<<Someone, please tell me why this is illegal?>>

It's illegal for the same reason that sneaking into your local theater is illegal. You're stealing a service that people are providing for a fee. Sure record companies charge too much and stiff the artists too often, but claiming to be righting that wrong is an excuse, not a reason.

How would you feel if your total income depended on music sales, and you found that everyone was downloading pirated copies of music you sweated over for months, to get just right? And don't bitch that there's no way to get the music you want at a reasonable cost, because Apple sells it at about a buck a song download.

My kids are in a band, and they've spent ten years working their way to the point where they are about to be signed. That's ten years of their life devoted to honing their skills, while waiting tables and eating a LOT of Hamburger Helper. It's called paying your dues, and they did it gladly, because of a love of the music and the hope that it might someday pay off.

How do you think they will feel when someone like you tells them they get paid too much so you're going to steal the music, and then give it away to anyone who will take it? Will you then complain that people just don't bother making good music anymore?

Plain and simple. You, I, and the rest of the people downloading movies and music are both unethical and immoral. I admit it, though, and don't pretend I'm fighting for a cause when I steal. To my eternal shame I'm not only a thief, I'm a petty thief.

End of rant. I feel much better now.