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Violation of the US copyright law is not handled as something equal to shoplifting. To compare it to other fines is comparing two very different things.
What she is accused of is NOT an example of copyright infringement. She isn't downloading the song for mass distribution unlike those chinese venders in NYC that sell movies on the side of the street. That is an actually example of copyright infringement. Stealing a song for your ipod is petty larceny, but that would require a criminal case, not a civil case. People talk about doing what is right, but in this case what is legal is not right. The record companies know they will get more in a settlement for copyright infringement because the punishment for petty larceny is far less than for copyright infringement. The charge isn't fitting the crime committed.
Continuing to prosecute people for "copyright infringement" when the crime isn't so perpetuates the culture that continues to keep the dinosaurs roaring.