The President in the State of the Union speech pridefully observed that America issues more patents than any other country. So what. That's not a sign of economic vitality. It's a sign of government giving privileged monopolies to some and allowing them to stop the march of learning, innovation, and research. Matthew Yglesias understands. John … Continue reading Patents Aren’t Signs of Economic Health
patents
Interesting and Good Stuff from This Week
From the Wall Street Journal: Bring Back the Robber Barons . I think I'll pass. I mean why stop with the robber barons? Why not go all the way back to feudalism where most workers are the personal property of some monied rich baron who's buddy-buddy with the king? From Maxine Udall (girl Economist): Bring … Continue reading Interesting and Good Stuff from This Week
More evidence against patents
Yes, patents, copyrights, etc., the intellectual so-called property protections are really profits-protection for existing large corporations. The stronger patents and copyrights are, the weaker is innovation and growth. ...weaker IP protections might actually correlate with economic growth,... via Scholarly Communications @ Duke » The joy of statistics.
Save the Whales! Abolish Patents!
Well, actually it likely wouldn't save the whales. But, abolishing patents would likely re-invigorate the economy, revive competition, lower costs (particularly healthcare costs), and speed up innovation. Levine and Boldrin help lay out the case against patents in this piece. An excerpt ( I recommend following the link): Abolishing so-called intellectual "property" (IP) won't solve … Continue reading Save the Whales! Abolish Patents!
EconProph 