The View From the Outback© 2000 Richard C. Rhodes
A great deal of what we read in newspapers, magazines, and books, and what we see in the movies and on TV is written and produced in New York City or Los Angeles. Much of the "political wisdom" comes from the PR machines of the White House, the Congress, and from the Washington media corps.
In short, one might conclude that all knowledge, wisdom, and wit are confined to those who inhabit New York City, Washington DC, or Hollywood.
As I creep inexorably toward nearly 70 years of life experience - which was gained in many cities in the U.S. and in about 30 foreign countries, I decided to put down some ongoing thoughts in a series I call "The View From the Outback." That experience has included the U.S. Marines, law school, the ATF, the CIA, Fortune 500 executive, writer, public speaker, educator, editor, and publisher - for openers. For over 20 years, I have written articles off and on for various magazines and newspapers. I've had an enormous number of letters published in major national publications. The Outback is the rural area in Northeast Texas where I have lived for the past 11 years. Each Saturday (or so) I will attempt to post a new set of musings from the Outback.
Hot stock market tip: Invest in the company that makes Oroweat (not a typo) bread. I paid $2.44
cents for a loaf of 100% Whole Wheat Bread! Considering the low price farmers get for wheat,
something is very fishy here. In contrast, I purchased a flashlight with two D cells for $1.97. I am
going back to making bread in my automatic bread machine, at about 25 to 50 cents a loaf.
Does it bother you that the Red Cross is spending big bucks to run ads on TV telling us what a
great job they are doing in NYC and Pentagon relief? From which fund do those dollars
come?
One advantage to the Cowboy's losing season is that we don't have to listen to the incessant
drivel from John Madden on the TV games. Who are this guy's fans? I have never met anyone
who can stand him.
Sen. Robert Byrd (D. W. Virginia) is legendary in his ability to get government "pork" projects
for his state. The state is littered with Federal office buildings, and if you noticed on the map,
West Virginia is not real close to Washington, DC. There is another state in between - Virginia.
Then, we need new highways to get around in W. Virginia, and on and on. Sen. Byrd was nearly
apoplectic in his speeches on the Senate floor regarding a $15 billion ad-on to the money the
President had already asked for and been granted. There was, can you believe, some juicy pork in
that extra $15 billion. Sen. Byrd said, "God may strike me dead right on this spot if I were
offering this amendment for political purposes ..." Be careful when you taunt God. You might
get your wish, senator. I have watched this man for 20 or more years on C-SPAN. He is now a
doddering, senile, old fool and should be the poster boy for term limits. If you think that is harsh,
spend a couple of hours watching him on the Senate floor.
Who are these Webmasters who start the Title of their page citation with "Welcome to..."? Do
they not also have 2392 personal bookmarks that are sorted under "Welcome to"? You'd think
they would get the message.
Jeff Zucker, President of NBC Entertainment, has decreed that he wants to see an additional
script for a new show idea, other than just the one for the pilot episode. A stroke of genius. After
spending billions of dollars over the years producing programs that lasted from 6-13 weeks on
the air, Mr. Zucker has decided that NBC needs to have more information about potential new
shows. This is why he gets the big bucks. Leadership and innovative thinking.
Reporting from Afghanistan, Geraldo Rivera seems to have found a home. He even looks like an
Afghan freedom fighter. Maybe he should stay on and be the press secretary for the new
government. Since he is up to his old macho tricks, there is a 50/50 chance he will be killed.
Being macho is when you are out to prove something to yourself or someone else. Being brave is
standing up to danger when it is unexpectedly thrust in your face. The macho Geraldo has gone
looking for trouble. Jay Leno is making some tasteless jokes about Geraldo being killed. What
will Jay say if it actually happens?
The "where is it manufactured?" game is getting more weird by the month. My new Samsung
computer monitor is from Samsung of Korea, but it is made in Tijuana, Mexico. Things have
changed. When I last visited Tijuana as a young Marine, all I can remember were bars and
brothels (which I of course viewed from the outside). My latest Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer
(the infra-red mouse), is made in China. I would like to see the markup on that item. The Matrox
(Montreal, Canada) G550 video card was made in Thailand. The Instruction Manual was printed
in Malaysia. The connector cables were made in China. Incredible!
