Use the drop-down boxes above to navigate through the Website  
Return to Reasoning List
 

Here is a link to this page:
http://www.jah-rastafari.com/forum/message-view.asp?message_group=4885&start_row=1


Thou shall not steal in the modern day

1 - 3
Time Zone: EST (New York, Toronto)
Messenger: Matthew Sent: 9/13/2012 9:29:53 AM
Reply

I regularly download videos, books and music from p2p and media storage websites. Im interested in what ones think about this, is it stealing, have I broke one of Jah RasTafarI's laws?


Messenger: Ark I Sent: 9/13/2012 11:36:55 PM
Reply

It is kind of like getting somebody to do work for you but not paying them. For example, if the I paid for an artists song from a legitimate store, or paid a monthly fee to download songs, then the artist would get paid for that.

Without people paying for songs and concerts, the people who make the music would not be able to make a living.




Messenger: Matthew Sent: 9/14/2012 4:50:40 AM
Reply

Yes Ark I
I for one have downloaded music ect for many years without thinking anything of it, this is something I really need to meditate on. My thinking was as its not physical product its not stealing,and there is no direct victim. But like the I said ones use this as a way to feed their family. That being said a lot of things I download I wouldn't of paid for anyway, and its a good way of discovering new artists, if the vibe is right I will go on to support by attending concerts and other things.
----------------

Heres something I found online .....

Peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing programs are common on many computers. The primary function of many is to facilitate the transfer of music files between a large network of computers running the software. Their popularity is due in large part to the fact that the available music (which would elsewhere cost money to purchase) is available through the P2P client entirely free of charge.
The problem with these services is exactly that—no one is getting paid. No matter how you look at it, the artists who went through all the effort of producing those tracks receive no compensation. The same is true not just of musical artists, but of directors, actors, writers and so on whose works are illegally pirated on the Internet.
The Bible says very clearly that "the laborer is worthy of his wages" (Luke 10:7
; 1 Timothy 5:18
), further commanding us, "You shall not steal" (Exodus 20:15
). The artists and technical teams who have labored to produce music, movies and other material are entitled to the price they set on their work. If you want what they've produced, you should pay for it. The alternative is theft, forbidden by God in the Bible.
(When you think about it, downloading an album for free is roughly the same as picking it up in a store and just walking out the door without paying for it. In both scenarios, you take something that doesn't legally belong to you, and those who deserve payment don't get it.)
Of course, occasionally artists will offer their own music for free or at a very low price, and legal download services will from time to time offer free downloads as part of a trial subscription. In such cases, downloading is not stealing.


1 - 3

Return to Reasoning List




RastafarI
 
Haile Selassie I