Downloading, good or bad...

I remember thinking, "well, if people I know can get away with it, then I can." So, I started doing it and thought nothing wrong of it. It was simple and the best part was, it was FREE. I knew there had to be thousands and thousands of people doing it everyday, so I didn't think it was a big deal, or I would get caught. And I never did, but then I learned how much damage it really does...

I'm just going to get to the point. Downloading music, or even movies illegally is selfish. Bottom line. Many people don't know how much it effects other people, like the artists for instance. If you enjoy a singer or bands music, then why are you downloading it and causing them to lose money? Maybe you didn't know you were, either way, you did know you were doing something illegal.

I knew what I was doing when I first started downloading music, but I didn't care to think about how it was wrong or how I could be causing people to lose money. I just did it because 1) it was easy, 2) it was free, and 3) I wanted music.

I recently learned how many people do it, what the consequences are, and how it effects people and businesses. When I found that out, I was so surprised. People who download are making artists and businesses lose money. Not cool. And if you get caught downloading illegally, you could get charged almost $10,000 for EACH song you downloaded. Unfair? Well, no. Because you shouldn't have been doing it in the first place. Stealing is wrong, period.

If we could find a solution to fix this problem, it could really make a difference. I think it would be a good idea to have people from music businesses talk to schools and colleges about the effects and damages downloading does. I think once people know how big of a deal it really is, this might be able to change. I can only hope...