Not that this justifies the RIAA stance, there is quite a bit of evidence that our copyright system actually discourages production by allowing artists to live off the earnings of previous songs. Even if it is against the immediate interests of listeners and artists, we need to create an incentive structure that is best for society.
Done. This is where the record labels come in. Their role is to sign artists to such one-sided deals that they must tour continuously and have several successful albums before they even begin to generate a profit.
Slashdot Mirror
I believe the speech you are referring to is http://www.michaelcrichton.net/speech-alienscauseglobalwarming.html