How Intellectual Property Reinforces Inequality

An anonymous reader writes "Here is an article by Dr.Joe Stiglitz on how intellectual property reinforces inequality by allowing patent owners to seek rent (aka license / sue) instead of delivering goods to the society. From the article: 'At first glance, the case, Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, might seem like scientific arcana: the court ruled, unanimously, that human genes cannot be patented, though synthetic DNA, created in the laboratory, can be. But the real stakes were much higher, and the issues much more fundamental, than is commonly understood. The case was a battle between those who would privatize good health, making it a privilege to be enjoyed in proportion to wealth, and those who see it as a right for all — and a central component of a fair society and well-functioning economy. Even more deeply, it was about the way inequality is shaping our politics, legal institutions and the health of our population.'"

Comments

Last dying gasp of the repeatedly disproven.

[Impy the Impiuos Imp]

The Soviet Union had to spend 50% of its entire budget just to put up a facade of keeping up with the US -- and while almost entirely neglecting a navy comparatively.

China didn't do squat either, until the past 10 years when they actually introduced the freedom of private enterprise. This proves there's a hell of a lot more to freedom than just freedom of speech.

Get off your political narrative and look at actual reality, at actual measurements of well-being. Socialized countries are as dependent on invention as anywhere else, and can't give it out for free until other, better countries invent it first.