Data Bases • Custom Term Papers • Free Term Papers • Free Research Papers • Free Essays • Free Book Reports • Plagiarism? Links • Top 100 Term Paper Sites • Top 25 Essay Sites • Top 50 Essay Sites • Search 97,000 Papers @ DirectEssays.com • Search 101,000 Papers @ ExampleEssays.com • Search 90,000 Papers @ MegaEssays.com Free Essays • Term Paper Sites • Chuck III's Free Essays • Free College Essays • TermPaperSites.com • My Term Papers • Get Free Essays • Essay World • Planet Papers	Search Lots of Essays Back to Subjects - Music Napster4 Napster4 On the day before Christmas last year, a cold northwestern breeze sprinkled dots of snow as Randolph “Slim” Johnson purchased his first computer. “Slim” strode out the front door of The Third Dentist Cavalry of Mount Caramel Mission Thrift Pawn, apparently unmindful of the crucifix above his head or the Budweiser sign in the window to his left—mute though eloquent vestiges of the building’s previous tenants. Small arms fire crackled in the near distance as “Slim” danced adroitly around the two large men fighting viciously and vigorously over a handicapped parking space at the curb. Anticipation quickening his steps, “Slim” reached his metal-flake candy-plum 1978 Pinto low rider with the three “factory spare” tires and the Saran-wrap-and-duct tape rear window, though which could barely be seen the official Northeast license plate: a homemade expired fake 30-day tag bearing the likeness of a stick character in a wheelchair. Ignoring the speed limit, “Slim” pushed the pedal to the metal, and the Pinto squalled north on Belmont Avenue, sending up a cloud of vaporized rubber, momentarily blinding the driver of the Rent-A-Center repo van behind him, which, incidentally, also had three “factory spare” tires and therefore listed heavily to the left. Moments later, “Slim” slid to a halt outside his double-wide; drug the computer inside; and, pausing briefly at the kitchen sink for a cold drink of water, with feverish haste began assembling his Radio Shack 386 on the fuchsia mother-of-pearl swirl surrounding the portrait of Elvis in the center of his Formica dining room table. Upon the initial boot of the system, he decided to search the internet for music of his favorite artist, Billy Ray Cyrus. “Slim” typed the phrases “Billy Ray Cyrus” and “music” into a search engine and got the result of most people at that time: a link to Napster, a free site where people can upload and download music of all types. He logged on and downloaded a live copy of “Achy Breaky Heart.” As he started to listen to the song for the first time, he heard a commotion in the gravel parking lot outside and jumped up in time to see the FBI, in full riot gear, barge into his home in a manner not unfamiliar to the family of Elian Gonzales and point automatic weapons at his family. It seems that the FBI had Napster targeted for music piracy, and “Slim” Johnson was the first arrested. He was later tried and convicted for illegally downloading “free” music from Napster. “Slim” Johnson has been on death row for the last year. We, as honest, God-fearing Americans, should support Napster as a legal enterprise. Three reasons why I feel this way are it doesn’t hurt the music industry, it allows the consumer to get the actual music that he or she wants without the filler that is on most albums, and this sets a dangerous precedent. The first reason I feel this way is that it does not hurt the music industry. According to a recent article in Newsday, “Album sales are up forty percent since the IPO of Napster. It seems that Napster is the best thing since sliced bread” (Jovi 35). Napster does not sell anything to the consumer on its web site, it simply provides person-to-person transferring of music files. According to a recent article by sophisticated journalist Bon Jon Jovi, “This is no different from swapping CDs with a pal. You both have something the other wants. You trade them, and you both reap the benefits. Why this is so wrong is beyond me. I remember the music industry was up in arms about FM radio, and we can see what good that did” (35). We as consumers do not need to buy into this propaganda about the musicians’ starving and their children’s selling crack to the elderly to get money for guitar picks. The second reason why I feel this way is it allows the consumers to get the actual music that they want without the filler that is on most albums. The popular venues for music seem to be the radio and television, and they typically play the hits. Most consumers don’t want any songs other than the songs they have heard. In Pita Frampton’s autobiography he said, It was hard in those days. People wanted only the hits. At the house shows, all I could do was play “Show Me The Way,” a medley of my greatest hits, for half an hour, and people were visibly upset. They were chanting things like “You suck, you one-hit wonder.” The pressure was on to produce. I remember other bands at the time were breaking up because they couldn’t get record sales because of one good song. Bands like Foghat and Molly Hatchet had dealt with the wrath of unhappy consumers. Their sales have gone away with their careers. (156) The tertiary reason I feel this way is the dangerous precedent it sets. When I was a boy, a three-minute music file on a computer was over the size of most hard drives, but now it is relatively small. What worries me is the next step. If it is possible for music to be compressed and enjoyed, film, logically, will be next. In a recent report filed by Billy Smithy, reporter extraordinaire, he stated The technology is out there. Eastman/Kodak and the others are anxiously awaiting the aftermath of the Napster verdict. If Napster continues to operate, then eventually people will be able to upload and download movies and videos in the same fashion. Digital photography is gaining popularity all across the world, and it is just a matter of time until we see mainstream digital video files not unlike MP3s. (46) If we are denied this technology, it has the potential to create a maelstrom of public outrage against the entertainment industry. On the other hand, some say that people should not be allowed to trade music on Napster. Some washed-up losers like the members of the heavy-metal band Metallica are complaining. They say it cuts into their profits. It takes money out of their pockets. This is a pathetic excuse. Album sales are up, even for hacks like Metallica. This is a technology that the people want. It doesn’t hurt anyone. Nobody loses money. We as consumers have the right to listen to the music of our choice, whether it is Chopin; Mozart; Sonny Bono; or, God-forbid, Metallica. What we do in the privacy of our own homes is our business, not anyone else’s, especially Metallica’s. So I think it is crystal clear that we, as Americans, should support the downloading of music from the internet, specifically Napster.com. In conclusion, I want you to remember “Slim” Johnson. He is still in jail, a forlorn fashion catastrophe in his ill-fitting pink coveralls, sitting on death row for music piracy. He misses his wife. He misses his six children. He misses his cat, “Mr. Freckles.” But most of all, he misses his freedom. Frampton, Pita. My Wacky Life. New York: Random House, 1980. Jovi, Bon Jon. “It’s Raining Men.” Newsday 16 Sept. 2000: 20-60. Smithy, Billy. “Time To Rock.” Metal Edge 15 Dec. 1999: 40-55. Bibliography: Attached Word Count: 1208
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