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"There's the larger issue of who "owns" information... the state?"

We are not talking about information here.
We are talking about Microsoft's intellectual property that they have spent billions of dollars , and continue to spend billions of dollars every year, developing.

"Intellectual property rights may need to be protected in some new form"

That is double speak for Communism.
its not a "new form".
It's been tried in the old Soviet Union, Eastern Europe and Cuba.
Stalin tried it too Failed every time.

"but I'm afraid Bill Gates and megacorporations are not the folks I want to trust with control over information access."

Its not up to you to determine who you'd "trust" with intellectual property developed by a private corporation
This is America , not North Korea.
When people work hard and spend money to develop intellectual property, the own it.
They don't have to go get permission from loony left crazies for that.

"Intellectual property rights may need to be protected in some new form"

That is double speak for Communism.

The American state does not own intellectual property rights. The patent office can be used to enforce your own intellectual property rights (with the stipulation that you will relinquish those rights at some future point). Our government creates NO copyrights, government texts are copyright free (which is why many publishers will release their own "Starr Report" or "Warren Commission" books using the government text). Even NASA images and WPA photos from the Library Of Congress carry no royalties.

The belief was that our inventions and literature would develop our culture. One thing would build off of the next. We would never have gotten to this stage of scientific development if someone tried to monopolize things forever.

Many people try to develop new technology (as it has always been). There were "races" to develop planes, television, and movie cameras. The rewards seem to go to the one who gets the job completed first (not just develops the "missing" piece) and can capitalize on it.

I think that the private race for space will have more pay off in the long run but it would be wrong to require all space launches to go through one private agency. Should everyone be driving a Ford today? Should different manufactuers' cars run on different patented fuels and even require different roads?

Its not up to you to determine who you'd "trust" with intellectual property developed by a private corporation This is America , not North Korea. When people work hard and spend money to develop intellectual property, the own it.

Exactly, and the Mozilla people have decided to give theirs away. Now, if some talented programmer or group who contributes to Mozilla realizes the marketability of their talents, they can enter the free market at a compensatory level. Let the market work and stay out of people's choices. If they want to work for less than they're worth, it's good for the consumption side of the equation.