Why yes I am a pirate

For the record, yes I am a pirate (someone active in at least one file sharing community). I am also a writer and creator of material. I can see both sides of the issue, therefore it always amuses me to blog as if I completely favor one side or another in the whole piracy issue.

(Watch my posts---one day, I favor the pirates, the next day those who are manning the walls.)

It is also amusing that Zinkyleaks is unaware that Nick Farrell, Darcy Kuntz, Pat Zalewski are more than likely aware of the fact that I spend time on the file sharing sites. And if they haven't figured out that I am a pirate...well, I would be surprised.

(I cannot guess whether Chic and Tabitha Cicero are aware of my activity...personally, I have no contact with either one of them.)

I have never made any secret of the fact that I spend time on the file sharing sites. I have talked about doing so on my blogs, including this one.

Likewise, I don't bother disguising the fact that I am a creator and writer on the file sharing sites. You would be surprised the number of writers and creators who are also present on the file sharing sites. Now, I am not sure how many of them are actively running a torrent program in the background, but I assume a couple of them are.

And yes, I have downloaded stuff still under copyright. In fact, it is safe to assume that anything created by someone who was still living after 1940 is still under copyright. Unfortunately, a lot of it is out-of-print.

I started torrenting for out-of-print games (oy, I am a nerd). Then I started to download the latest espisodes of my favorite television shows (I do not have cable and I am impatient---oy vey, I am a nerd). And yes, I have downloaded a lot of occult books (I guess that is the cherry on top---I am not sure if it gets me nerd points or not).

And pirating has not stopped me from buying occult books, television seasons, movies, and role playing games. (I get my music from iTunes; they are also beginning to serve as my substitute for cable.) If Pat, Darcy or Nick showed up at my house, I would ask them to sign my copies of the books I own that they wrote...I am sure after they saw the pile of books I own by them that they would realize that they are not losing any money---at least, from me.

And I have shared part of my own work with the file sharing community. I am an author; and if I am going to get pirated, then by god I am pulling the trigger myself.

But I am not sure that I am guilty of hypocrisy. After all, I have admitted on more than one occasion that I have a vested interest in seeing both the creators of new material and the torrent sites survive. For me, the whole situation is more a muddy grey than a pure black and white.

And if you did not catch it, not only am I a writer, I am also a pirate.

(A big thanks goes to Zinkyleaks for inspiring this post. How do you like those huevos?)