QuadCEM/QuadBlog

I guess the RIAA speaks for no one but themselves when they insist that their artists are being deprived because of illegal file sharing. What they really mean to say is, “I won’t be able to afford my third Ferrari this year because of you guys, so I’ll sue you for it.”

The RIAA recently filed suit against a father of four, David Greubel, for having illegally downloaded songs on his computer. Oddly enough a major record company, Nettwerk Music Group, has decided to help defend Greubel against the RIAA. Why would a record company go against the pious RIAA for their selfless acts of defending the artists of America? According to Nettwerk, they think that “Suing music fans is not the solution; it’s the problem”. Even though the RIAA insists that, in order to protect artists, suing consumers is the best way to stop illegal file sharing, Nettwerk claims that “the current actions of the RIAA are not in my artists’ best interests”.

Nettwerk has hired Mudd Law Offices to defend the Greubels, as they have handled numerous cases before involving the RIAA tying up the US Court systems with meaningless lawsuits (as if there weren’t enough already out there). Mudd said that the RIAA has “misapplied” U.S. copyright law, and I think most people completely agree.

I honestly think the best way to stop people from filing a ton of worthless claims and enundating our already stretched court systems would be to raise the stakes a bit. Here’s a new rule to consider as an amendment: if you lose your lawsuit, you have to pay them what you were suing for. In other words, if I sue you for a million dollars and lose the case, I have to pay you a million dollars (in addition to your legal fees). That should stop those half-wits from running off to the courts every time they get ticked off at something.