The following is my sister Julia's speech for the middle school speech contest. I am literally horrified. I love you Julia, but come on...big bad greedy businesses? File sharing is stealing? AHHHHHHH! What have I done wrong?

"A burning Issue"
Everyday, millions of people around the world log on to the internet in order to download songs. the things is, they are destroying the music industry. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of web sites such as audiogalaxy and the now shut down napster. But lately I haven't been taking songs off the internet and putting them onto a blank disc, also called burning, because my conscience has gotten to me. I have been asking myself, "what is the difference between getting free songs, and stealing CD's from a record store?" the answer is, nothing. Today i want to show you the two sides of the fight for free music. It all began when a teenager invented a web site that allowed anyone to share music. the reason this boy had originally made this web site was to allow independent bands to put their songs on line. Eventually, major music artists appeared on this web site and a whole new way of getting music was born. Soon a name for it appeared, Napster, meaning name calling, and it rapidly caught on. Millions of people began to go online sharing files and getting so-called "free" music. However, not all of this could last forever. One rock band, Matallica, became angry because their music sales had dropped rapidly. Soon, Napster was shut down, but this didn't stop other people from making sites identical to Napster. Now, there are hundreds of web sites that give away "free" music. Let me now explain to you the pro's and con's of all these web pages. Many people support web sites that give away music. First, Many don't like the "big bad" music indrustry. There are greedy music record companies that don't give their clients the appropriate amount of money that they've earned. When we buy CD's, we're supporting those money-hungry people. Secondly, you can buy a pack of 100 blank CD's for about 7-10 dollars, but one music CD costs around 15 dollars. Why pay more money for something when you can get it for less? Lastly, its convenient! when your at home, you can download songs, burn them onto a blank disc, and pronto! you have all your favorites in just a small amount of time. on the other hand, downloading free songs can seem like a bad thing. Like i said before, its stealing! in my opinion there IS no difference between walking into a record store and taking a few CD's, and burning CD's at home! Secondly, if we don't buy music directly from the artist, then they'll lose money. If songwriters dont' get money, then how are they supposed to make songs? If too many people start downloading music, then maybe musicians as we know them will stop recording all together! Lastly, after September 11, people stopped going out and shopping as much as they used to. We need to boost our economy, and keep people like musicians in jobs, otherwise the employement rate might fall. So whats the big difference between ten dollars and fifteen? At this time, MP3's and CD-R's are invading store bought CD's. Sure, some people are really big fans of a band, and they buy their album, for their personal CD collection, but not enough people are. in a poll taken by CNN, blank CD's for burning music sold more than original CD's by the artist. So what side are you on? are you for websites such as napster? or are you against the whole "burning issue?" you decide, but remember: honesty, is usually the best policy.