This is a Marshal Mcluhan quote: man shapes technology, then technology shapes man. an example: man invented the gutenberg press. all of a sudden society and culture is completely transformed by this new technology that now enables printed-works to become more accessible and spread out at a much higher pace. obviously, a scribe is probably pissed off b/c s/he is out of a job. but, book-publishers, who have yet to exist and now do, are pretty happy b/c this new technolgy enables the possiblity of their existence. technology gives, and also takes away. the internet should be looked at in the same context. i am not addressing the morals of downloading, i am not interested in making an opinion here. but i am saying that it is very likely that the recording industy will collapse and become a thing of the past. nothing lasts forever. if people wanted things to last forever people would have to stop inventing new technologies (and thinking of new ideas) which would inevitably change existing social systems. here's the next thing: there will always be musicians and there will always be people who listen to the music. what changes is everyone else's role inbetween the producer and consumer - the function of the label, the function of a manager, of a publicist, etc... A record label is only possible b/c of the possibility of recording. it's not an historical constant. nothing is. next note: when people parallel downloading w/ tape-dubbing i think that is an exhausted and historically futile observation. people should look back further. before the birth of the recording industry bands still existed and still made money. they made money touring. as the recording industry began to grow it was an extension of the capitalizing of live performances. people made records to support the live shows - to support the tour. WHOA. now people tour to support the record. what happened inbetween? the dominant form of making money from music shifted from playing live to selling records. this shift is interesting. people freaked out like crazy, just like they are doing now. who in their right mind would complain about the benefits of selling records? no one. but they complained then because something different was about to happen. i think we are in a similiar historical moment. it's changing and their is no way of stopping it. but, if you look at it like this, the band always transend these different epochs - the same with the fans - it's just everyone inbetween that will have to figure what to do.

i am not making a stance on downloading, i am just saying what i believe the internet is doing. don't be afraid of the internet, it is your friend. it will love you when no one else will (shit, this was at first a nonsensical sentence, but i think it is actually true).

on another note, check out the polaroid book, you can't download a polaroid fuckers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ONE OF A KIND!!! fuck you walter benjamin! (but i guess you can scan it and print it in a book and sell it in a store)