A thorny issue this. I usually write about one song every three years, but I write stories regularly. One of the problems that I see is that what we are talking about is cultural/artistic manifest destiny. You create it, I want it, I take it. Does this foster creativity and add to the artistic climate of any culture? Of course not. In many ways it influences the creative folks to either not create or only create for their own private use and not for the public. There is a loss. I also think that it fosters stagnation rather than hinders it. If one doesn't care to pay the fees involved with performing a certain piece then that person may begin his/her own creative process and instead of adding to the stagnating pool of complainers that person adds to the overall creativity of the artistic community. I wrote a story once that was very traditional sounding. Another storyteller started to perform it. She called me for permission to record it. I hadn't recorded it yet so I said no. I wanted to be the first to record my own work. She was furious and told me anyone should be able to record it because the story "sounded so traditional." This type of behavior happens all the time. Without laws to protect the artist then we would have no recourse but to continually go out into the community and sever the heads of those who wrong us. This would of course eliminate from the gene pool those wretches who are unethical or too lazy to create but it would also take away creative time from our work. In the end it comes down to this, stealing is wrong even if you mask it with the cloak of art.