[AmIFirstToThink]

>How does that go against natural learning/discovery?

Territorial claims, artificially created and maintained at tax-payer expense.

Most patents are straight forward implementations that people would have come up with on their own.

Patent system gives first mover advantage to those filing the claim with patent office. They have started now to give preference to those who file first, over those who can show they invented it first. Goes to show the intention of the system, create an unnatural monetized system over what comes naturally to people... solving their problem with what they know and what they can learn and what they can come up with. If one person solves a problem and files a patent, then in the IntellectualProperty land grab, it doesn't matter how easy the solution was, that person is now entitled to ask for money from anyone else who faces the same problem.

The wheel, the canals, the sewer system, the river wheel it all spread without patent system.

The patent system should come up with a "senior year graduate" challenge. If the kids in final year of college in that field can come up with similar solution comparable to the patent filing, then the patent is invalidated for being obvious. Amazon 'one-click' wouldn't ever have become a patent with this, as it was obvious use of browser cookies.

True invention should be rewarded, not chance occurrence of you coming face to face with a problem before anyone else.