A Story of Innovations

Image Credit: WikiMedia

FloraPiss is a large corporate that manufactures and sells fruit juice in United Fates of Antarctica(UFA). One day while researching a method to preserve juices, one of their employer finds a way to carbonate water. Now from here let us see how our FloraPiss becomes the number one innovator using the fair and just patent system. As the great patent system is designed to provide incentive to innovator, to protect their financial interests and to encourage competition to innovate more, we can see how deep the altruistic and progressive system goes to save humanity!

FloraPiss files patent for "dissolving carbon-dioxide in water". So for next 20 years no other company can manufacture soda. FloraPiss starts to sell plain soda water (no sugar or flavor). A soda bottle costs 20 paise to produce but is sold for 20 rupees. It is completely legal and as there is no competition, FloraPiss gets its fair share of profit for the innovation.

There was a problem with packaging as the new drink blew up the existing cans and tetra packs, FloraPiss team innovated a tightly sealed bottle. Though they are already in use in paints and solvent industry, FloraPiss' unique innovation lies in the application of packaging soda. So another patent has been files for "using an air tight bottle with sealable caps to package edible items". WOW! Now nobody can use this innovation for another 20 years.

The employment agreement clearly says that "all inventions, improvements, innovations, discoveries etc during the tenure with the company, during or after office hours, inside or outside the office premises, belongs to the company". So in no way FloraPiss is supposed to give anything to the employee who accidentally carbonated water. But he was given a promotion, a bonus of one years salary and an appreciation mail from the VP and CEO with everyone in CC.

As the packaging patent was a team work, everyone in the team was given a salary increment and an appreciation mail from VP(that's all!).

The company demonstrated its love for the employees by this and there is no need to do anything further. Because it is the company that actually funded their recruitment, training, chairs they sat while inventing, table they placed the carbon-dioxide cylinder, the water, electricity etc. Without all these they would be beggars in the street or pizza delivery boys. So as the rightful owner of the "research" and investor of the "project" FloraPiss has no guilt attached to it like robbing them of their "inventions".

After 3 years, RedSquirt, a middle sized ketchup company uses air tight bottles to package their ketchup! How dare they are to infringe FloraPiss' patent? FloraPiss sues RedSquirt and the case drags for 4 years. RedSquirt goes bankrupt and FloraPiss gives it life by acquisition. A merger, "RedPiss" is born! FloraPiss acquires a new patent in this merger, "Twist to open". This innovation by an employee who worked for RedSquirt allowed sealable caps to be reused. FloraPiss forces him to sign an NDA and fires him after merger! They are the rightful owner of the IP now. How can a third-class employee claim ownership for it?

After 15 years, FloraPiss research team stumbles upon a way to add sugar to the soda. "Lot of R&D efforts and investments" were involved in the process as addition of sugar sometimes made the soda solution unstable and blew away the caps of the bottles. So FloraPiss also invest a lot in designing a good bottle design. They find a lighter, cheaper and more stronger alternate for the glass bottles. They use the plastic bottles which are already used in chemical industries with their acquired "twist to open" cap design. With this new innovative design, FloraPiss stars producing larger bottles. the cap can be reused and customers can pour some sweet soda, seal back the bottle air tight and keep it in their fridge! What an innovation. FloraPiss files a patent for "adding sweetener to soda water".

5 more years later, patent for soda water expires. DewyDrool, a competition adds aspartame to the soda water and starts to sell. As it infringes "adding sweetener to soda water" patent, FloraPiss sues them. But DewyDrool is also a large player like FloraPiss. They settle the case outside the court by cross-licensing. Now, FloraPiss can also produce "diet" soda and market them as "healthy" alternate to the sugary drinks. While DewyDrool can sell sugary soda as "energy drink". What a great leap!