Four teenagers in Israel have admitted to creating and spreading the "Goner" e-mail virus. If
convicted, they could face from three to five years in jail. Want to bet that they will be sentenced
to community service - that service being to help the Israeli government beef up its online
computer security.
The Postal Service is predicted to lose about $1.5 billion - or more - in fiscal 2000. Granted, the
Anthrax letters have caused some extraordinary expenses and reduced the amount of mail being
sent. But, aside from that, it is easy to see why they lose money. I am just one patron in a small
town, but here are three points to consider: I sent a letter (with a deposit) to Bank of America in
Paris, Texas, a town of 25,000 population. In my senility, I transposed two of the four numbers
in the street address. The letter came back "No such address." There is only one Bank of
America in Paris, and it is three blocks from the Post Office - on the same main street! I got
a box via Priority Mail the other day, with a modem card and a floppy drive. The box was
crushed so badly that the foam inserts in the component boxes were crushed. It look like it had
been run over with a fork lift! Consistently, my magazine come with torn covers and black
streaks. Once again, they look like they are run over in the parking lot. The GAO has added
the Postal Service to its "high risk" list of agencies vulnerable to fraud, waste, abuse and
mismanagement. The time has come to get serious about privatizing the mail service.
Business is not far behind the Postal Service in its ineptness. In one week: Amazon.com sent a UPS
shipment to my PO Box, which is not allowed. The nice folks at UPS called and asked for a
"real" address and delivered that afternoon! DirecPC, a Division of Hughes Electronics Corp.
generously said they would send me a free software update disk for my satellite Internet gear. On the same day, they
sent two identical Fed-Ex envelopes, each containing a CD-ROM disk. They spelled
Honey Grove as Honney Grove. PC Connection sent me a CD-RW drive instead of the DVD
drive I ordered. They will replace it without shipping charges, although the item I ordered is now
on back order. I better lay low for a while and quit ordering things. I dread opening the boxes.
If you want the straight scoop about much of what is going on in the government, take a look at
www.federaltimes.com on the Web.
The Air Force Chief of Staff is General John P. Jumper. The General was born in Paris, Texas,
about 25 miles from my hideout here in the Outback. During an appearance on TV recently, he
mentioned the Beavis & Butthead generation in his remarks about some of the complaining that
is going on about the war on terrorism. He also noted that fewer and fewer of those elected to the
U.S. Congress have served in the military. Implicit in that is the assumption that it is difficult to
make strategic and financial commitments to the U.S. military when you have no experience in
the area. Clueless is the operative word.
You never know who you will run into at Wal*Mart. At the Wal*Mart in Paris, I passed a man in
the aisle whom I felt compelled to nod to and say howdy to as we brushed past each other. Not
my normal pattern. Then, I did a double-take and called out, "Are you Gene?" It was Coach
Gene Stallings, who was an assistant coach with the Cowboys during the days when I had
friendships with several of the players. He later coached at Alabama, as you sports fans recall. He
has a ranch near Paris. Gene turned around, and although his right arm was full of purchases, he
shook my hand with his left hand - and nearly crushed it. And then he was gone, in a cloud of
dust and a silent "Hi Yo Silver."
There is moral in the anecdotes about Gen.Jumper and Coach Stallings. Both epitomize the solid
values that one gets growing up in a small town in the heartland.
In my column talking about the 9-11 attacks, I cited a newspaper article I had written in which I
called tall buildings "phallic symbols" for cities. I have an ally, Prince Charles, although he uses
somewhat more polite language. He described the trend towards building ever higher skyscrapers
as taking "commercial macho into the realms of adolescent lunacy." I think he really meant,
"they are phallic symbols." I'll drop him an e-mail, if I can find an address for him. Fat chance.
Headllines can send the wrong message, either by accident or on purpose. "Rivera Sparks Debate
About War Role." "Oh, crap," I thought. Geraldo is now telling people that the war is wrong and
we should try harder to understand our enemies. The story was actually about Geraldo saying
that he carried a gun in Afghanistan and would shoot bin Laden if he came face to face with him.
That headline could have been written more clearly, couldn't it? "Rivera Sparks Debate by
Carrying Gun in Afghanistan."
Are We Shredding the Constitution?
