Poor countries were induced to enact the strong intellectual property rights required for membership of the World Trade Organization by empty promises of better access to markets and reductions in US farm and EU export subsidies. Patents have prevented access to cheap generic versions of drugs...

Schumpeter’s forecast in his Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy (<CitationRef CitationID="CR52">1942</CitationRef>) that ‘a socialist form of society will inevitably emerge from an equally inevitable decomposition of capitalist society’ did great damage to his reputation. This was especially so after the fall of the Berlin wall,...</citationref>

Individual property rights are fruitful for economic development because they civilise self-interest by forcing it to serve the common good. The history of previous property rights "cycles," however, shows that their ability to do this deterioriates over time because the laws of property fall...