As if the patent system weren't already fucked enough... Congress is now managing to band together make it worse.

Yes, worse.

The backlog of applications isn't really a problem as much as that they hand out patents on pretty much anything. Switching formally to a "first to file" method is stupendously bad, since it would seem to simply be streamlining invention theft by whomever can figure out a way to fill out a patent application for anything not yet patented (which isn't much!). Whether it was invented by someone else, currently in development, or already to-market doesn't seem like it's even going to matter anymore.

We are screwed.

"All your ideas are belong to lawyers."

Your Bogons At Work