After reading Joe Rogan's blog about Carlos Mencia (#1, #2, and #3), I started thinking a bit more about this, although admittedly with inconclusive results so far.

I love passing along jokes.  When I hear something funny, I enjoy sharing it with others.  Maybe they'll laugh as hard as I did.

Then again, I don't do this for a living.  I don't pay my bills with jokes, nor is my livelihood affected by the public's association of certain jokes to my professional career (aside from the joke that is my career *drum crash* j/k). 

I suppose I'd be pretty pissed if someone else was making money off of my material.  Oh wait, I'm a teacher.  Eventually, most of my students will make more than me using some of the skills I pass along to them.....hell, anything that I do well will eventually be in the hands of other teachers, in the interest of 'sharing best practices'.

But there's a difference.  I choose to give this stuff away so that other people can use it.  Entertainers choose to show it, and it's not as easy for them to defend themselves from anyone who is determined enough to steal it.

Anyways, I found another article on Radar Online that talks about some of the darker side of the comedy world.  Check it out if you're interested.

Radar Online: Take the Funny and Run