Thinking about file-sharing? Don't. You'll get fined, and crime doesn't pay (unless you rob banks and/or armored cars, then it pays very well). Take it from Jammie Thomas, who was fined $2 million for downloading 24 songs, or anyone else who tried to fight the RIAA.

Instead, try another crime, because plenty of them draw far lighter penalties than downloading Jason Mraz's latest. Thanks to the Mechanics blog at Gapers Block, here are seven crimes that will get you smaller fines than file-sharing:

1. Child abduction: the fine is only like $25000.

2. Stealing the actual CD: the fine is $2,500

3. Rob your neighbor: the fine is $375,000

4. Burn a house down: The fine is just over $375,000

5. Stalk someone: The fine is $175,000

6. Start a dogfighting ring: the fine is $50,000

7. Murder someone: The maximum penalty is only $25,000 and 15 years in jail, and depending on your yearly salary, would probably be far slighter a penalty that $2 million.

Seriously, murdering someone will result in a lighter overall penalty than downloading a bunch of songs and getting caught.

interesting...

http://www.prefixmag.com/news/seven-crimes-that-will-get-you-a-smaller-fine-than/32033/

Don't get caught. That is my plan

geez a friend of mine his like downloading 50 free movies from different languages every month, his wanted level is probably equal to a drug lord

This is stupid. All of those crimes include jail time (except maybe the CD theft), while the fines imposed by the RIAA are just fines. You can't put a monetary value on jail time.

Just add your paychecks for the time you were in prison

Thats why the copyright law is broken. You are being over punished for 25 dollars worth of theft.

2 Million dollars fine, including jail time, for twenty five dollars.

So after stalking my neighbor's wife for a while, i can kill him, rob the house, burn down his house, steal his child, have the kid steal a CD for me, and then play that very CD in my dog fighting ring--all for less than I would have to pay if i pirated something. I might even have money left over to do some credit card fraud on one of the guys attending my dog fighting ring.

Sounds like justice to me.

If you got nothing to lose, all those are cheaper things to get caught doing than downloading The Jonas Brothers. Which is quite scary. Someone got their priorities mixed up.

So then essentially, piracy would only be worse for you depending on your yearly salary. Let's say I'm the sexy Lebron James. I suppose piracy just got bumped way below those seven crimes since that 2 million dollar fine is something I could write a quick check for.

I looking at 25 to life. For the entire country just to do the time I owe.