Open-source on patent offensive

There's an irony in here somewhere, but it does make the case for not allowing software patents.
"Microsoft would have been in a very different position if companies had begun seeking software patents earlier. 'What if Dan Bricklin had a patent on Viscalc, or Wordstar on PC word processors, or Harvard Graphics on presentation graphics? Where would (Microsoft) Word or Excel or PowerPoint be today? These patents would have only expired in the last five or six years,' Webbink said. 'For some of us, our word processors would still have been a pen or a pencil on a pad.'"
Open-source allies go on patent offensive - page 2 | CNET News.com: [:open-source:patents:]