>the popular premise that downloading Game of Thrones and porn == "fighting authoritarian governments"

You're confusing the users of the pirate bay with the site itself.

I strongly cheer for the site on freedom of speech grounds, even while I think the kind of downloading you describe is bad.

I think the word "authoritarian" is appropriate to describe shutting down a site for "contributing" to a crime just by letting users leave descriptions and contact info.