[wsprague]

I upvoted you because it is a good point, but ... who is advancing the most quickly in manufacturing these days? That would be China....

Plus, I would hesitate to naturalize the idea of intellectual property as if it were a "thing" just like a cheese sandwich. Some of your argument seems to rest on protecting IP which (somehow) exists; a lot of people would doubt that IP is a valid concept or exists at all.

[kwamenum86]

I would offer that in any regulated system you can excel by ignoring the regulations if others insist on adhering to them.

[ZeroGravitas]

And the "regulation" in this case is for China and other developing nations to pay a tithe to more developed nations because they got there first and planted a flag on some unclaimed (intellectual) property.