FloraPiss and DewyDrool setup a non-profit independent body in to which other companies can join and get licenses. But there is a catch. They have to give some money to FloraPiss and DewyDrool, or give some of their patents to them in exchange. The patent will be evaluated for its worthiness by the "independent" body and any extra payment is settled. By this way, FloraPiss and DewyDrool has opened up their technology to fasten the progress in cool drink revolution!


Due to all the licensing fee, increase in shares due to near monopoly, law suits and greater profit margin, FloraPiss becomes a market leader and buys lot of companies. It even sets up some small proxy companies which hold patents acquired in due course and sue competitions without backlash. It is perfectly legal and within the limits of law! MBA students are inspired by FloraPiss CEO's BED-Talks and biography. FloraPiss becomes a ready-made theme for lot of inspirational stories and self-help books.

Meanwhile FloraPiss sues Floor-a-Piss, a chain of paid urinals where people pee directly on the floor, for trademark violation. Floor-a-Piss changes its name and settles the case outside the court.

Freemanistan is a nearby third world country where there are no patent laws to protect the "intellectual property rights". So FloraPiss is reluctant to start its business there! But new government in Freemanistan tries to establish trade contact with UFA. The problem is, there is already a market of soda water, sugary soda water, colored soda water, flavored soda water etc in Freemanistan. Actually soda water was in use in Freemanistan for last 200 years! So FloraPiss is afraid that once the trade opens, cheap import from Freemanistan will spoil its market share.

So FloraPiss and other such companies in UFA lobby their government to press Freemanistan government to sign trade treaties which enforces IP laws so that none of the UFA's corporates suffer due to the inhuman stone age laws of Freemanistan. UFA tries to do that but Freemanistan government refuses. So UFA enforces economic sanctions and trade embargo towards Freemanistan, which forces the Freemanistan government to involve in black market. Soon UFA backed "liberation army" start a "pro-democratic" revolution in Freemanistan and the government falls. The new "pro-democracy government" signs all treaties and agreements which opens room for patent laws in Freemanistan. FloraPiss buys most of the existing companies in Freemanistan and automates production, resulting in lot of job cuts. FloraPiss also acquires patents for sparkling wine, fizzy fruit juices etc in the process.

Later in Freemanistan, a new breed of companies headed by natives surface. Their tactics are no different than FloraPiss, yet the people worship them as their own innovators and an answer to UFA's aggression. Facebook posts and Tweets supporting domestic businesses and exposing foreign conspiracies are setup. Freemanistan companies also amass lot of wealth and goes exactly the same way as UFA companies from buying out smaller companies to lobbying the government to amend labor laws. Those who oppose Freemanistan businessmen are labeled anti-nationals.

There is really no way to tell the difference between the following:

• Pages by FloraPiss like companies that claim their products and activities are safe and legal
• Pages by NGOs like BlueCheese that claim soda causes cancer and autism and their factories caused tsunamis. (Soon FloraPiss will be certified as non-polluter by BlueCheese, while locals are labeled harmful)
• Pages by very few university professors, claiming FloraPiss factories discharge untreated water to rivers and their economic model resulted in unemployment and stagnation in cool-drinks industry.
• Pages by Freemanistan nationalists claiming that FloraPiss is backed by religious groups of UFA and they in turn fund conversion activities in Freemanistan. They also claim that soda causes fertility problems.
• Pages advocating the cholesterol-free organic soda, produced as per ancient sacred texts and that has unicorn amniotic fluid. They claim that it can cure all known diseases.

FloraPiss' production methods vary a lot in Freemanistan compared to UFA and causes lot of environmental problems. Some "pro-science accounts" in Facebook and Twitter expose the "stupidity" behind opposition to FloraPiss practices. They sacrifice some straw-men like BlueCheese and ultra organic soda movement on the altar of rationalism to silence these anti-science retards.

Whenever FloraPiss' tactics of forcing countries to sign trade treaties and deals using bribes, coercion and lobby is exposed, "notable economists" and "concerned citizens" bash anti-patent and anti-corporate voices, accusing them of copying and violation of intellectual property rights! How stupid and greedy these bastards trying to steal ideas and hard work of years!

