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Technology Stocks : How high will Microsoft fly? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: blankmind who wrote (18993)	3/26/1999 7:24:00 PM
From: Paul Reuben	Respond to of 74651

Microsoft buys Numinous Tech news.com

To: blankmind who wrote (18993)	3/26/1999 7:27:00 PM
From: Paul Reuben	Respond to of 74651

Settlement: What is MS thinking? zdnet.com

To: blankmind who wrote (18993)	3/26/1999 7:47:00 PM
From: Andy Thomas	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 74651

>>- think about all the families - mothers, fathers, and children - who are eating and living nicely because of MSFT's growth and opportunity - not to mention all of its charitable giving & $billions paid in taxes - like Pres. Reagan use to say, "the best program to fight poverty is a job" - and doesn't MSFT offer a bunch?<< There would have been other jobs without MSFT. MSFT has enriched its employees and shareholders at the expense of the advancement computing in general. I'm afraid it's going to get worse before it gets better. FWIW Andy

To: blankmind who wrote (18993)	3/26/1999 8:04:00 PM
From: Sir Francis Drake	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 74651

A love letter to the DOJ. Dear DOJ: I appreciate your efforts. I know that all you want to do is to make Microsoft << a little more micro, and a little more soft >>. In the process, you have helped countless investors, you have helped Microsoft, you have helped the high-tech industry, and you have helped the economy. Microsoft thrives on challenges. They perform best under pressure. You have provided the pressure for them to re-think their business model, their long-term strategies and organization. You have emboldened their competitors, and you have given them the opportunity to become more innovative and efficient - that benefits the entire high-tech industry, and it benefits Microsoft because they can develop even better products in a more competitive environment - they thrive on competition, and ultimately the US consumer and the US economy benefits from better productivity. Without strong competition, a monopoly, or a near-monopoly tends to stagnate, tends to stop innovating. You came just in time to provide Microsoft a much needed kick in the pants, before the arteries hardened. What doesn't kill Microsoft, makes them stronger. They are now being forced to take their competitors more seriously, and far from losing, they will benefit from being forced to think of new ways to make money and expand markets. And you forced them to become much more slick - these boys tend to learn from their mistakes (just look at every new iteration of their products<g>) - yes, their image and PR was not always the best, nor did they know how to play the political game. You can bet, that after this experience they'll become a hell of a lot more slick operation. This is all good for the investors, as it makes their long-term investment in MSFT as wise one, and assures continued appreciation. As a trader - and investor, I am also very grateful. You see, I love MSFT stock. I've owned it for 9 years in my long-term portfolio. I also have a separate portfolio in which I trade MSFT. For years, my practice as a trader has been that any profits I make, I immediately pour into buying more MSFT shares in my long-term portfolio. The trouble through the years past has been that whenever it came time to buy MSFT stock, it always seemed "expensive" - even though I'd always end up doing very well, no matter the price I bought it at. Since late 97, and early 98, I've been lucky enough to make substantial trading profits in various internet stocks. And that is when you, DOJ, helped me. You let me buy MSFT at bargain prices. I just keep pouring my profits into MSFT - and I cannot believe my luck at how cheap I'm getting them - compared to what they should be trading at, given the fundamentals, and general market valuations. So, thanks to your "case" there's been an invisible hand pressing down on the price of the stock, while making the company better at the same time. So I'm loading up at every opportunity. One day, your case will go away. And that's when the price will EXPLODE. It will rocket up, like a piece of styrofoam that's been pressed down under water. Thank you. Oh, and even if you succeed in breaking them up... I just look at the history of breakups: Standard Oil and AT&T - in both cases the pieces were worth more than the whole. A great boon to the shareholder. Either way, I win. Thank you again. Sincerely, Morgan PS Could you please drag out the case a bit longer? I will have money coming in all year long from trading, and I'd love to keep buying cheap shares - given that I know what the end result will be. PPS I leave you with this thought, courtesy of Warren Buffet... "should you be upset that the price of a stock you like is low? No, not until the day you decide to sell. If you want to keep buying, it's better for you for the price to be low, as long as the value is there. If you are a regular consumer of beef, don't you want the price of beef to stay low? Until you become a vegetarian, that is!"