[ale] AOL sues Microsoft

[Matt Shade]

Well...I could be called a Microsoft "apologist"....I use, and will continue
to use, Microsoft products because they do for me what I need to do. I can't
beat their Word for creating docs that are shareable with customers. I can't
beat their PowerPoint for presentations I need to make. If I need a new
scheduling program, then something made for windows is going to beat out
anything I've seen for linux.
It's not that I don't want linux to be the top dog, but for right now, it's
not. So I suppose I'm one of those that are keeping Microsoft on top and
linux trying to catch up. But I'm not the only one. One of the reasons why I
am on the MS side is the people who are writing software for Windows. I
don't know what the numbers are for Win programmers as opposed to linux
programmers, but I'd be willing to bet it's better than 4 to 1. Maybe even
10 to 1. I don't know.
I'm not out to bash Linux. Hell, I've been a linux user/programmer/advocate
for more than 8 years. I'm also not out to bash Microsoft.

<flame suit>  # because most readers are anti-MS and pro-[anything anti-MS]
I started out reading the response below thinking "right on"...then thinking
"what the ?"..then again thinking "okay, getting back on track....", but
overall thinking "Geez, what's the agenda?".  This started out as "Hey, its
not MS's fault, it's the government's fault" and then went to "Bush Sucks!
and the horse he rode in on!"

What the F!??  I'm sorry...maybe there are some antitrust issues (but I'm
all for a person pushing his product as best he can), but to say it's a
government, nay.... a FAMILY conspiracy? Oh come on!
</flame suit>

matt

----- Original Message -----
From: "Kyle Lussier" <lussier at autonoc.com>
To: ale at ale.org
To: "Mark Hurley" <debian4tux at telocity.com>; "ALE" <ale at ale.org>
Sent: Thursday, January 24, 2002 02:46
Subject: Re: [ale] AOL sues Microsoft


>
> > Yeah...I know...none of us like it...but in the end it is capitalism.
>
> I think my opinion on this subject is that the game of capitalism has
> rules, and you need to follow them, otherwise the game itself becomes
> damaged.  In extreme cases, "damaged" games of capitalism cause things
> to happen like what is happening in Argentina.  You have to preserve
> the integrity of the rules, at all costs.  The battle shouldn't be
> anti-Microsoft, whatever.  The battle should be "play fair, stop
> cheating."
>
> Fundamentally, I think Microsoft has been an extraordinarily brilliant
> player in the game of capitalism.  But the Sherman Act has been law
> for a great many years.  Microsoft has been reminded of that many
> times, and the Sherman Act defines rules for the game.  Those rules
> say you can't use one monopoly to get another monopoly.  You can't
> it's against the law, and it's against the rules of the game.
>
> I don't blame Bill Gates for doing the things he has done.  I would
> argue that it is healthy for any agressive company to do what they
> are doing.  It becomes an issue, when the rules of the game get
> damaged.
>
> The Bush administration, for a variety of personal and contributor
> related reasons, does not believe in Anti-Trust legislation.  That
> is perfectly fine, and I respect their right to their opinion.
> *But* the Sherman Act is law.  If Bush doesn't like a law, he should
> go debate it in congress and get it repealed.
>
> Bush most specifically should not ignore the law, nor grant an
> exemption.  Going all the way back to 25 years ago, the Bush family
> has been playing this game of selling exemptions to laws.  Back to
> the day that Jeb Bush was involved in the S&L scandal, which cost
> us $500 billion, to crony-ism getting exemptions for Enron so they
> could hide money, to bank loans granted from tax payer dollars to
> political friends that had no intention of repaying the loans.
> For 25 years they have "sold" exemptions to laws.
>
> Prior to Bush being elected, he met with Gates in Seattle for 3 days,
> and Gates had visited him in Austin at the governor's mansion.
> Gates has contributed more than $5 million to the Republican party,
> and Gates has hired the both the form RNC chairman and the Bush's
> presidential campaign director to work full time lobbying Bush.
> According to the Tunney Act, you have to disclose all of this
> lobbying, campaign contributions, visits, etc.  Microsoft, nor
> the DoJ disclosed any of these visits, hirings, or campaign
> contributions which are documented in many papers publicly.
>
> For what it's worth, I was an avid Republican until Bush won the
> presidency, so I'm not any "republican basher".
>
> I just want the integrity of the game of capitalism to be healthy,
> vibrant, and preserved.  And as Steve Ballmer put it, at the end
> of the conference call related to the DoJ settlement, he snickered,
> and said "I guess we have a green light to continue 'innovation'."
>
> Fundamentally, I don't blame Gates.  It is our government that is
> failing here and is not protecting the integrity of the rules of
> the game, nor the integrity of capitalism and free markets in
> America, and that is very very dangerous.
>
> The deadline for public opinion in relation to the Tunney Act
> is next monday.  I invite all ALE members, if you haven't already,
> to submit your opinions.  There is a rumor flying around that
> Microsoft has "bought" a great deal of people to write in supporting
> the settlement.  My feeling is that is not a true reflection
> of the reality.
>
> Please consider submitting your comments before Friday to make
> sure they are included in the federal registry about this situation:
>
>   http://www.codeweavers.com/~jwhite/tunney.html
>
> Because if this matters to you, it's time to stop procrastinating.
> The Tunney Act exists to insure integrity in the game of capitalism
> remains, but the Tunney Act is "public opinion" driven, and it's
> purely numbers that count here. Please forward that link to everyone
> you know.
>
> Kyle Lussier
>
>
>
> ---
> This message has been sent through the ALE general discussion list.
> See http://www.ale.org/mailing-lists.shtml for more info. Problems should
be
> sent to listmaster at ale dot org.
>


---
This message has been sent through the ALE general discussion list.
See http://www.ale.org/mailing-lists.shtml for more info. Problems should be 
sent to listmaster at ale dot org.