of course it is never good to fight the US gov't. UNLESS your customer base is behind you in the fight, at which point, it becomes a game of chicken.
If I didn't truly believe that all this wiretapping and spying by the gov't will be tossed by the supreme court, then maybe I'd think twice about GOOGs stance. But I think this will blow over, a new admin will be in the wh by the time this goes to court if it does, and google will get to claim the big PR win.
Already the John Battelle blog and other blogs are applauding Google and dissing msft and yahoo for giving in...
but not Google (emphasis mine).
Of course the Bush administration started with the cover of "fighting child porn." Do you think that's all they've asked for?
Of course not.
Bravo, Google, for fighting this. Don't give up the fight. It's not just about this one request. This is a major, major moment. And shame on the other engines for not standing up and fighting.
(And while I'm tossing out kudos, bravo on the two tier Internet stance, as well.)
Update: Philipp has a hilarious send up here - "Patriot Search."
Update Two: This is an awesome, up to the minute resource, over at SEW, on this story. Xeni at BB is also pursuing the story, and has news that the DOJ got info from MSFT, AOL, and Yahoo. Key detail: So far, no personally identifying info. That, I imagine, is buried in a Patriot Act request.
battellemedia.com
Again if I didn't believe this administration and their tactics have WAY overstayed their welcome I would feel differently. |