Whenever Liberals mount an attack, one of the first orders of business is to conjure up an
emotional, hot-button, word or phrase to use in prosecuting the attack. In connection with the
new terrorism bill and federal approach to stemming terrorism, the buzzwords now for all the
liberal handwringers, bleeding hearts, and civil-rights radicals is :"Are We Shredding The
Constitution?" A very catchy phrase. But, patently ridiculous.
Shred is an emotional buzzword, just like assault-weapon was in its heyday. To
shred means to destroy so that a document cannot be reconstructed. To reduce to unreadable
strips of paper. Or to shred a cabbage to make a salad.
The steps either taken by the Bush Administration, the Congress, the Defense Department, and
the Justice Department are actually somewhat modest - given the extreme gravity of the threats
we face. Even if you accept that some are "stretching the Constitution a bit," you still do not
come close to "shredding the Constitution." How ironic. When Liberals want a result, they have
no qualms about "allowing the Constitution to be adapted to modern realities." There is no "right
of privacy" in the Constitution. There is no right to an abortion in the Constitution. There is no
mandate for Affirmative Action in the Constitution, and on and on and on ....
When Liberals "expand the Constitution to adapt to modern realities," they say that the
Constitution is a flexible document which should be viewed in light of modern problems. But,
when Conservatives - and others who see the gravity of the problems we face - do anything that
might even remotely affect the rights of a small group - it is "Shredding the Constitution." Even
worse, many of the new anti-terrorism efforts relate to people who are not U.S. citizens. Many of
the targets, if not most, do not even live in this country. How do we "Shred the Constitution" for
those who do not come under its umbrella?
So, on the day the anti-terrorism bill was passed, we found liberal law professors, who have spent
their career in civil-rights law or teaching, and representatives of the ACLU, telling America
what a radical and draconian bill has just passed. And that all of our freedoms are in jeopardy.
Even before the first Ox is gored. Soon to be joined by People for the American Way (a
misnomer if there ever was one.)
Even my favorite show "Special Report" on FOXNEWS with Brit Hume let me down. One of the panel of
"experts" is sometimes Jeff Birnbaum of FORTUNE magazine. He was asked about the anti-
terrorism efforts and he coughed up the usual crap of "Oh, dear. We are on the slippery slope of
losing many of our basic rights." (Not a quote, but a paraphrase.) Who is Jeff Birnbaum? What is
his expertise? He writes for FORTUNE magazine. I read the magazine for years, and they are a
financial and business magazine. They make no pretense about being expert in matters of law
enforcement, intelligence, and civil-rights matters.
The books authored by Mr. Birnbaum have been on campaign finance reform, the tax reform
act of 1986, lobbyists, and presidential politics. Who cares what he thinks about the complex
issues related to the battle against terrorism? I wrote Brit Hume an e-mail in which I complained
about having guests on who had no expertise in a subject, just to let them run their mouths. I told
him that this rant by Birnbaum was the last straw and that I would no longer watch his show when Birnbaum was a guest.
My list of "acceptable" viewing is
now so limited that I did not watch a single news show for about 12 days. A good idea in any
case. Try it. You'll like it.
We are not alone in trying to fend off the knee-jerk liberal objections to measures needed to
combat terrorists. The British Home Secretary, David Blunkett, has been fighting a knock-down-and-drag-out battle with opposition to the measures proposed to enhance security and prevent
terrorism. There would be "dangerous consequences" opponents say of the proposed bill. Others
have called the bill "a hybrid between anti-terrorist necessity and the invasion of human rights."
Sound familiar?
There have been similar skirmishes in Germany over the government seeking more powers to
combat terrorism. There is the aversion to re-creating a secret national police. Intelligence and
police work have been split between various agencies, for example. The Germans could do with
a little attitude adjustment regarding getting tough on terrorism. The cell that planned the
WTC/Pentagon disasters was apparently based in Hamburg. The Germans had a chance to roll
up Atta and two others in an apartment, but some genius decided it wan an old tip and did not
pursue the lead. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz! Danke!
Can you imagine what Vladimir Putin is going through, or would go through, if he tried to
increase surveillance and intelligence gathering inside Russia - given the history of the abuses of
the civilian population by the KGB? Not an easy sell. Go get 'em Vlad.
