"You are correct in that a set of good patents is a valuable tool in impressing investors, or at least convincing them their investment is legally protected. I have seen this firsthand. Of course, I am now in the mode where I would rather chew off my arm at the elbow than deal with the investment community again, but that's another story."

And because of it's potential value in regards to getting backers of a project, I did consider patenting my idea of a pipelauncher. The problem with this idea is it didn't seem practical to me. There were number of reasons why it didn't seem practical. One reason was that a pipelauncher was sort of like a car or rocket engine. In other words in a general idea as much as it's a specific device. And the very nature of a pipelauncher is so utterly simple- a pipe with one end capped. I guess if thought getting a patent would bring about the construction of a pipelauncher quickier then I might have gone that route. The problem with a pipelauncher is it needs the rocket- you could use a pipelauncher as an amusement ride, but that's fairly impractical:). And patenting something seems like it's more suitable for a manufacturing product, rather than a construction project.
And like John, I do have a ethical problem with patents in general. I don't like "the system" and rather being helpful to society, I think the net result a drag on innovation and growth. And to me, it seems like a source of distraction for the individual inventor.