Sorry mate my response was directed towards someone who mentioned Rearden Metal. The whole premise was how the leeches of society deemed that Hank Rearden (who invented through massive investment of R&D) shouldn’t have the sole capability to use the metal. They (Government and leeches) then forced him to give the patent to other companies so they could compete.
Nothing aggravates me greater. A company should have sole ownership of any creation they invent, and only if they CHOOSE should that be allowed to be created by another. In this case Apple is doing something I consider brilliant and very forward looking. It’s not free, it’s cost them a load of money... but it will pay dividends... I’m sure of that.
Cheers,
Remember General Dynamics during the Johnson years. They got the contract for our new swing fighter but couldn’t build it. Solutio government ordered those that could build it but didn’t get the contract to teach them how. Gotta love those years.
That's actually counter to the intent of the Founders. To them works of the mind belonged to everybody. For example, Jefferson said:
If nature has made any one thing less susceptible than all others of exclusive property, it is the action of the thinking power called an idea, which an individual may exclusively possess as long as he keeps it to himself; but the moment it is divulged, it forces itself into the possession of every one, and the receiver cannot dispossess himself of it. Its peculiar character, too, is that no one possesses the less, because every other possesses the whole of it. He who receives an idea from me, receives instruction himself without lessening mine; as he who lights his taper at mine, receives light without darkening me.There is no "sole ownership" of any ideas such as inventions. However, they realized as a practical matter that it might be good to give a limited monopoly to those ideas in order that people can profit off them enough to encourage them to have more ideas. That's why the Constitution says:
To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries.Copyrights and patents are not granted for the enrichment of the authors and inventors. They are allowed for the good of us all. If the government thinks the people are better served by nationalizing a patent, then so be it. However, to do so would undermine the constitutional intent for patents and copyrights, since people in fear of their ideas being nationalized might not want to publicize them anymore. But then again, the government has already blown away the constitutional intent anyway. Jefferson feared exactly what has happened, while Madison thought we the people could keep it from happening.
Taken as a general warning against government theft, the Rearden Metal case is valid. But to be specific to the idea of patents, Rand apparently hadn't studied the Constitution.