It is probably a good idea to think twice before you believe a source that says our criminal justice system is all fun and joy. The Scandinavian system is good, but I still don't think being in prison here is easy.
(Not to mention that Sunde is pretty close to being a political prisoner, if you consider the details of how the case was carried out).
Political prisoner? The guy personally profited off movie piracy. If Sunde is a political prisoner for breaking copyright laws then so is any drug dealer for breaking drug control laws.
I don't get the elevation of these guys on some pedestal. I understand we all like getting stuff for free but TPB was not some political project. If they had really believed copyright was so evil they'd have built a site distributing great content people wanted to watch that was licensed liberally by its creators; thus proving that the open source model could work for movies and TV shows. They'd have done what Stallman did. But they didn't.
You misunderstand me. Sunde would not have been prosecuted in Sweden if it was not for political pressure from the United States. Norway and Sweden have a long history of bowing to US pressure when it comes to internal matters.
The TPB guys did break Swedish law (*as interpreted by the lower courts) but would not have been chased by the Swedish legal system if it wasn't for external pressure. If I remember correctly, there are also indications that the appeal was unfairly rejected, but I would have to read up on it to be certain.
(Not to mention that Sunde is pretty close to being a political prisoner, if you consider the details of how the case was carried out).