People from UFA and Freemanistan like and share every post they "feel" true through their "personal experience" while enjoying a can of FloraPiss or PolarPee (Freemanistan's National Soda!). FloraPiss announces that Chandra Bai, Freemanistan woman (but UFA citizen!) as their new CEO. Freemanistan Social media celebrates it with posts narrating the greatness of Freemanistani people.

Meanwhile FloraPiss and PolarPee patent "organic soda" formulas and sue each other. Share prices fluctuate for both companies during every trail and judgement after which it will be taken to the next level of courts. Wolves of Ceiling Street make lot of money by speculating the market. Patent lawyers buy private islands.

A leak from Banana (a small nation in Indian ocean) reveals that many of the UFA and Freemanistan businessmen have hidden money in tax havens. Yet the governments come for their rescue saying that taking action against them will result in economic crash. As everything from savings to pension fund are linked to market, people "forget" the incident and move ahead with new movies and football matches.

Innovation continues not only in cool-drinks industry but also in every other industry from medicine to agriculture.

The Dog Question

You may be working late. After you reached your area by the sub-urban train or city bus, you have to walk the last mile to your home. You start walking... Suddenly, a dog runs towards you barking!

Has this happened to you?

You are a law abiding citizen who wears helmet while riding your motorcycle. But the street dogs of the locality don't like it. They give a good chase now and then. One day you hit a pothole or a stone, throwing you over the handle bar.

Has this happened to you?

Every day around 100 people are bitten by dogs in Chennai alone (as of 2013). From people going for a walk/jog for their health to street vendors who carry their bags and baskets on head for a living, dogs are making everyone's life miserable. Yet for few "animal lovers", everyone needs to tolerate these ugly and demonic creatures.

If you raise a complaint with the city officials, they will say that they will only do a "family planning operation" (this is the exact way they mention sterilization!) and capture only rabid dogs. Also, they claim that almost all dogs are vaccinated and there is no risk of rabies! But again, every year around 10 people are dying in Chennai alone due to dog bites (as of 2013). Chennai Corporation has a habit of appending "ALL DOGS ARE NOT RABID DOGS" in all complaints related to dogs. But there are still lots of questions unanswered! Read on...

What Are The Problems With Dogs?

1. They bite:

Unlike what these people say, not only rabid dogs bite. ALL DOGS BITE. It is almost arbitrary. Anything can intimidate them. For some dogs, just carrying a luggage, being tall or heavy, having a beard etc. are enough to get intimidated. Also they bite out of fear. Irrespective of what corporation or Blue Cross claims, after getting bitten by a dog, we MUST visit doctors and get the injections immediately. Else we may end up as rabies victim statistics of the year! I have seen dogs biting women, children, elderly people and disabled people with my own eyes. One of the case was heart wrenching. A visually challenged man was selling pencils boxes. A dog bit him. When some of the public (including me) tried to stone the dog, a lady (from what she said, I assume she feeds those stray dogs daily) came and defended the dog saying, it is the mistake of the blind man to show a cane. So her dog got upset and afraid of his behavior and bit him! What a logic?!!

2. They Contaminate the Surrounding

Not only stray dogs. But ALL dogs pee and defecate. How good it will be to get greeted with dog poop or dog vomit on your doorsteps? They drip their saliva everywhere they go, pee anywhere they like and defecate wherever they want. This poses a great risk for people's health. Dogs can carry many virus/bacteria apart from rabies which can cause diseases and even death in humans. Will these dog lovers come and clean every dog shit and vomit on call basis? These dogs take dip in drainage and roam freely on roads. Who knows what percentage of diseases is spread through these 100,000+ dogs in the city!

