What evidence have you heard that patents actually help?
> that patents in field X (say, patents for mining machinery) were (at present) holding back rather than encouraging innovation in that field, this might not be a convincing argument anyway.
Wow, that's harsh. "These arbitrary rules against redheads are ruining Ireland but at least we're enforcing the rule evenly across countries."
What evidence have you heard that patents actually help?
> that patents in field X (say, patents for mining machinery) were (at present) holding back rather than encouraging innovation in that field, this might not be a convincing argument anyway.
Wow, that's harsh. "These arbitrary rules against redheads are ruining Ireland but at least we're enforcing the rule evenly across countries."