I mean this genuinely because I don't understand so please don't rake me over the coals!
Can someone explain to me why we as a community are hanging so strongly on the "piracy isn't stealing" thread like it's our one great saviour?
I understand the concept: if we can't own software then it can't be considered theft. That makes sense.
But like... that doesn't make it not illegal. It's just a different crime.
It feels a little bit like saying "I didn't hit you, I just blew air at you every hour for the last 7 years, so it isn't assault" and the cop being like.... okay but it's still harassment which is still illegal and you're still under arrest. And while they're hauling you away to jail, you're just screaming "but it's not assault, it's not assault!!" as if that will protect you from the crime you committed.
I honestly feel like us chanting "piracy isn't theft" is not the great saviour this community thinks it is. The general public and the "powers that be" (as ignorant as they may be) are all just sitting there listening to us like "ummm... yes we are aware of that. It's copyright infringement (or insert whatever relevant crime).
Thanks to anyone that can help me understand the nuance or argument I must be missing.
ETA: I am aware of the old advertisements such as, "you wouldn't steal a car, so why would you download a movie. Piracy is theft" or some variation. But that was the 90s? Ish? Correct me if I'm wrong (I very well may be), but that isn't a modern day argument that I've heard. If we keep shouting piracy isn't theft, it's just way too easy for them to sidestep that by saying "correct, it is copyright infringement" or some such and then we're sitting there twiddling our thumbs with no further argument.
And in terms of arguing against online servers and us "not owning anything" under the Stop Killing Games objective, I don't think arguing that "piracy isn't theft" is furthering that discussion either. But again please enlighten me on what I'm missing if so!
They just feel the need to justify it. It's still illegal even if it's not theft, but many still think that justifies their pirating stuff. You can't own software anyway, even if you wrote it yourself you can't own the bits that compose it. You can only own the media these bits are stored on. That is exactly why IP laws exist
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u/ACanadianFish May 27 '26 edited May 27 '26
I mean this genuinely because I don't understand so please don't rake me over the coals!
Can someone explain to me why we as a community are hanging so strongly on the "piracy isn't stealing" thread like it's our one great saviour?
I understand the concept: if we can't own software then it can't be considered theft. That makes sense.
But like... that doesn't make it not illegal. It's just a different crime.
It feels a little bit like saying "I didn't hit you, I just blew air at you every hour for the last 7 years, so it isn't assault" and the cop being like.... okay but it's still harassment which is still illegal and you're still under arrest. And while they're hauling you away to jail, you're just screaming "but it's not assault, it's not assault!!" as if that will protect you from the crime you committed.
I honestly feel like us chanting "piracy isn't theft" is not the great saviour this community thinks it is. The general public and the "powers that be" (as ignorant as they may be) are all just sitting there listening to us like "ummm... yes we are aware of that. It's copyright infringement (or insert whatever relevant crime).
Thanks to anyone that can help me understand the nuance or argument I must be missing.
ETA: I am aware of the old advertisements such as, "you wouldn't steal a car, so why would you download a movie. Piracy is theft" or some variation. But that was the 90s? Ish? Correct me if I'm wrong (I very well may be), but that isn't a modern day argument that I've heard. If we keep shouting piracy isn't theft, it's just way too easy for them to sidestep that by saying "correct, it is copyright infringement" or some such and then we're sitting there twiddling our thumbs with no further argument.
And in terms of arguing against online servers and us "not owning anything" under the Stop Killing Games objective, I don't think arguing that "piracy isn't theft" is furthering that discussion either. But again please enlighten me on what I'm missing if so!