Protecting American assets from international thieves
Protecting American assets from international thieves
For too long, Congress has ignored the implications of intellectual property theft in the world marketplace.
For decades, Congress and various administrations have been largely unwilling or unable to protect American manufacturers from unfair trade practices by nations that are erroneously referred to as our “trade partners.” Year after year, these partners have walked way from the trade table with about $1 trillion more for what they sold to the United States than what they bought from the United States.
And during those years, free trade advocates had the same refrain: the economic salvation of the United States would come not from the products it made, but from the innovations it produced, In this world of intellectual opportunity, modern day Henry Fords didn’t have to make automobiles and George Westinghouses didn’t have to make air brakes, all they had to do is come up with the ideas. Those ideas — the intellectual property of individual genius and corporate investment — would fuel the U.S. economy.
But the system breaks down when the work of ingenious and industrious Americans is simply stolen.
Serious counterfeiters
U.S. Sen. George Voinovich has told the story for years about a counterfeit pump manufactured in China that was virtually indistinguishable from the real thing built in Canton. Not only was the design of the pump stolen, but the packaging and even the directions were reproduced by the counterfeiters.
The theft of U.S. music and movies by counterfeiters gets the headlines, but Hollywood millionaires don’t get much sympathy from the man in the street. But that man in the street should realize that virtually nothing that Americans make is immune to being ripped off. No software or hardware is safe.
And so the news from Washington Thursday is welcome.
Legislation has been introduced in the Senate to protect American innovation and address intellectual property rights enforcement.
The Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act of 2008 was introduced by Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Arlen Specter, R-Pa., the committee’s ranking minority member. Among its primary co-sponsors is Voinovich, Ohio’s Republican and senior senator.
The bill would authorize the Attorney General to enforce civil copyright and intellectual property laws and coordinate federal efforts against counterfeiting and piracy.
“In the fierce competition of the 21st-century global marketplace, intellectual property is one of the few areas where America has a clear advantage over foreign competitors. It is vital that we protect that advantage, level the playing field and ensure continued economic growth for Americans,” Voinovich said.
The theft of intellectual property is too big a threat to the future of the United States to be ignored. Giving the Justice Department responsibility for protecting the nation’s assets makes perfect sense.
The theft of a profitable idea or an established trademark is a serious crime with serious consequences, and should be treated as such.