[hackthefender]

Just to say more on this quickly, the relevant inquiry is not "does software progress without patents, yes or no?" Obviously it would. But the relevant inquiry is whether we have made more or less progress now than we would have had software patents not existed for the last 70 years.

For what it's worth, I tend to agree with the ultimate conclusion that software patents today do more harm than good. But if you want to convince policy makers, you have to address the issue on a less superficial level. And that means actually acknowledging the other side's arguments and rebutting them with evidence or counterarguments.