3. They Are Nuisance for Road Users

Almost everyone has a friend/family or self who got chased by a dog while riding a bike and crashed, fracturing few bones and got some stitches. But the denial of corporation authorities and animal lovers are sickening. They are hurt by a stone thrown on a dog, yet they want us to take it easy when our loved ones suffer fractures! How humane? Also we have to count the cost of servicing the vehicles too! How much public's money is wasted for the kinks of some?

4. They Bark and Howl

Dogs destroy peaceful sleep of people. What about the grandpa who recently had bypass? Or the new born baby in her cradle? Don't they deserve sleep, let alone the night shift workers, early risers and students? These dogs howl and bark suddenly and wake people during nights and days!

5. They Give a Hard Time for Pedestrians

People are encouraged to take a walk to nearby places for sake of health and environment. But these filthy creatures make it hard for people to take a walk on the road. They bark, they chase and they come and smell/lick our bags and dress. It may be OK for animal lovers to get "licked" by dogs. But not for me! I have seen people chased by dogs, falling down or getting hit by vehicles.

Who Is Behind This?

Blue Cross, People for Animals and PeTA (yes! The same group that kills thousands of animals in USA every year and the one that protested against Jallikattu) are claiming that it is cruel to kill dogs. They don't even want the dogs to be relocated or kept in shelters. They want the dogs to be free on the streets! They want the dogs to be treated humanely. But at what cost? By treating humans like dogs? If their sterilization strategy had worked, how can the dog population can be 170,000 and counting? If their vaccination programs are for real, then how can 10+ people are dying of rabies? These are deaths that happen apart from general population which takes anti-rabies shots shortly after bitten by dogs. I myself have a firsthand experience with Blue Cross. I rescued a cat from a pit. I called them, but they refused to pick the kitten up. So I took it to their office myself. They took the kitten and asked me for money! They said that I must give money to feed the animal or else I should take it back! This is their version of love for animals it seems. If they are animal lovers, why they force a person who rescued a kitten to pay money? These organizations involve in many more questionable activities and put animal interests (or what they see as animal interests) over human interests.

If They Want...

So, if they want to keep dog(s), they can. But they have to keep it in their house and when they bring them out, they should accompany them. The dogs can be free inside their home and but they should be chained and handled properly on roads. If any dog without chain or a human company is encountered, people should be allowed to kill the dog in self-defense. Even if the dog is licensed, if there is no chain AND no human supervision and the dog is not inside a private property, we should have the right to kill them.

If they want to save the stray dogs, they can take them to places like Blue Cross or PeTA, where they can give whatever royal treatment they want to give. They can "love" their dogs as they claim that they are "animal lovers" and enjoy their dogs' licking skills. They can have "family planning operations" or have planned families. They can vaccinate or they can skip it for fear of "vaccination induced autism" or for treating rabies virus humanely.

If their flawed argument is applied to other creatures like cockroaches, flies, mosquito etc., imagine where we will be heading to! Will corporation also refrain from pouring larvicide in water tanks to treat mosquito humanely? Or are we supposed not to kill rats and cockroaches in our houses? What about the tapeworm or ringworm? Are doctors wrong to kill them with Albendazole? Where these people's stupid anti-human love for "animals" will end? Will they also fight for humane treatment of polio virus by banning Polio vaccine? If it is OK to kill certain virus/bacteria/insects/animals for human welfare, why not these dogs?

Already these dog-lovers are protesting against dog meat in China yet they never fail to buy mutton or beef for their beloved dogs. Why it is OK to kill a lamb or ox to feed a dog and not OK to kill a dog for well-being of many humans living in that area? These animal welfare lobby are a bunch of rich people with followers (yes, they are a cult) from all walks of life. They just touch the emotional nerves and make people believe that they have a point. Unless we count their paraphilia for animals, there is not point to defend these dogs.

Government should take rigid steps to ensure safety of civilians and suppress this type of people with deviant and unethical views and behaviors. Life and well-being of citizens are far more important than few stray dogs. They don't have a family waiting for them. They don't have a future for themselves. But people who lost their life and health to these dogs have all these. My vote in coming election is to the party that will surely eliminate all these unworthy creatures.

