| Most people know what stealing is. If you went | | | | does pay, somewhere, at some point. I've got a |
| into a clothes shop and came out the door later | | | | friend who was telling me proudly that he's |
| with a shirt or a blouse that you hadn't paid for, | | | | discovered a wonderful new hair salon where |
| that might seem like stealing. Trouble is, in a | | | | they serve free drinks while you get your hair |
| recent survey, about half the British residents | | | | cut. Tea, coffee, fruit juice, or mineral water, it's |
| interviewed admitted to taking something at | | | | your choice. I said: who pays? He laughed. 'It's |
| some time from their place of work. It might | | | | free', he said. Then I found out how much he paid |
| have been the odd ballpoint pen, or a handful of | | | | for his coiffure, and it was double the bill I usually |
| paper-clips, but it went up to and included a laptop | | | | pay. Who paid? He did. |
| computer. What about the worker in a car | | | | Now we get to the internet. For some reason, an |
| factory who took home a small part every day. | | | | incredible number of people expect it to be free. |
| At the end of the year he had been able to build | | | | Why? Every email you send, every web site you |
| his own vehicle at home. Is that theft? Or do we | | | | visit, has been set up, programmed and built by |
| secretly admire his initiative? | | | | people. Their time costs money. You expect them |
| What about taxes? In another survey half the | | | | to work for nothing? The unusual thing about the |
| respondents admitted to playing down their | | | | web is that it mostly isn't 'big business'. Apart |
| income and beefing up their expenses when they | | | | from the obvious software giants, it's mainly |
| made their annual Tax Return. That's lying, but | | | | people in garages and bedrooms, home dens and |
| hey, you're only stealing from the taxman, right? | | | | studies. Some of them are geeks, some |
| Well no, you're actually taking from all of us, all | | | | hobbyists. Some happy to invent new stuff, work |
| those daft enough - or honest enough - to pay | | | | on new ideas, and give them out to the world |
| the taxes we owe and thus cover all the | | | | (which is what Open Source software is all about). |
| healthcare costs and social work that we happen | | | | But if someone has spent time making something |
| to think is a useful part of our society. It's not like | | | | work, and you then take it for free, aren't you |
| finding a banknote on the street, is it? If we saw | | | | stealing? If it's their effort, then you've taken their |
| some money sliding down the gutter, well, that's | | | | energy, their resources, their inventiveness, their |
| just good luck, isn't it? It isn't like we filled in any | | | | time. For nothing. |
| forms falsely or lied to anyone, if we just pick it | | | | Ahh yes, someone pays, you agree, but it's |
| up and run off with it, right? No? What about if | | | | advertising. Web sites are flooded with small ads |
| you happened to be walking past my office and | | | | and links to commercial programs, so that's what's |
| saw my wallet lying open on my desk? Would | | | | funding the work, you say. But who pays for |
| you feel justified in helping yourself to whatever | | | | ads? When I buy my tin of baked beans in my |
| you could find in there? I mean, it would involve | | | | local supermarket, I know that that company has |
| strolling into the room casually and hoping that no | | | | spent millions on TV ads. It means that for the |
| one was there. Or that anyone else passing by | | | | price I pay, some small fraction of it is going |
| noticed you being in there and thought you were | | | | towards the company's advertising budget. If I |
| acting suspiciously. And you would have to open | | | | buy books or toys or software on the internet, |
| the wallet and riffle through the private contents. | | | | isn't some small part of the price helping to pay |
| That's stealing, right? Or would you say it was all | | | | for advertising it? After all, who paid for my |
| my fault for being so stupid as to leave my | | | | friend's 'free' cup of coffee? He did. |
| assets unattended in plain sight? | | | | If you think anything is free from the internet, |
| After all, people like 'finding' free things. A few | | | | you're deluding yourself, firstly. But secondly, and |
| nights ago, someone climbed up onto the roof of | | | | far worse, is the attitude that says, 'Yeah, |
| the Youth Centre near where I live and 'found' | | | | someone pays, but it isn't going to be me'. |
| some strips of lead. They helped themselves and | | | | Because that's stealing, (just like taking from the |
| later that night, when it rained, water poured in | | | | taxman, or your employer, or my local Youth |
| through the open rafters and wrecked the | | | | Centre). You want a program that will make you |
| computer room and boxing gym. It's all bad news | | | | money, but you aren't willing to pay for it? You |
| for the local children, losing facilities that they | | | | want someone to teach you internet marketing, |
| sorely need, but it's not stealing is it? I'm sure the | | | | as long as nothing has to come out of your |
| local thugs who did the deed will be excusing | | | | wallet? That's a hell of a bad basis for starting to |
| themselves right now and saying that 'It's insured' | | | | set up any kind of successful enterprise. That's |
| or some such nonsense, and not worrying about | | | | like going into the shop and seeing 'Aunty Betty's |
| the fact that it's their younger brothers and | | | | Cake Mix' and thinking, 'Okay, she invented the |
| sisters who are losing the facilities, however | | | | recipe and prepared the ingredients, but what do |
| temporarily. | | | | you mean - she isn't going to cook it for me, for |
| This 'insurance' issue raises the question: 'Who | | | | free?' Or, just to rub the point in, she isn't going |
| pays?' If it's the taxman we don't worry, it | | | | to bake it in her oven and leave her front door |
| seems. Or maybe if it's big corporations (especially | | | | open, so you can sneak in and steal the cake out |
| if they are our employers), department stores, | | | | of her oven, in her own house. She isn't? She isn't |
| local government, the banks, insurance companies, | | | | going to let you steal it from her and pay |
| that's OK. But the clear fact is that someone | | | | nothing? What kind of internet author is she? |