Larry,
Thanks for your thoughtful reply to my musings.
I agree Intel would not fare well following a break up, but I'm not
sure about Microsoft.
The author of "Titan" is on the talk show circuit making a case for
the similarity between Rockefeller and Gates. It's a provocative
analogy. As I said in my post, Microsoft is playing in dangerous
waters. Many believe it has crossed the line. My own experience
with Microsoft (on this issue) goes like this:
About a year ago I was talking to our MIS manager, who shared a
dislike for Microsoft's monopolistic practices. The issue was that
he had to spec a browser for the company. After long consideration,
he had settled on IE. His response to my strong objection was: "Len,
they're giving it away. If it was just one copy, I would buy
Netscape, but when you're talking hundreds of licenses." And you know
how the rest went. Yes, sir, monopoly in practice.
Again, just my rumblings. I'm not partial, as I own both stocks, and
hope they both do well. Still, if it smells like a rose .
Len
PS. I had forgotten that ATT was regulated. Maybe I should say
"thank God it was regulated!" For me the bottom line is that I am
just as opposed to unbridled capitalism as I am to state-enforced
socialism. As in most important issues, the solution lies in getting
the right balance. Or in engineering terms, in agreeing on the limits
within which we can freely oscillate.
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