I have fought software patents for years, and am equally appalled at the creeping (creepy?) unlimited enforcement of copyright. Staford law professor Lawrence Lessig recently had this to say:

Tuesday sharpened the definition of the ongoing legal struggle to satisfy both proprietary and open source advocates through equitable intellectual property regulations. "Contrary to what many people see as a cultural war between conservative business types and liberal independents, this is not a 'commerce versus anything' conflict. It's about powerful (business) interests and if they can stop new innovators," Lessig said. [NewsForge | Lessig: IP protection a business, not cultural, battleground]