[__MatrixMan__]

My parents aren't especially skilled carpenters, electricians plumbers, or HVAC technicians, but they managed to be good enough at those things. At sixteen my girlfriend's family was flabbergasted to learn that I had never seen my parents hire such people.

My dad was also a pirate, and I had a similar experience when I learned that you could buy VHS tapes with pictures of the lion king on them, rather than just "Lion King" in dad's handwriting.

[benj111]

Was he a pirate? Or did he just record off TV?

[__MatrixMan__]

He did not wear an eyepatch or kill people, he did sail the high seas on occasion, he recorded both TV and made vhs and cassette tape copies, I don't think he ever sold these copies.

I'll let you decide if he was a pirate.

[benj111]

Recording off the TV isn't pirating. Why do you think they were allowed to sell blank tapes and later hard drive recorders?

If he's selling copies then maybe. But for personal consumption that's legal.

The term pirate is already expansive enough. I don't think we need to expand it into legal activities.

[dhosek]

No eye patch, peg leg or parrot, not a pirate.

[__MatrixMan__]

Perhaps, perhaps.

Though I'd like to propose that it's actually about exploring prohibited alternatives in spite of a failing authority, which is why the "of the caribbean" era pirates were democracy enthusiasts.