Polls show that the American public is strongly behind the efforts the government is making to
combat terrorism, with figures as high as 87%. You would never know it to read the liberal
newspapers or watch the majority of talking-head shows on TV. Here's the problem. In the
preamble to the Outback, I note the concentration of media in the East. Many, if not most of the
media in the East is liberal, as are much of the faculty in the universities. The Congress passes a
terrorism bill and immediately the media rounds up the usual suspects to comment. The problem
is that many of the "usual suspects" are radical liberals or radical civil-rights advocates. Many - if
not most - have never held a real job outside academia or in public-interest law.
Floyd Abrams is perhaps the best-known and most-respected attorney in First Amendment cases.
He has lately been interviewed on "60 Minutes," and quoted in various places about the supposed
"racial profiling" of people from the Middle East. I met Floyd once at a TV town hall hosted by
Ted Koppel in Dallas on ABC. The subject was censorship, and I had the honor of making a few
remarks about the CIA censorship of my novel. Floyd and Jack Nelson, of the L.A. Times, were
most complimentary to me after the show. Floyd and I exchanged a couple of letters over the
next year or so. So when Floyd speaks, I take notes.
Floyd Abrams in one quote said: "... a situation in which all the hijackers are from abroad, all
are from the Middle East and all are Arabic speaking. In those circumstances, it seems entirely
appropriate to look harder at such people. Remember Justice (Robert) Jackson said, 'the
Constitution is not a suicide pact.'" Floyd was also quoted in the WSJ (Dec. 7, 2001) in part
as follows: "... one thing the attackers have (had) in common so far is their national origin and
their sex and their language. And for us to so say, well, you know, we just can't think about that
... we'll just put it aside because - call it political correctness, call it anything - ... is an
appalling act of malfeasance."
In his book "BIAS" Bernard Goldberg noted: "Still, why are there no Christian suicide bombers,
or Jewish suicide bombers, or Hindu suicide bombers, or Buddhist suicide bombers, but no
apparent shortage of Muslim suicide bombers?"
One high-profile Administration figure is against profiling of any kind at airports, Secretary of
Transportation, Norman Mineta. He is of Japanese descent and was rounded up with his family to be
put in an internment camp in the U.S. in 1942 during WWII. So, he can be excused for his sensitivity to the
issue. But not excused for trying to equate looking for Middle-Eastern suspects at airports with
being put in an internment camp for the duration of WWII. Mr. Mineta said that President Bush
supported his stand on the "no-profiling" issue. I don't think so. If President Bush ever stood in
front of a camera and said, "I don't think we should pay any more attention to young men of
Middle-Eastern backgrounds at Customs points or at airports, I would say that he has told his
first big lie since taking the Top Job. Bill Clinton, yes. George Bush, no.
The foundation for using Military Tribunals is well established and has been supported by a
variety of legal scholars. Civilian courts, for one thing, are not prepared to handle the influx of
cases that will probably result from the capture of so many Taliban and Al Queda fighters - and
foreign terrorists. And there is the issue of disclosing in open court our "sources and methods" of
military operations and intelligence gathering. And so on. Find an article by Ruth Wedgwood
(WSJ Dec. 3, 2001). She is a former federal prosecutor and professor of International Law. It will
spell out the details, if you really have any doubts.
During a Senate subcommittee hearing, Atty.
Gen. Ashcroft was grilled by Sen. Russ Feingold about how the tribunals would work. Ashcroft
kept telling the Senator that the details are to be worked out by the Secretary of Defense, not the
Justice Department. You may remember that Sen. Feingold is the only senator who did not
vote for the USA Patriot Act (the anti-terrorism bill). What is this guy's problem? Is he on
our side? The same question I ask of the ACLU and of People for the American Way?
There has been an enormous amount of TV time and print media accounts of the 1,000 or so
"detainees." First, the number perhaps ought to be five times that! Better to be safe than sorry.
We can always apologize later, or pay compensation for false imprisonment - or whatever. The
stakes are higher than this country has ever faced before. Stop the whining and accept the fact
that some people who are not terrorists will be temporarily caught in the net. Have you noticed
that there have been no new attacks? Maybe some of those in custody, or some of those being
sought to bring in, were planning more terrorist attacks. Lawyers are representing a considerable
number of the detainees, if not most or all of them.
