"Piracy isn't stealing" doesn't require a qualifier. It's objectively a separate, lesser crime. That correlation is just the result of effective, aggressive marketing that conflates the two. It was so effective that everyone misremembers the "you wouldn't steal a car" ad.
quirzle
Having your own internet connection costs money too. If being absolutely free is a requirement, go without a VPN on the McD's free wifi.
How many people really discover new music through piracy?
Everyone I've ever known. I mostly listen to metal, which undeniably became what it is because of people mailing pirated cassettes in the early 80s. 8 of my 10 favorite bands, I discovered by finding someone with good taste on Soulseek and grabbing the stuff I'd never heard of before. Piracy is key in the spread of underground music.
Artists that sell out stadiums wouldn't be affected much, but the ones that actually need the concert income absolutely would.
I think it incredibly damaging in the long run to have 50% of active users on this platform to be centralized on one domain.
I agree, but 50% is still better than 100%. I definitely appreciate that I'm reading about this while being totally unaffected personally rather than just disappearing entirely like what happens with a banned subreddit.
I don’t want some validation, internet points, 2 minutes of fame to sound / look cool.
No, you just need everyone to know you don't care about sounding/looking cool to sound/look cool. Totally different.
That'd be pretty hard to do over the internet.