State of Fear - Book Review

Introduction

I am a fan of Michael Crichton's work from my college days. That was when one of my senior in college said that I should read Michael Crichton's books. I asked him who was that. He said, the guy who wrote Jurassic Park and gave me his book. WOW! That was awesome and I read that in just 3 days. Then I started to read his works. The latest book of his I read was "State of Fear". It is an awesome novel and it is a good mix of science, skepticism, action, detective, sex & violence and information. No wonder anyone who starts reading this book gets lost inside it and couldn't be found by friends and family until he/she finishes it!

About The Book

The book is a 600+ page paperback edition and come with Author's Message, an Appendix and Bibliography of extensive references about the sources of data and quotations used in the book. The book also has lot of graphs and foot notes to enhance the readers insight on the details given. You don't need to worry about yout lack of knowledge in "climate science", because if a climate n00b like me can understant it, then you too can! The novel is organized not as chapters but as Place/Date/Time chronological logs of events. That was really cool. The book is published by HarperCollins. I bought the Indian Subcontinet version, which is cheap indeed!

Plot Overview

A rich philanthropist funds an environmental organization. There are murders and other doubtful purchases of exotic weapons and machines in various places. An NSIA agent and his assistant with the help of the philanthropist's lawyers try to unravel the mystery. Ultimately they find that the fear-mongering tactics used by the environmental organization to create the "state of fear" among people to milk their cash! (Hint: You can get the full plot from Wikipedia or many other sites. But if you read such plots, you are losing the chance to read one of the best novels of Crichton.)

The Moral

I myself, being a hardcore anti-corporate and anti-pollution guy, don't exactly believe in what media say about man-made global warming, but I fully accept that humans are contributing to ongoing global warming. I have some reservations in both sides and my opinions is mixed on that. But where I agree with Michael Crichton is, when he opposes the fear-mongering tactics used by these eco-friendly gangs to milk the cash from people as well as corporates and to lobby governments to accept their unruly demands without a second thought. For example, you can see Greenpeace guys standing in railway stations and IT parks in India handing out tracts and forcing you to sign-up for a monthly donation through credit card. People who are brainwashed by their scaremongering tactics opt in to donate. But they seldom care about that blind old man selling peanut burfee or that poor old man without leg begging in trains.

From PeTA to Greenpeace, these organizations are founded and run by wealthy nations which have a higher share in polluting the environment. But these organizations try to steal the money of people all over the world and try to impose crippling laws in developing nations that can slow-down or stop or reverse their progress. People are fed with fear and distracted with dubious facts and are made to believe that they have done some thing terribly bad. At this point they will show their membership form and the gullible person will sign. I have been told absurd stories like Kit-Kat is manufactured using Orangutan finger bone, Indian cities will drown in another 20 years (this they told me in 2004) and so on. When I confronted them with some facts, they will say I have been brainwashed by corporate media!

This is what Michael Crichton explores in his novel. Most of these organizations are themselves funded by corporates. They demand people to submit to their views without asking question, much like the religious leaders force their followers to submit without doubting. Moreover, like fake religions which demand money or favors for atonement of sins, these organizations seldom talk about population control, reducing car usage etc but they always ask you to donate. One day, I was walking out of an IT park. There was a bank stall offering car loans and a car company stall displaying their new model car and giving test-drive. The Greenpeace guys were there giving out tracts. I called them to join me to tell the bank people and the car company people to stop selling cars and automobile loans so that we can cut back carbon emission. But the Greenpeace guys were asking me to leave. As I insisted and more people joined me in that request, they just left the place and started giving tracts in some other corner! This is their real face. They are not here for nature. They are here for business.

Conclusion

If you want to read a good story and also know how these organizations cheat people, this is a very good book. I am not asking you to deny global warming or increase pollution. I am just asking you to stop believing blindly and start asking questions. In the long run, we can expect the unaltered truth to surface.