Atty. Gen. Ashcroft has said that the harshest
critics of the Administrations policies are giving comfort to the enemy. Seems like I said that two
or three times in past articles. Ashcroft refused to publish a list of the detainees, saying he did not
want to help the terrorists by telling them who he had in custody. Predictably, the ACLU sued
the government. Assholes!
There is also the big flap about the government intercepting communications between a few (I
think it is less than 20) detainees and their attorneys. The bleeding hearts are saying that this tolls
the bell on the "attorney-client privilege." Even the American Bar Association says that in the
case of the special few being subjected to the intercepts, there is no problem with the Canon of
Ethics. (I can't find the article right now, in my sea of paper.)
For those who continue to attempt to impede legitimate and lawful means to detect and deter
terrorism, maybe a little attitude adjustment would be in order. Start by locking them in a room
with a large screen TV and a powerful sound system. Play, over and over again, the video of the
plane crashing into the second World Trade Center and the destruction at the Pentagon. Show
them videos (if any exist) of people jumping out of the 100th floor of the Trade Center to their
death. Turn the sound up to max and play one hundred times the videos of the World Trade
Center collapsing and the people in the streets fleeing for their lives. Say to them, "Can you
imagine what it must have felt like to be trapped in that crashing building, knowing that you
probably were going to die? To have the floor drop out from beneath you? To die of slow starvation because you are trapped in the ruins?"
Play them videos of every wake and funeral that can be accumulated for those who lost their
lives in the WTC and Pentagon crashes, and the other plane that crashed in Pennsylvania. Bring
in a hundred survivors who were in the WTC and Pentagon that day, and make the doubters sit
and listen to their stories. Put real faces and real emotions to the events of Sept. 11, 2001. Take
them to Ground Zero and make them work on the crew carting away the ruins. Let them dig out
an arm here, a leg there, or a head by itself. And feel the heat all these weeks later and smell the
stench of a mass murder of thousands of civilians.
Force the complainers to watch the entire Osama bin Laden tape, where he sits in a house with
his cronies and brags about the destruction at the World Trade Center. And let them listen over
and over to the others who praise bin Laden for what he has done and praise Allah. In the
Muslin religion, as I understand it, Allah is their name for God. Only the radicals like bin Laden and his followers
use Allah's name in such a perverted way. So, one should NOT get the impression that all
Muslims are "praising Allah" for the WTC disaster and the strike at the Pentagon. Only the small
fringe group is doing that. And as the saying goes, "They are giving all of us (Muslims) a bad
name."
Take the whiners and Constitution shredders to a fire-department training site. Shove them into a
burning building and let them see what it is like to be blinded by smoke, unable to breathe, and
have their skin burned off like a roasted chicken. Maybe, just maybe, pull them out before they
actually die from the exposure. Then, take them to the top of the training building and make them
stand on the roof while flames lap up the side of the building and smoke swirls around them.
Finally, make them jump off of the building - through the flames and smoke - into a safety net.
Give each one a double shot of Bourbon. Then ask: "Now, what was it you were saying about the
Constitution being shredded? Explain that to me again."
"BIAS" by Bernard Goldberg
It is not often that a book comes along that every thinking adult should read. "BIAS" is such a
book. I got the book around noon and had finished it by the early evening, passing up two meals.
As you no doubt know, "BIAS" is about the liberal bias in the media. It has particular weight
since it was written by a 28-year veteran of CBS news. And a Liberal himself. Many of us have
claimed for years that CBS was the poster child for liberal bias. Now, Bernie Goldberg has come
out of the closet.
Every Conservative should read this book, because it will give you the smoking gun you always
searched for in your claim that the elite media is biased. Liberals should also read the book, and
search deep within to see if you can find some big lie or plot that undermines the book's
credibility. Liberals will have a harder time excusing away this book than just about anything
they have ever tried to do.
The big surprise is that Bernie says it is probable that the elite media do not really mean to have a
liberal bias, or usually intend to present the news with a bias. Then where does the liberal bias
come from? He says that it is simply explained by the fact that the vast majority of the elite
media are Liberals, that they vote Democrat, and they hang around with people of like mind. To
them their liberal ideas about abortion, gun control, the environment and so on, are normal -
because that is all they have ever been exposed to. To them, the rest of the world, including the
"vast right-wing conspiracy," simply don't understand what is right and good. The rest of the
world is misguided. Poor souls.
