Exactly. But there's ideology, and there's reality. You know how pervasive and colossal the black budget is. We could be, as a society, almost unimaginably advanced of where we are, sans such things, sans the modern patent system, sans greed, sans corruption.

But we are, precisely where we are

Edit: I thought it prudent to leave a reminder, that the US military operates beyond patent regulations. If they want or need something, the silly games end there. And they do what they will.