need to be clear; call it "piracy", or "file-sharing" or what have you, but theft is still theft. Just because I, or anyone else, makes it, you do not have the automatic right to copy and just give it away. When you do that, you are taking from us the ability to earn from our work. You are stealing from us the ability to not only feed, cloth, and live, but the ability to even continue to create and provide the content you wanted, in the first place.

Your greed, the flip side of their greed, will have the exact same effect; the killing of the creative community and the death of positive, independent, and thoughtful content. You're helping to foster the same mindless wasteland that large corporations do, already.

Food for thought: Megaupload was in the process of creating a music sharing system that would have seen artists paid for their work, even if it was a free download, or not. It had the support of many A-level chart placing singers. it wad doing right by those that did right by it. And that's when the labels moved against it; pushing buttons on suspicions and estimates, and not hard fact and due process. They were about to lose another ounce of control - a threat to their wallets, and perceived power.

Shouldn't we be focusing more on that, then whether or not you feel entitled to watch "Footloose" for free because, after all, it was a crappy movie. (And, really, what kind of mature argument is that, to begin with?!)

Let the down voting commence...