And just like the music execs who fume and rant about "those damn hackers stealing artists' music," the L.A. Times story quoted an executive at a pattern making company who called the several hundred online pattern swappers (mostly middle aged housewives) "the scourge of all that is decent and right." Please.

The rise of sharing copyrighted materials online is indicative of big business's failure to keep pace with the American consumer. Napster-esque sites are not a symptom of the moral decay of Americans. Big business, learn from what Napster has shown you: We, the American consumer, want to buy our goods on the Internet without a big hassle. We want lots of selection, not lots of logging in and user names. And we want it quickly, and at a fair price.

And Shawn, you know that blue sign that sits on the west side of town--next to Friendly's Ice Cream Parlor--that reads "Welcome to Harwich, home of the Rough Riders, 1997 State Baseball Champions?" Maybe one day, it will read, "Welcome to Harwich, home to Shawn Fanning, Internet visionary and the man who changed how we listen to music, watch movies and buy needlepoint patterns."

Joyce K. McIntyre '02, a Crimson editor, is a history and literature concentrator in Kirkland House.