Re: [Patents] Hardware N Software

[PILCH Hartmut <phm@a2e.de>]

> Y'all in USA may have the sodomy laws, software patents, war on drugs,
> DMCA and other stupid things. But we, in Europe, DO NOT want to have
> them.

This european consciousness is perhaps partially true, partially wishful
thinking.  Current european consensus is often even less libertarian than
critto writes.  It has been the US which defended internet free speech
against the majority of european representatives during the negotiations
on the Cybercrime treaty.  Also on "war on drugs" EU and US are not far
apart, except that the EU doesn't seem to have the option to send troops
to go after people like Noriega.  Much of the criticism against swpat and
DMCA and much of the best research in this area also comes from the US.
Also, there are probably as many cavemen, including totalitarian ones, in
Europe as in the US.

-- 
Hartmut Pilch                                          http://phm.ffii.org/
Protecting Innovation against Patent Inflation       http://swpat.ffii.org/
100,000 signatures against software patents      http://www.noepatents.org/