I don't think anybody's against building better safety features into a tool. I'm also not crazy enough to think that a power tool company is going to turn down an offer to build better safety into a tool, as long as it's economical to do so.

That last bit is what has me worried about the SawStop. The way I see this happening... guy invents SawStop and patents it. He goes to all the saw manufacturers, and gets turned down. Not because it's a good idea, but because he's not offering an economical deal to license the patent. It becomes a bad business decision to do so. After getting rejected, SawStop inventor tries to pass legislation that forces use of his patented technology, getting the deal he wanted originally.

As a result, I feel this has more to do with behind-the-scenes money deals than tool safety.