Last night was TNA Wrestling’s Lockdown pay per view. I couldn’t resist shelling out the 30 bucks for the show. Overall it was a good show with Samoa Joe defeating Kurt Angle for the TNA world title in a great match. The X Division stars were awesome in their match with “Black Machismo” Jay Lethal retaining the X Division title. The thing that set Lockdown apart was that it was the first time that I can recall any nationally televised wrestling organization holding womens matches in a cage. I’m not going to spoil the show anymore for those of you who plan on ordering the replay, but I will say that it was another strong shownig from TNA Wrestling.
Monthly Archives: April 2008
Why people download copyrighted material
I remember the first time I heard about Napster. It was in 2001 when a friend told me about a website where I could download virtually any song I could ever want for free. I was in total awe at this concept and never thought of the ramifications.
Fast forward to 2008 Napster has been converted to a store but countless sites with this concept have sprung up in it’s place. As we all know now this is illegal. The legality seems not to matter to many people and the RIAA and MPAA are taking action. All of this information is common knowledge but no one is really discussing why so many people are downloading.
I think the first reason is obvious, It’s free. But that’s not the only reason. Another reason is availability. I recently read a report that 60% of music downloads are indie label. That means the worlds largest music retailer, Wal-Mart probably does not carry most of these artists’ music. Best Buy has a little better selection but not much. The next option is the the net. In witch you need a credit or debit card to pay for anything. How many teenagers and college students have a bank account let alone a line of credit? Not many, I’m sure. Amazon and iTunes are great sources to get non top 40 music, but not if you don’t have plastic. Small record stores have all but vanished and most major retailers will not do special orders. I know this from experience. This leaves this largest age group of music consumers with little options to get what they want. I believe this is a major factor in the popularity of peer to peer file sharing.
I can’t cay that I have a good solution for this issue. Not that I haven’t given it a lot of thought, but I think I understand it.
In closing and for the record, I do not download music illegally. As a professional DJ, I have to account for all of my music and pay royalties to ASCAP. I guess I’m lucky that it’s a tax write-off anyway.
Where do you get that stuff?
Working in nightclubs for many years, there are inherent dangers of dealing with the often intoxicated public. Every night at work i have to be prepared for anything. I also have to be well dressed. After all, a nightclub is still a business. I am often asked where I get my clothes for work and the tactical flashlights that I carry. There are very few actual brick and mortar stores to find this stuff. The best place to look is online. Try www.lapolicegear.com it’s a great place to find all sorts of civilian legal gear for all of your needs.
Online behavior for gamers
Why is it so many people think that the anonymity of the internet is a license to be a jerk? So often I hear people being so rude it’s unbelievable. This doesn’t stand true to all gamers, but there are so many repugnant people online that it can ruin your experience. I don’t see why people get off acting like this toward others, when they surely wouldn’t say anything to you in person. Thank god for the mute feature on xbox live. Online gaming is certainly not for children or the thin skinned.
Spring is Home Improvement Season
The warm weather is finally here and with me as with many other people, it’s time to get to work on the house. I try to do something for my house every year. Last year, to reduce my energy usage and give the exterior a face lift, I got a new texture coating from American Home Craft . I can’t tell you how pleased I am with the new look of my old house. In addition to making an ordinary home look extraordinary, the texture coat also greatly reduced the cost of heating and cooling.
This year, I’m in the process of having new more energy efficient windows installed. Between the texture coat and the windows my monthly energy bills will have decreased by half. Once again, I’ve got American Home Craft on the job. Their friendly, knowledgeable staff makes every step of the process hassle free. Maybe next year I’ll get some new doors.