Lestat gives up (Victory for t

 Posted on 7/7/1995 by jmsatb5@aol.com to rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated


Lestat, nothing is served by public displays of self-pity. On the
electronic screen, it simply comes off as indulgent and "poor me,"
whether that is the intent or not.

You say you have been judged by others, and you think unfairly so.
I have pointed out, as have others, that if you make mass copies of this
show, for distribution to others, *free or otherwise*, it's illegal, and
you will get nailed by Warner Bros. This is not judgment, it's a fact.

It's like saying, "I'm going to take this book from this store and
not pay for it," and everyone says, "But that's shoplifting," and you
come back with anger because you're being judged. No, those are the laws,
and it doesn't matter if you intended to simply give it to someone else
without cost to yourself.

Spending months mass-copying B5 episodes from the UK to the US is
patently illegal; you not only violate US and UK copyright laws
individuallly, but collectively; you would even violate the federal laws
regulating the transport of illegal goods via interstate mail. You could
be *hurt*, and badly. And believe me, if WB found out about it, you
WOULD be, for doing this on the scale you describe.

We've recently run into someone who was selling unlicensed B5 tapes
here in the US. Mass produced. This person has been identified, and
evidence gathered, and now this person is going to be prosecuted, and
subpoenad, and spend months in courthouses and giving depositons and
paying fines and potentially doing time, depending on the breaks. The
only difference is that one does it for money, the other doesn't, but THAT
isn't the core of the problem, it's copyright infringement.

People here, myself included, have gone out of our way to tell you
that what you proposed was illegal, and would get you in massive amounts
of trouble, to *save you from getting hurt*. You could be standing on a
ledge, about to jump, with people telling you not to do it, and then turn
around and yell at them for interfering in your own business. Well, it
ain't just your business, and it is for your own good. If you cannot see
that, it's nobody's fault but your own.

jms