Bernie says that the liberal TV media takes its marching orders from the liberal New York
Times and the liberal Washington Post. The Times and the Post lead and the TV media follow
like sheep. That all fits in with my general complaint voiced in the preamble of this column that
most of the TV and written news is generated in the East - for the most part by liberal-leaning
organizations.
So, it is not a conspiracy, Bernie tell us. It is a mindset that unconsciously (I would argue it is
often more conscious) causes a liberal TV host to introduce someone as a "Conservative
activist," but introduce the most liberal law-school professor, or politician, simply as Professor,
Mr., or Ms. - or some other non-judgmental title. And causes the reporter to search and search for
an expert to put on camera who agrees with his or her own feelings and biases on a subject. And
to even lie or distort the truth, such as how the Caribou suffer in Alaska in the oil fields - because
they think it is their duty to present the truth - as they perceive the truth. Like a
pathological liar, they think they are telling the truth. Bill Clinton is their model.
The book was rushed to press when the pent-up demand forced it, and it shows in several areas.
Dan Rather is most likely a vengeful person, and a tyrant in the newsroom, and is catered to by
even the big brass at CBS - and on and on. I think he is a disgrace to Texas. But, Bernie's
vendetta against Dan is so strident - and oft repeated in the book - that it begins to take on the
character of a childish tantrum. Not that Dan does not deserve everything Bernie Goldberg says
about him. But, some editing to smooth out the rough edges would have helped. There are
several things repeated in the book, and probably not for emphasis. I just think Bernie and his
editor forgot that he already said something in an earlier chapter.
One thing really annoyed and distracted me. There are more exclamation marks (!!) in this book
than probably any book in print. The reason escapes me. It is simply a flaw in the writing and
editing, and I mentioned it in a letter to the president of Regnery Publishing, Inc. The
exclamation mark is the written equivalent of yelling or shouting. There was not that much worth
yelling about in the book - even as controversial as it is.
Bernie Goldberg has done a great service to this country. But he is treated like a traitor by his
peers, especially at CBS - and especially by Big Dan Rather. As Bernie pointed out, the media
can probe anybody's work or life and it is fair game. But, you better not tell stories out of school
about the media. Bernie makes some interesting comparisons between the Mafia and the network
executives. Dan Rather is a Capo, just like John Gotti, with a retinue of ass-kissers and with
everyone afraid to stand up to him for fear they will get a contract on them.
Bernie Goldberg found out. He crossed the Capo and got the "kiss of death." He now lives
quietly with his family in Florida and works occasionally. At least, he is still breathing. But
nothing would surprise me from the media elite who have had their little scam exposed with
names and dates and program material. Do any of you remember the first guy in the Mob to
break the Omerta (code of silence)? Bernie is the media equivalent of that guy. By the way,
Florida has a concealed weapon law. I hope Bernie, who worked for the vehemently anti-gun
CBS, has bought himself a large pistola - and a viscous dog.
Read this book! See, there I go yelling.
Segway Human Transporter Hype
It has been said the Segway electric scooter will "revolutionize transportation, much like the
automobile did a century ago." My, my. Words are indeed cheap.
The Segway has a top speed of 17 mph and range of about 17 miles on level ground. We don't
walk enough now. The scooter will further degrade our cardiovascular health by substituting
riding for walking.
The City of Atlanta plans to use several dozen scooters starting in February, "in an effort to
reduce emissions and traffic congestion." Do you realize what was said? Reduce emissions and
traffic congestion! With a few dozen electric scooters. Whoever gave that quote or penned those
words should be ashamed.
This is a perfect example of the gullibility of the media. There was - and is - such outrageous hype about
the Segway electric scooter. Where do you park the thing, once you are at your destination?
Somebody will steal it unless you chain it to a lamppost. If you have gone more than about 10
miles, you will have to take it into your office - or wherever - and recharge the battery. Otherwise
you will not be able to make the return trip. Can you imagine driving a Segway in New York
City, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, or Houston? The ER rooms would be full of people with cracked
skulls and broken legs from confrontations with SUVs. And what is Fed-Ex going to do with the
$8,000 models they are buying? How many packages can you carry on a Segway.
