M$ adopting the methods of Karl Rove?

Story: Fsf: Microsoft's attack on EC is 'outrageous'Total Replies: 6
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richo123

Feb 17, 2006
6:05 AM EDT
Bullying the EC in a completely disingenuous fashion huh? Should be interesting to see whether there is any significant anger from the EC over this. Sounds like M$ might just have goofed to me. I fully expect the Bush administration to intervene on M$ behalf next and claim "unfair" trade practices by the EC.

Disgusting.
tadelste

Feb 17, 2006
6:24 AM EDT
Maybe and maybe not. The administration still has to answer for its blunder with Ralph Reed and Abramoff includeing how Karl wound up with Abramoff's secretary as his own, putting Reed on the Enron payroll while he worked on the Bush campaign and the dual payment from Microsoft while lobbying Bush as a candidate to let Microsoft off the anti-trust hook.
Abe

Feb 17, 2006
6:59 AM EDT
Quoting:M$ adopting the methods of Karl Rove?


It is the other way around, M$ invented these methods and tactics. They wrote the book for their lackeys.
Bob_Robertson

Feb 17, 2006
10:55 AM EDT
Which reminds me of the "chicken and egg" problem of government corruption. Is it that government has power that is then on the auction block, available to the highest bidder? Or, is it that politicians and bureaucrats are corrupt, and seek to gain powers which they can then sell to the hightest bidder? (Or for that matter, to many different bidders).

Lord Acton ("Power corrupts...") saw it one way, whoever it was who said "scum floats to the top" was referring to the other.

Personally, I think it's both. Regardless, it leaves us mere "citizens" holding the tab for these power broker's 3 martini lunch.

On the subject of the article, if Microsoft didn't vigorously defend "itself" from such rulings, their corporate officers would then be guilty of not "maximizing shareholder value". What's clear from the fact that it happened at all is that Microsoft didn't grease enough of the right palms in Europe like they did in the US.
Abe

Feb 17, 2006
11:09 AM EDT
Quoting:What's clear from the fact that it happened at all is that Microsoft didn't grease enough of the right palms in Europe like they did in the US.
It is all about the level of access. I don't think EU has as much lobbying as we do. Besides, Europe's governments(s) were not yet as united and centralized as the US. And may be, just may be, the people in Europe are more politically involved and tend to take matters more seriously than in the US.
tadelste

Feb 17, 2006
11:23 AM EDT
Bob_Robertson: I do respect you personally and admire your knowledge of history. It's quite remarkable really.

I absolutely agree that they didn't grease enough, but they had some leftovers from the 2000 campaign in the US and stopped greasin' the palms of the MDs. Why ol Bill was just giving his money away like he has a lower intestinal failure. After the US anti-trust ruling was over, they gained some POLITICAL CAPITAL here but obviously being a 'Merican company didn't get the benefit of that thar political capital over there.

jdixon

Feb 17, 2006
4:19 PM EDT
> Personally, I think it's both. Regardless, it leaves us mere "citizens" holding the tab for these power broker's 3 martini lunch.

Our founding fathers knew this well, which is why they arranged for a government with very limited and sharply delineated powers. The ninth amendment is a wonderful concept, which has been completely ignored pretty much since it was written down.

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