Time for another Anti-Piracy Ad…?

There’s a recent ICE ad promotion trying to claim when you download movies you cost people their jobs.  Why the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency has anything to do with anti-piracy is beyond me.  Then again, government rarely makes sense.

But yeah, downloading movies does cost people their jobs.  This is true.  Using my computer costs those in the typewriter industry a job too. Using my vehicle costs those in the horse drawn carriage business a job as well.

Those against downloadable media argue you’re costing them their jobs and this is a bad thing.

Those who think more than two seconds about the issue (and whose jobs aren’t in danger) could easily ask “what jobs are in danger of being lost in this digital age?” Does anyone feel bad about the typewriter salesman or the horse drawn carriage manufacturers? Certainly there are some that produce/maintain these products for nostalgic reasons but very few people actually use typewriters or horse drawn carriages for communication and transportation, respectively.

When whole sectors of jobs are lost, there’s a reason. In the typewriter and horse drawn carriages case, the reason is better technology took over that made them obsolete.

So the question remains: if someone is working in an unproductive and obsolete job, why are they still working there? And should we feel bad when their job is inevitably lost?

What’s even worse is they use the example of a boom mic operator. Someone who holds a microphone over actors’ heads just out of camera shot so that they can pick up sound. Do you really think their job is on the line? If it is, well then I suppose it’s better to use cleverly hidden microphones instead of a boom mic operator. But even if boom mics are still needed, they aren’t the first on the chopping block. Those who work at the DVD/Blu-Ray manufacturing plant are first to go. Those who deal with every chain from production to sale of the DVD and Blu-Ray disks are in jeopardy. Not the members of the production of the movie who are actually productive.

No one feels bad for the typewriter salesman or horse drawn carriage manufacturers because those modes of communication and transportation are outdated. So are DVDs and Blu-Rays. Yeah, that’s right. You just invested big bucks upgrading your DVD collection to Blu-Ray only to realize digital is the way to go.  Furthermore, those in extinct industries who lost their jobs have found another. Trust me, when people lose their job they don’t just spend the rest of their lives unemployed. If they’re productive people, they stand up, dust themselves off, and look for another way they can be a productive member of society once again. Those whose jobs depend on decades-old technology will find their way in this brave new world of gadgets and gizmos into another career path.

Big surprise, ICE has disabled comments on the youtube page displaying their ad.  I wonder why?  Could it be they don’t want to hear what Americans really think of their ridiculous videos?

One who isn’t afraid to discuss this issue is wired.com.  Yeah, they allow comments there.