Mar 20, 2007 12:05 PM
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Reader Rob writes in, and he makes some interesting points:
For starters, the RIAA is incredibly stupid, but they are not evil. Like it or not, they actually do represent and help to pay the salaries of the artists whose music you wish to "share."A poll and my response, after the jump.Should they be suing teenagers in Poughkeepsie? Of course not. Should they be pushing DRM down our throats? No. But what you fail to grasp is that they are doing these things because they are short-sighted, small-minded,
incredibly ignorant bureaucrats who truly believe they are protecting the interests of artists and the people who pay them. They are not evil. They are not fascists. They are just profoundly stupid.Instead of demonizing them for doing the only thing they know how to do, why don't you come up with a better way? You guys understand the future of tech and what it means for music and movies better than most anyone, so why don't you stop throwing rocks at the dinosaurs and start solving the problem.
Now, I realize that these guys aren't evil incarnate and we just share differing beliefs, but I don't think I've demonized them personally too much (well, maybe a little bit yesterday). This is clearly an ideological debate, and we're just trying to get people talking about it so progress can be made.
As for us needing to solve the problem, to be fair, we're a blog. It isn't our job to develop new products or services, and I certainly would have no idea where to start doing something like that. If anyone has new, groundbreaking ideas or innovations in this field, of course I would love to post them here and get them publicity. However, there's a huge line between writing about technology and developing technology.
Plus, I write 13 posts a day, dude. There are only so many hours around to do stuff in. Publicizing the issue and educating people about what's at stake is our way of helping to solve the problem, as far as I'm concerned.
So what do you guys think? Are we way off, or do you think we're on the right track? I'm not just looking to get a pat on the back here, either. I really care about this issue, and if you guys have ideas as to how we could be more effective, I want to hear them.
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