True, and I could see this becoming a tool of oppression by "big evilcorps" if it were possible to do. I guess its a fun thought experiment though. I generally like the patent idea, if someone comes up with something innovative then they should see the upside. I wonder if a time window would improve matters. Get a patent and you have X number of years to produce something sale-able or publicly available for consumption.
correct- Im thinking a time frame of up to 25% of the patent period is fair. In other words you shouldn't patent an idea, but something that is close to being "available"
