I'd like to laugh, but it's no laughing matter. There's one name that 's not listed here who carries a lot more weight it Washington than I'd like, good old Mr. Salvage Rider, Sen. Slade Gorton, R-Wash. If he could manage to get that crock of baloney through congress, tucked away safely in the budget reconciliation bill, to the benefit of a few lumber companies and maybe a few hundred jobs, I'm sure he'll work a bit harder to keep Microsoft safe from the law. This Conrad Burn's a piker, and a water carrier for the RBOC's too. I said long ago that I thought antitrust division getting its budget zeroed is a more probable outcome than effective antitrust action against Microsoft; I'm not ready yet to change my mind on that one.
I find the stream of news entertaining, it's sort of my own little O.J. trial. And if it hadn't been for the publicity, I wouldn't have the lovely "integrity and uniformity of the Windows Experience" line to annoy Sal with, and throw back at the Microsofties with their ridiculous "tearing Windows apart" defense of the sacred icon. But if Microsoft would have been in trouble for threatening Compaq for removing IE the program, but it's ok to make threats about removing the sacred icon, the whole thing is obviously a crapshoot. Tell it to the judge still holds, who knows what he'll think.
Cheers, Dan. |
