In response to the RIAA story, welcome to the real world, where your actions have consequences, and where the consequences might not be to your liking.

Here’s a hint from an old grandpa geek who has been doing this stuff since before most of you were born: The reason that file sharing (and a lot of other stuff that you like to do) is illegal is because you allow it to be. Laws can be changed, but not if you just sit in your cozy little play-pretend worlds. Get out, get motivated and become politically active. In the United States that means vote — and it doesn’t mean waste your vote.

Find candidates who support your point of view. If there is no candidate who believes in doing things the way you want, then become a candidate. Who knows? Maybe you’ll win the election and start changing the world.

Beware, though, that the vote misused will result in chaos. Vote responsibly. The citizens of Rome voted themselves bread and circuses, with no thought for the consequences. Rome today is a nice place to visit, with a lot of ruined old buildings, but it isn’t a world-shaping empire any longer.

Wesley Will

Network Specialist

Southern Illinois University at Carbondale