Gren: "So what if a few cars get stolen anyway, in the grand scheme of the virtual universe does it matter, the model was probably stolen from the internet anyway."
That's a very good point actually, and one of recent discussion with some friends. I remember a case on SL where a major texture merchant was VERY insistent on people observing copyrights, had great big signs, threatened to sue, etc etc etc. Then come to find out that merchant had been selling textures taken from the Internet and to which the merchant had no copyright in the first place. Talk about hypocrisy.
That said, there are a number of skilled and talented creators who have put a lot of time into their work, who deserve to reap the benefits of that work. In the grand scheme of the virtual universe their property rights matter very much-- because that is going to influence the direction VR goes... honorable or dishonorable.
It's my experience the more dishonorable a government, the more dishonorable its citizens-- and the worse the environment. If one wants a good neighborhood... look for one with law-abiding people with a sense and ethics... simple right vs wrong.