Free Music

Man is not a rational being, he is a rationalizing being.

Well, at least I am. I know what is right and what is wrong for the most part and generally I agree with society’s rules. I don’t covet anything that my neighbour has, I may be a little envious from time to time, but I understand that certain sacrifices were made for the neighbour to get those things. He worked hard for what he got or maybe he took out a karmic loan that will come due someday. I agree that people shouldn’t go around beating up others and certainly not commit murder. Theft is wrong, but sometimes it is more greyish than black and white for me.

For years I have paid ten, fifteen or twenty dollars for a CD from one of the bands that I love to listen to. I had already purchased the single or the LP but that is out dated technology now. The same applies to movies. I paid quite a bit of money for the VHS tapes and now everything is in DVD format or it is currently switching to the NEW IMPROVED Blue Ray disk. We want our entertainment so we willingly paid what was asked and thought nothing of it.

Until I discovered that I could buy blank CD’s and DVD’s for a fraction of a dollar and make copies of those albums and movies that in the past cost me a very, very small fortune. Yes, I know that the artists and all of the people involved in the industry need to make a living, but sometimes I can’t help but think that I don’t need to keep paying for the same thing over and over again. This is the grey area that I mentioned earlier. How rich does Paul McCartney have to get?

If the music and movie industries had charged a fair price for their product for all of these years, no one would bother to make copies; it just isn’t worth the effort to save a buck or two. However, when a movie comes out and is twenty-five dollars for something I can make for 20¢, things begin to grey up a little bit more. Now, I would no more buy music than I would vote Conservative.

I should note here that my musical tastes run towards the main stream and those artists are quite well off. I have no problem buying music from new bands if I can hear the sound first. Getting greyer…

Lucky for me, society seems to be providing my entertainment in relatively affordable ways. Cable TV gives me an almost unlimited amount of content for a very reasonable rate. TV shows and movies are available at the press of a button. The music industry has and is transforming. Mainly because the industry just can’t control how music is listened to any longer. I have been and am right now listening to internet radio that comes free with my cable subscription. The music industry just have to hope they can get a small percentage whenever their product is played. Life is good for a cheap guy like me.

Sure there is a possible future that has the entertainment industry going broke. There is also a possible future where meat producers go broke because everyone converts to vegetarian diets. There is a possible future where computers become self aware and decide we humans are a cancerous growth. Possible, but unlikely.

I am going to keep walking in the shade until I die and when that happens I hope that whoever is making the decision will play free music at my funeral.