Can Pirates Help the Economy?

To prepare for our second debate in economics, we'll investigate piracy.  Work with a partner to research the following. . .

1. Define the following terms: private property, public property, piracy, copyright, trademark, patent.

2. Legally speaking. . .what does the law say about piracy in El Salvador (or pick the country of your choice)?  Do private property rights vary depending on the sort of property?

3. Search the web for statistics on how piracy affects El Salvador/Central America.  (See pp. 58-59 in your book for ideas).  What are the main pirated goods?  How much ($) in sales are estimated yearly?  Who are the main vendors/consumers?

4. Choose 2 articles from the New York Times' "Copyright and Copyright-Violations" section by clicking here. Write up a brief (4-5 sentence) synopsis for each article (What was the article about?, What suprised you?, etc).

5.  Check local papers (La Prensa, El Diario, El Mundo, Diario Co-latino, La Economista, El Faro) for articles about piracy in El Salvador/Central America.  Make a list of 10 bullet points in FAVOR of piracy (explaining how it supports the economy --- consider vendors/consumers as well as Hollywood, name brand companies) as well as 10 bullet points AGAINST piracy (why piracy hurts the economy -- consider government earnings, corporations, entrepreneurs, etc.).  What is your position on the image at left?