IDS skipped a beat\nIn the last week, the IDS has published two articles linking online file trading to financial trouble in the music industry. Unfortunately, only anecdotal evidence is provided to back up these claims. It's true that the industry has hit hard times, but the recession has done the same thing to most industries. Correlation doesn't imply causation. More importantly, there have been several studies indicating that file trading actually drives music sales.\nA 2002 report by Jupiter Research found that 34 percent of file traders interviewed claimed to be spending more money on music since they started downloading files compared to only 14% who said they spent less. This sounds counterintuitive; why pay for music when you can download it for free? A 2002 Ipsos-Reid study might provide a hint. It found that a full 84 percent of consumers surveyed used the Internet to listen to a song or album before buying, with 47 percent of respondents claiming that they put their money on the counter as a result of their listening. Further, 29 percent claimed that their musical taste had broadened as a result of their file trading. This has certainly been the case in my experience. I'm a DJ, so I spend a lot of money on music. File trading has helped me find new music and decide if it's the kind of thing I want to invest in before heading out to the record store, making it easier for me to experiment with new genres and artists. Musicians like David Bowie, Ani DiFranco, REM, Courtney Love and the Beastie Boys have recognized this and voiced their support for file trading because it's good for artists. Phish has shown that it's possible to be incredibly successful almost entirely by word of mouth by letting fans copy and trade their music.\nIt's time for the entertainment industry to face facts, change their business models to suit the modern environment and stop treating their best customers like criminals. In the future, I hope the IDS makes an effort to examine all sides of this complicated issue. If you'd like to learn more about the file trading issue and how you can join the debate, visit http://eff.org/share.\nPete Welsch\nGraduate student\nHard to follow election laws? \nIt seems that poor Matt Stevenson thinks it's terribly unfair that his pizza-party Republicans be required to obey the election laws of the land. I wonder where he learned that curious notion. Could it be the presidential election of 2000? Could it be Tricky Dick Nixon's dirty tricksters of the Watergate era? What short memories we have.\nJames Allison\nBloomington resident\nAn open letter to Mr. Stevenson\nThe debacle continues as to the legitimacy of student absentee ballots. Looming questions need to be answered.\nWhat role (if any) did you play in the dissemination and/or promotion of this idea that fellow students like yourself would be unable to vote between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Election Day due to "work" conflicts, which requires them to vote via absentee ballot? Do you stand by all tactics utilized by your campaign? What qualifications do you possess that will allow you to uphold the public interest in its entirety? \nFellow students and residents of this community deserve to know. Public office is a privilege provided to those elected by the voters and members of the concerned public. Serving the public interest is priority number one; if any of these ballots were gained fraudulently, a disservice to this community has already been shown.
Adam Wason\nGraduate student
