If the Debt Mongers Were Serious: The Cost of Patent and Copyright Monopolies

The papers are full of pieces deploring the debt the U.S. government is accumulating under the Trump administration. However, we can know that these people are not serious because they never take into account the implicit debt created by the granting of patent and copyright monopolies.

The story here is a simple one. The government grants these monopolies as a way of paying for research and creative work. What is at issue here is a simple logical point that cannot be disputed by honest people...