Pirates, Nazis and Activists

…all jolly dashing in their own, romantically mythologised way.

I have been following the Pirate Bay case only detachedly, eagerly awaiting a judgement and the following analysis without wading through daily courtroom drama.  Everyone instinctively loves “free” and freedom fighters battling against big corporates and evil empires.  Too few consider ,or offer solutions for, the originators (in this case musicians and songwriters) whose copyright and livelihood is infringed by the file-sharers.  For myself, I believe those rights need to be respected although I’m less warm to the recidivist tendencies of the music industry bureaucracy (I’m more Music than Industry, if you will). 

Second caveat, I’m a reluctantly regular reader of The Register with its scurrilous, entertainingly puerile angle.  I don’t always agree but I’m often entertained.

All of that said, I found this interesting: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/02/26/pirate_bay_neo_nazi/.  Firstly, because of the irony of a leading neo-nazi, Carl Lundström, allegedly owning 40% of The Pirate Bay.  And secondly, because of the apparent bias of the leading English language reporter following the case (for Wired magazine) Oscar Swartz.  Swarz is a keen supporter of internet freedom (absolutely right) and of The Pirate Bay (there, I’m less clear).

That said, of course, no-one said he should be neutral.  One just hopes that commentators appreciate his agenda.