Throughout this battle of rights and what is right, there are several groups of people bringing their skills to the table in order to fight in solidarity. Some of these people are savvy in the ways of technology, and they speak of things such as hosts, IP's and domains, oh my! These are the people who are our intelligence, and they quietly perform some of the most important maneuvers of the war.
Some of the skills employed by others are less refined, yet just as important. The people who get their hands dirty by pounding it out on the front lines of the message boards and social areas use language in a far less technical way. Their job is to engage the enemy in the trenches, and keep a certain amount of their attention and resources tied up.
Still yet are the sticklers for procedure and policy. These are the folks who "dot the i's and cross the t's" in order to keep everyone else legally in sync. They handle the mundane tasks such as document creation and procedure development. Without them, our efforts could backfire, resulting in setbacks and defeats.
Then there are the bloggers. In this pirateppounding fleet of warriors, where varied skill sets determine the force of the attack against those doing harm against our people, the most visible must be the bloggers. These are the people who boldly place their good name in the way of any advancing PR onslaught. They parry and thrust as viewpoints, falsehoods and any variety of opinions are hurled their way. They are the voice and bulletin board for the movement, and their message must be accurate, timely, important, relevant and above reproach at all times. The credibility of the movement relies upon it. For this reason I would like to take the time to point to some of the blogging heroes of our recent combat. Please take the time to visit the blogs of the following people. Without fail, they have all provided stellar duty in the face of battle. If you would take the time to comment on their blogs and let them know they are appreciated, it would be a great gesture. Thanks for your support!
Aaron Speca - Me and My Others, "Patriots or Pirates"
http://aaronspeca.blogspot.com/2012/07/patriots-or-pirates.html
"Pirates Aren't Sexy" by Lori Dillon at The Otherworld Diner:
http://otherworlddiner.blogspot.com/2012/08/pirates-arent-sexy.html
Aaron Speca - Me and My Others, "Patriots or Pirates - Part 2":
http://aaronspeca.blogspot.com/2012/08/patriots-or-pirates-part-2.html
Valerie J. Long, posted at Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/2770976-patriot-pirate-or-philanthropist-parasite-i-say
Aaron Speca - Me and My Others, "Patriots or Pirates - Part 3":
http://aaronspeca.blogspot.com/2012/08/patriots-or-pirates-part-3.html
Chris Meadows, posted at Teleread:
http://www.teleread.com/ebooks/authors-band-together-to-attack-pirate-e-book-site/
Ben S. Reeder, "On Piracy and Justification" as posted on The Wizard's Rede:
http://benreeder.livejournal.com/16495.html
I even found an informative blog in Italian referencing our battle:
Sergio Calderale, "“The Ultimate Ebook Library”: piratare ebook รจ uno sporco lavoro, ma qualcuno lo deve pur fare" as posted at Tropico del Libro:
http://tropicodellibro.it/notizie/ebook-pirateria/
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If you or anyone you know would like to be a member of the activist group No Pirates, please visit my Facebook page and message me. Thanks for your support!
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Stephen L. Wilson
No Pirates Founder
Smashwords Home Page
Like me on Facebook
@wilsonstephenl on Twitter
Good work, Stephen. I can't understand those authors who regard piracy as an occupational hazard and/or "the sincerest form of flattery." There are some people out there who wouldn't dream of shoplifting a paperback from their local bookstore, yet who think it perfectly okay to download a pirated ebook. They argue that because they have only "stolen" binary code it is not the same as stealing a physical book. They are missing the point i.e. they are stealing intellectual property without the PERMISSION of the copyright holder. Feel free to add my Pirate Watch blog to your list and best of luck!
ReplyDeletehttp://echomccool.blogspot.co.uk/
Mr. Driscoll,
DeleteThanks for the support! You are absolutely correct, and there are plenty of us who agree. I will certainly look into your blog. I am looking forward to combining efforts at some point soon!
I'm sorry. You can't compare stealing a book from a shop to copyright infringement. Also, the argument you say that pirates about "stolen binary code", is not actually the argument that pirates use.
DeleteAs a Pirate myself, i can say that there is a massive difference between stealing a book from shop and copyright infringement. When you steal a book from someone, you are depriving that person of their property. When you infringe copyright, you are not taking someone elses property, you are making a copy of that persons property.
If i were you come to your house in the middle of the night and steal your car, you would rightly be aggrieved. However, if i were to come to your house in the middle of the night and make an exact copy of your car and drive away in in, you would wake up in the morning none the wiser. There would be no harm, lose or injury to you.
I'm sorry. You can't compare stealing a book from a shop to copyright infringement.
DeleteCan, did. What was your argument again?
Also, the argument you say that pirates about "stolen binary code", is not actually the argument that pirates use.
In fact, it IS an argument which pirates have used.
As a Pirate myself, i can say that there is a massive difference between stealing a book from shop and copyright infringement. When you steal a book from someone, you are depriving that person of their property. When you infringe copyright, you are not taking someone elses[sic] property, you are making a copy of that persons property. If i were you come to your house in the middle of the night and steal your car, you would rightly be aggrieved. However, if i were to come to your house in the middle of the night and make an exact copy of your car and drive away in in[sic], you would wake up in the morning none the wiser. There would be no harm, lose[sic] or injury to you.
Just because you believe that, doesn't make it true. The car in my driveway is subject to the manufacturing and design specifications of its creator. If the copy you make is not as good, and its distribution results in a poor recreation, it cheapens my original. Chances are, you being a non-car-manufacturer, your copy will not be created with the same respect for the original. Now. I have spent a bit of time dealing with nonsense, since a $2.99 eBook is not an automobile, after all. If you didn't compensate the manufacturer of the car for stealing the designs, or compensate them for the thousands of dollars they put into R&D to come up with the engineering behind the designs you copied, then you are a thief, plain and simple. Justify it how you want to, thief. You are still a thief, thief.