"Either you've done the research and are making it publicly available to all of mankind - or you are keeping it for yourself and only offering the benefits of the research to the select individuals who can afford it."

By patenting the invention, you are (1) motiviating a company to fund the research, (2) publishing the designs for your inventino, and (3) ensuring that after about 20 years anyone will be free to follow those designs with or without your approval or profit.

That may not do as much for mankind as you would like to think we would get were everyone an altruist, but in the real world the alternative is that the invention waits uninvented. (You are not going to create a bioengineered cancer drug without expensive equipment - i.e. without deep pockets funding you.)

Now specifically talking about medical research in the U.S., I do firmly believe the system is broken - but that would be the healthcare system, not the patent system. The wide disparity between brand and generic pricing for drugs is a symptom of a broader problem, and trying to skip the brand phase for new medicines will only change symptoms without addressing the root cause.

(And no, I'm not suggesting that a so-called public option solves it either... but I digress.)

The Nobel Prize should recognize and honor the acheivement, end of story. The acheivement will further mankind in due course.

I'd agree, it demonstrates a classic misunderstanding of the problem by one of the leading law enforcement agents in the country.

"Online banking" is here to stay whether you personally go on the internet or not. If you write a paper check at a department store, it's electronically presented via ACH while you are in line. If you have Direct Deposit the transactions to pay you go online from your employer and they can be "broken" to take money "back" quite easily. IF you use a credit card for anything but the old stamped paper, it's transmitted over the internet by people you don't know from adam. Sure these are encrypted to various degrees, but things like ACH don't know Walmart from a 419 scammer with your checkbook.

You're already out there, "not using the internet" in no way means you're not at risk.. you're just ignoring the risk. Unless you use cash-only at which point you're automatically suspect (cash=criminal according to the FBI because you're hiding something from them)

I suppose you could use only cash + money orders/Cashier's checks for large/mail purchases but you're paying a premium and many places won't accept those payments from "customers".

Sigh. There are rights and rights. There is nothing that says the rights that are entailed by being human and those that are entailed by being a citizen are identical.

For example, the declaration of independence says:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

This document however says nothing about a right to privacy.

Where as the Constitution which enumerates our rights only applies to citizens and does talk about something that could interpreted as a right to privacy.

I thought bad presidents were elected...

Living dead products on some of these... The Commodore company has been purchased, you can buy a brand new Amiga, etc...

http://www.commodore.ca/news/2004/december.htm

http://www.amiga.com/