Be afraid, be very afraid... if you post anything pirated on your website or even share files, the government is watching and might even send you to prison. This is far more severe than a lawsuit, people... up to 4 years in jail, ouch! check these out:

http://interviews.slashdo...ml?tid=123

and the government story on it:

http://www.cybercrime.gov/ob/OBMain.htm

doesn't the government have anything better to do? aren't we waging a war on terrorism? doesn't John Ashcroft hate abortions? go find the sniper, and leave us alone...

Real Christians don't use P2P.

Thou shall not steal.

the record companies have been stealing for years. i suppose no Christians are in charge of record companies?

probably right, twona. Just because someone calls themselves a certain label doesn't mean they walk the talk. There's been thieves in the temple (and the synagogue, and the church, and the u name it!) since the beginning.

Eleventeen said:

interesting considering how many gospel singers were robbed by so-called 'Christian' record labels...

rio said:

very interestin, indeed...

I'd like to see the Government try to sue millions of people simultaneously.

I'd like to see the recording industry buckle from the backlash if something like this were ever attempted.

No matter what technology is created or laws passed to prohibit file sharing, we outnumber them plain and simple. WE are the government.

Tom said:

and if we could get all the 18 year olds (just an example) that used file-sharing systems to vote, we could mobilize huge blocks of votes against the senators, representatives etc who back these kinds of initiatives, and get them out of office. i know, just a dream...

An acquaintance of mine was pretty big in Christian music five years ago.. hit top 5 on the christian charts for every album.

He is still broke, and now with two kids. It's a travesty.

Christian or not, the music industry is a pack of wolves ready to devour.

"The Christian music scene has become a big business industry. For a record company to survive, it must sell records. For the artist signed to a label, his career security rests in record sales. Unfortunately, making money does matter to Christian labels, many of whom are now owned by huge secular labels. For the artist who desires to get his/her message out, the entertainment medias and the internet offer incredible opportunities for mass exposure. We ask questions like, should an artist make money off the Gospel, profit off merchandising or charge for concerts? They need to make a living too. Many have homes, families and some even work part time to pay their bills ministering as weekend warriors for God. Paul says, "Those who preach the Good news should be supported by those who benefit from it" (1 Cor. 9:14). They’re supported by CD, tape and video sales, merchandise sales, royalties, ticket sales and love offerings... It’s tedious, self-sacrificing, hard work. The Kingdom blessings and rewards are wonderful, but sometimes bills don’t get paid, their worn out vehicles limp to concerts, uncomfortable accommodations greet them after a night’s hard work, Big Macs and Whoppers sustain them. Sometimes, after driving for hours to a venue, Christians don’t even support them by attending the concert. While returning home they wonder, is it all worth it? But, when a soul gets saved, a life gets touched or changed by their music, the unanimous answer is ... yes! It can be a rough road to travel for the local or part-time musician, who is committed to serving God with his/her talents, many of whom will never reach high profile status, but faithfully minister locally or regionally" (by Nick Costello).

What major Christian record label isn't owned and maintained by secular executives? Do you think this might possibly have an effect on product and performer? Sure it does.

---

"When u base ur love on credit and ur loving days r done, checks u signed with love and kisses later come back signed 'insufficient funds'" = Funkadelic's Can You Get To That

deepabove said:

Or ian!

Tom said:

Speaking of backlash, is anyone else a little irritated about coding CD's so they can't be copied??? People have made compilation tapes for years & years - CD comps are just bringing that up to date. If I purchase a CD, I should be able to copy it to my computer if I want. This is not the way to stop file sharing! Or maybe it is, but it sucks ass! I'm sure there'll soon be a way around it anyway, but I hope that trend doesn't take over. I'm just now getting around to making my comps & they're trying to take it away...

CalhounSq said:

No it is not the way to stop file sharing, there will always be plenty of people hacking the codes and distributing the songs on the net within no-time.
But yes it is frustrating and yes it is a violation of certain fair use rights a consumer is supposed to have, but it is condoned by your Governemnt through the DmcA and will soon be all over European legislation as well. On the surface this all appears to be about stopping "piracy" and preventing consumers from making digital copies for others (such as close friends and relatives)... the industry blames their losses on "homecopying"... They are smart enough to see that it is the inflated prices people have to pay for crappy cd's that do the trick, plus a weakening economy... but they say it is about "homecopying" and so-called "digital piracy" anyway... just to have an excuse for their behaviour and a tool to influence the minds of legislators and consumers that don't reason too well.

When you can't even LISTEN to a cd on your computer and sometimes not even on a normal cd-player...there is something really wrong and a situation is being created that can't be tolerated.

I can assure you there is a lot more behind it.

I would advice anybody not to buy cd's with copy protection devices build into them.
That's the only way to stop the mediamoguls from getting into your pc and "controlling"/monitoring your entire behaviour at home as well as on the net.

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[This message was edited Thu Oct 17 10:32:20 PDT 2002 by Abrazo]