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Technology Stocks : Discuss Year 2000 Issues -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: John Mansfield who wrote (1340)	3/29/1998 5:07:00 AM
From: John Mansfield	Respond to of 9818

Sex, Lies, and Politics (or how Y2K is like Pearl Harbor) 'As the music ended, the battle was in full swing but the band remained, at attention, satisfying, to the last detail, every requirement of good military bearing. The band leader finally dismissed the musicians and they frantically dove for cover.' 'Much of the world is suffering from the same mental inertia as that ill-fated ship's band. 'The musicians are continuing to play because the bandleader, oblivious to the battle, is still waving his baton. And who is the bandleader? Actually, there are several but let's start with President Clinton because he's the most important. It is clear he doesn't believe in the Year 2000 Problem. y2ktimebomb.com

To: John Mansfield who wrote (1340)	3/29/1998 6:13:00 AM
From: John Mansfield	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 9818

Computer Guru Ed Yourdon: '...visceral "emotional" acceptance of Y2K' 'What kind of responses have you gotten ? asked in the TimeBomb 2000 (Y2000) Q&A Forum Howdy all, I am curious and wish to compare notes. What kind of responses from people are YOU getting when you discuss the big Y2K ? As for me, it runs about 75% "So What", about 20 % "THEY'LL Fix it", another 4.8% "Boy,that sounds serious" and about .2% "We are in trouble, how do I get ready?". Asked by Art Welling (artw@lancnews.infi.net) on March 26, 1998. Answers The responses below are fairly consistent ... the overwhelming majority (probably at the 99% level) believe that (a) it's not a serious problem, or (b) if it IS a serious problem, then 'they' will fix it somehow. Hollywood has influenced all of in this area: we're used to movies like "Independence Day", where Jeff Goldblum used his Macintosh Powerbook to zap a virus into the alien spaceship, and thus help save mankind at the last possible moment. Alas, it won't work that way with Y2K, but most of society doesn't want to hear that. Something for all of us to consider: if you got worried about Y2K relatively early, you probably went through a period of several weeks or months of near-paralysis, as you changed from "intellectual" acceptance of Y2K to a visceral "emotional" acceptance of Y2K. I'm particularly guilty of this, as are many computer professionals; in my case, I used Y2K as an example of bad programming in some courses I taught as far back as 1972, and I began actively writing and consulting about the technical/managerial aspects of Y2K in 1995. But I didn't REALLY make the connection to my personal life until early 1997, and it then took another several months for me to begin acting on the problem (e.g., by actually purchasing emergency food, gold, etc.). I suspect that several of you have gone through a similar transition. But you need to keep in mind that when the great mass of society finally starts paying attention to Y2K, they're likely to "flip" overnight from denial to panic. Thus, we may not have the luxury of watching the stock market and saying, "Hmmm... looks like we've finally reached the top. Looks like the last train may be leaving the station. Looks like this is a good time to start selling our stocks." I think it could happen as quickly as the collapse that took place in Asia a few months ago... that's why I decided to liquidate my holdings in stocks and bonds last year, so that I was completely out of the market by the end of 1997. I've missed the last few hundred points of the DJI bull market, but I sleep better at night (though I still have nightmares about my IRA/Keogh funds being locked up) Ed Answered by Ed Yourdon (yourdon@worldnet.att.net) on March 27, 1998. greenspun.com