From: sfam@cyberpunkreview.com   
      
   "Thomas Mayer"  wrote in message   
   news:drn5qg$3mf$1@online.de...   
   > SFAM wrote:   
   >> [snip] If everything is free (no patents),   
   >> the incentive for creating wealth (cell phones, cell phone networks,   
   >> emoticons on cell phones, for instance) dissipates rapidly. I think you'd   
   >> find that this outcome infringes on your natural rights far more than   
   >> having   
   >> to pay for stuff.   
   >   
   > I'm not sure about that. If inventions were only made, when you can get   
   > money from them, then for a long time in human history no inventions   
   > would have been made. It's the same argument that the copyright industry   
   > uses for using DRM and suing P2P users. I think, most inventions, music   
   > etc are made by people that just try to express themselves, though I   
   > have to admit, it takes a lot of money to develop a product from the   
   > inventions, so you have a point, if you only think in a   
   > pseudo-free-market sense, the way the world economy works nowadays.   
      
   Clearly there were inventions prior to patent laws or even monetary systems,   
   so I'm not sure what to make of this comment.  Inventions traditionally are   
   based on someone wanting to fill a need.  Warfare innovations over the last   
   5000 years, or the development of the printing press are fine example of   
   such a need. But the part about inventions being made by people just trying   
   to express themselves, I'm afraid I'm going to quibble with that.  There are   
   many many many starving scifi writers who would probably quibble with that   
   too.  To think that people who create stuff don't want to get paid for their   
   time is a little absurd. If I were to take that on its face, would this also   
   mean that musicians shouldn't be charging people admission to see their   
   shows?  Drug companies certainly wouldn't be developing drugs without   
   anticipated revenue, etc.  I think we could go down the line to most   
   inventions today (or even 200 years ago) and find very similar things.   
      
   Incidentally, this is very a different question from whether multimedia   
   companies are screwing the performers (or writers) out of their income.  In   
   many cases, this is clearly happening.  In others its not.  But to blame   
   this on ownership of property or patents as a whole seems a little strange.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)