Ethical+Arguments+About+Copying


 * __ Ethical Arguments about Copying __**
 * // In Favor of copying: //**
 * 1. **** It does not decrease the use and enjoyment any other person gets from their copy. **
 * 2. **** It is simply personal use and not for profit. **
 * 3. **** It encourages sales, since people can sample before buying. **
 * 4. **** I won't get caught. **
 * 5. **** I can't afford it. **
 * 6. **** The company producing it is large and wealthy. **
 * 7. **** I wouldn't buy it at the retail price anyway, so the company isn't losing a sale. **
 * 8. **** I'm making a copy just to help out a friend. **
 * 9. **** This is insignificant compared to the big-time software copiers. **
 * 10. **** Everyone does it. It would be foolish not to. **
 * // Against copying: //**
 * 1. **** It decreases the benefit to those who produced it, decreasing their ability to make a profit from it. **
 * 2. **** Personal use does not explain away behaviors which can affect others, e.g. vandalism. Copying reduces the value of someone else's property. **
 * 3. **** Sampling before buying should be an option for sellers to offer, not for buyers to forcefully take. Consider samples at a grocery store. **
 * 4. **** The moral issue of right/wrong stands regardless of whether or not you will get caught. **
 * 5. **** Not affording something doesn't mean you can simply take it. **
 * 6. **** Those who produced the company lose value when others copy it for free. **
 * 7. **** Who makes the decision about whether software should be free? It should be the seller, not the buyer. **
 * 8. **** It may help your friend, but it is hurting someone else (e.g. programmers, managers, etc.) **
 * 9. **** The principal affects quantities, large and small. Many small software copiers add up to a big problem. **
 * 10. **** Peer pressure should not be the deciding factor for morality. **