The concept of a patent has mutated from one of compensation for the time and energy it took a man to create a thing, to the development of a legal monopoly that will enrich the owner for as long as possible.
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Though, arguably, patents were originally a way to expatriate tech from other countries so it can be built domestically. It was kind of like a form of open source, before that became an actual principled thing. People used to think kings were necessary too; sometimes societies just outgrow their power structures.