If this were the 3rd World, then yes I'd feel guilty. But this is the 1st
Not really.
I earn my living with programming just as others do with fixing cars.
And of course I expect my customers to pay me just as my mechanic
expects me to pay.
I was meremely referring to the fact that...
I live in Ireland, I can buy 30 eggs for EUR 3.00, that's EUR 0.10 per egg.
The minimum wage in Ireland is EUR 7.00 per hour. As such, for every hour
that one works in Ireland at minimum wage, one could potentially purchase 70
eggs. So let's say that 5 eggs feed you for one day:
7 days in a week, 5 eggs per day = EUR 3.50 per week
To earn EUR 3.50 in one week, at minimum wage one has to work at minimum
wage for 30 minutes per week.
As such, I would hope that my "stealing" software from his doesn't affect
his ability to feed himself.
(Besides that, here in Ireland, we have all sorts of social services. For
instance, if you walk into the Social Services place and say "I haven't
eaten all day, I've no food and I've no money to buy any food", then they
*must* feed you there and then.)
So when I don't pay for things in the 1st World, I don't feel particularly
guilty.
But then if I didn't pay for something off some-one from the 3rd World, and
on account of that, that person was unable to eat as well as if I'd payed
him, then yes I'd feel guilty. I'd pay him twice, three times.
And as regards financial management problems... the minimum weekly wage here
in Ireland at 40 hours a week is approx. EUR 280.00
It's possible that a person spends maybe EUR 200.00 a week on cocaine (I
know one such person who does), so if *he* can't feed himself (no pun
intended), then it's his own problem and I feel no remorse.
End of rant.
-JKop
