LeeWare, I have a couple of issues with this summary. The first is your use of the term "theft." It's an inaccurate word, and it's only used because that's the term that the RIAA keeps using over and over to try to alter the debate about copyrights. It's an inaccurate word, and using it plays right into the hands of the RIAA.

The basic problem with the word is that when I steal something the person that I stole from no longer has that item. The term that should be used is copyright infringement. If I download a copyrighted song using LimeWire, I have infringed on that songwriters/performers/record companys right to that song. I have not stolen that song from them, because you can't "steal" a song.

This may seem trivial, but it really does affect the debate. Anybody can say "stealing is wrong" and it's impossible to say that they are wrong. On the other hand copyrights have always been a balance between content producers and content users. When the balance has been upset and skewed towards content producers (and the recording companys that make money from them) then is copyright infringement is wrong (even if you call it stealing)?

For instance, the RIAA has argued in the past that it is infringement to copy a CD and give it to a friend (this was about two years ago, they've since abandoned this insane arguement) If they call it stealing and call me a thief then how am I supposed to defend myself. I'm left trying to say that some stealing is okay, which is a bad position to take. Instead, we have to challenge the RIAA's choice of words. If the RIAA wants to argue that copying CD's to mp3 players is wrong, that's fine, but at least call it what it is, copyright infringement, and then work to change the laws to strengthen the consumers right to use copyrighted materials.

-CM