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BSA IDC FUD
truthsearch writes "News.com.com is reporting that a 'study, commissioned by the BSA and conducted by IDC, found that in general, nations with the lowest piracy rates had the largest IT sectors. The study, which examined 57 countries, predicted that a 10-point reduction in the rate of piracy over four years could generate 1.5 million jobs and $64 billion taxes worldwide.' The BSA, er... Microsoft, will use this study to convince governments to crack down on piracy. 'Overall, the countries that have the poorest record of IP rights have slower rates of IT growth,' BSA CEO Robert Holleyman said. Oh, and the countries with the most oppression have had the slowest IT growth, but that can't be the cause, nah."
You know you are a geek when you understand a headline of all these acronyms... :\
...the BSA pointed out that countries with more relaxed Intellectual Property laws had higher child mortality rates. "The inference is clear", BSA CEO Robert Holleyman said, "Piracy kills babies".
I didn't know the boy scouts of america were cracking down on piracy! If they weren't always coming to my door with thier fundraisers, I'd have some money to buy some legal software!
We're only gonna die from our own arrogance, that's why we might as well take our time...
So what's the easiest way to dramatically reduce piracy: use open-source software. So if everybody switches to open-source, it'll be good the the industry. So I suggest the BSA starts advocating OSS more. After all, that's good for the industry :)
Opus: the Swiss army knife of audio codec
Damn.....if thats a big issue with how piracy is wrong, I'm free and clear since I don't pay any sales tax anyway in the state I'm in (Delaware)......whew! my conscious is CLEARED!
Time to buy another spindle of CDRs!
Sehr geehrter Toilettenbenutzer!
...putting cause and effect the wrong way round. In other news:
* People sneezing more likely to catch cold.
* Companies with fewer security concerns more likely to use Linux.
* People who buy Ferrari's are more likely to be rich.
Dave
I write a blog now, you should be afraid.
FYI, the BSA, AKA "guys we don't like", are spreading FUD using $$$ and buying out the IDC, an industry analyst that government organizations such as the CIA, the FBI, the NSA, the DOD, the DOJ, TIPS, the WTO, and perhaps even more will all listen to and as such we will be forced to respond by supporting groups such as the ACLU and the EFF in the fight to maintain our civil rights while also hoping that we're not drafted the SSS and also that the SSA holds together so we can all retire someday.
Or something.
If piracy is high, their IT sector must be low
If an IT sector is low it must be a developing country
If it's a developing country then piracy will be high
thus...
If piracy is high, we impose trade sanctions
If trade sanctions are imposed, a developing country's economy will suffer
If people can't make enough money to buy software because their economy suffers they will not pirate software because they have learned their lesson.
"Looks like I picked the wrong week to stop sniffing glue."
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Also, tithing 10% of your monies to our ministry (the Church of BSA) will return your monies tenfold. The Lord Bill has said so. So let it be written, so let it be done.
As a representative from the BSA making my first visit to Slashdot, let me say, thanks for all the insightful commentary on our study! We will be sure to retract it and point out to your elected representatives that correlation does not imply causality. We will then dismantle our organization and all live together in a utopia filled with puppy dogs, sunny days, and Richard Stallman.
That countries with high piracy rates were much more likely to be populated by people of color.
"Without immediate action to stop the spread of piracy, American citizen's will soon find their skin turning darker and darker," said BSA Spokeman Bubba Nalk. "We can already see the effects of software piracy on college campuses, as file swapping continues to turn white students into asians and even black students, as evidenced by the increased enrollment of students of color."
Mr. Nalk had no comment on whether software piracy also caused male college athletes to turn into women.
paintball
These numbers make it clear that countries investing in Free Software will have a clear competitive advantage when it comes to their IT sectors.
The BSA was pleased to announce that after conducting a thurough audit of Michael Jackson's home and production company offices that all of his software had the approrpriate licenses, and in many cases, Mr. Jackson had several more licenses than were required for the software he was using.
"We're pleased to have Mr. Jackson's support in combating the numerous negative effects of software piracy," said BSA spokesman Bubba Nalk.
paintball
Ok, let me give it a whirl. Ahem... Over the last 15 years the average income of women in the US has increased dramatically, narrowing the salary gap between genders. I've been having sex for approximately 15 years. I predict that if more women have sex with me, there will be equality in wages....Hey you're right! Time to write up a press release and shave...
Think about it: countries like Sudan and Nigeria... who's gonna be pirating Windows XP when they don't have a computer to run it on?
Of course they have computers in Nigeria. How else is John Bako sending out his 419 emails to everyone?
If the intended audience is the general public or your average collection of drunken frat-boys then stupid arguments are pretty convincing. It's not through chance that the unethical use FUD.
If, however, the intended audience are our just and wise leaders--those who consider every issue in a careful, logical, and unbiased manner, then your complaint is relevant.
For our leaders would never use such arguments to pacify the public and justify their own interests. Our leaders have the interests of justice and the public good at heart. The protection of moneyed interests is insignificant. Especially when seen in the light of that sacred and holy commitment that each of our leaders has made--to uphold the Constitution and laws of the United States of America.
P.S. I have some swamp^H^H^H^H^Hland in Florida for only $400/acre if you're interested.
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away." - Philip K. Dick
If you have a "job" in the piracy field, the software makers get no money, your revinue wont be taxed either so a government misses out also. Being a car thief could also be called a job, the person who loses the car gets insurance payout, thief gets/sells the car, insurance company raises premiums to pay for it. Everyone wins!
Laptop Reviews
In that case, shouldn't the US government be discouraging countries from passing tougher copyright laws?
Wouldn't that end up sending US jobs overseas?
Most people I know that drink light coke is fat. Conclusion: light soft drinks make you fat!
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COME AND GET ME!
You gimme any of that juris-my-diction crap, you can cram it up your ass.
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