Bye Bye Charities

Electronic Frontier Foundations reports that corporations are now claiming patents on things such as "one-click" shopping.

Convio has alerted us to the fact that this will cripple philanthropic efforts and fundraising, especially over the Internet.

Imagine your local charity having to pony up licensing fees in order to conduct a telethon, make a direct mail appeal, use return address stickers or colored wristbands?

The cost would be prohibitive.

When we give to a nonprofit or charity, we want every donated dollar going toward the cause, not licensing fees for the system we use to make the donation.

But this is part of the culture and climate of greed that corporations continue to expand and impose upon us.

Americans have always been very generous when they are alerted to need. Such licensing patents would even keep us from informing each other through e-mail about causes dear to our hearts.

What's the surprise? We know corporations are drooling over the profits they could make if they can privatize and own the water on this planet.

Plus they are trademarking words and phrases right and left, virtually taking them out of our common lexicon.

If this continues, in a hundred years - mark my words - you will have to pay a licensing fee to use words in sending a letter to someone.

And, unless you are very weathy, you won't be able to afford to publish a blog.