The main hope for this "invention still looking for a reason to invent itself" might be in
underdeveloped countries. Of course, the $3,000 cost of the "civilian" model is the equivalent of
a person's salary for six years in many of these countries. Sure, upscale New Yorkers will buy
them. They will throw them in the trunk of the Mercedes and go to Central Park for a spin. I saw
an electric scooter on TV for $199 with which you can do the same thing - if the urge is
overwhelming. Cops will try them for beat patrol. Have you ever tried standing on a stool for a
few hours? I wonder if spending a long time on the Segway will not cause aches and pains in the
legs? The Pentagon might buy a few to use to deliver mail around the sprawling complex.
I wonder how sales of the Segway will be in Minneapolis or Buffalo this winter? Or in Dallas next summer in the 107 degree heat? There are a thousand questions about the usefulness of this thing. It really is neat, the way it balances and all that jazz. Now, the world will struggle to find an answer to the question of how it "will revolutionize transportation." After all this wait, and all the suspense, and all the hype. A scooter that balances!
The Microsoft Settlement
As I said several times in the past, the Microsoft case was never really about trying to destroy
Netscape. Compared to the real issues, Netscape was small onions. It worked as a smokescreen
to deflect from the monstrous, and successful, campaign mounted by Microsoft to ensure that
their productivity software was installed on computers at the factory - to the exclusion of
competitors. If you bought a computer that had Word and Xcel, etc. installed at the factory, you
would most likely learn to use that software and continue to upgrade it for decades to come. And
buy more Microsoft products that smoothly integrated in with what you already had.
There were strong-arm agreements that Dell, Gateway and others could not offer, for example, to
install WordPerfect at the factory. I once asked to get a computer from Gateway without
Microsoft Works installed. I was told "we cannot do that." Incredible. There was evidence that
Microsoft went so far as to say that if the manufacturers did not knuckle under, they might be
denied access to the Windows operating system, which would be a crippling blow. As a former
Federal agent, and later a marketing executive in a $9 billion company, I had never seen anything so
outrageous as the practices that Microsoft routinely got away with.
People are complaining about Microsoft Money 2002 popping up messages to go to MSN.com
for this and that service. One fellow, in a letter to "PC Magazine," said he got tired of the
nonsense and uninstalled the program. When you install Windows XP there is a "nag screen" that
comes up for about the first ten times you use the screen. It tells you about how you need
"Passport" to use Internet communications features ....." It is worded such that a novice might
think they had to have Passport (where you have to give a lot of personal information to
Microsoft) in order to access the Web and get e-mail. Not so, of course. PC Magazine has
already posted a Registry tweak to get rid of the annoying - and misleading - message. Microsoft
uses its virtual operating-system monopoly to push all kinds of things on the unwary user.
Microsoft's Zone home page, which includes hundreds of games that can be played online,
announced that all users must sign up for Passport. Microsoft seems determined to get the
personal information and e-mail address of everyone in the World in their computers. They come
at you so many ways - and some you don't even know about.
Many libraries get computers with grants from Microsoft. The computers, of course, are loaded
with Microsoft software. If a librarian with one of the grant computers wants to install another
program, they must first call Microsoft for "permission." There can be no legitimate rationale for
this requirement of "permission," other than to discourage the installation of non-Microsoft
software on the computers. Oh, they would have some specious story to tell if you asked about
the procedure, but we have already seen their act - and have seen through it.
The former President of Italy, Francesco Cossiga, installed Windows XP and had many problems. In his words, his computer "went into tilt after two days." He wrote Bill Gates at Microsoft a letter in which he said: "Perhaps, my dear, young Mr. Gates, before putting your new products on the market with so much publicity you should have them tested for longer and with greater care."
If Microsoft were a person, he would be described as obnoxious, arrogant, underhanded, a
bully, dishonest, greedy and a "low-life." Look at the prez, Mr. Ballmer, and his speech and
body language. Bully. He reminds me of that tough-talking bald lawyer who used to represent
John Gotti, the Mafia boss. Amazing how I manage to insinuate the Mob back into this dialog.
When I started building my own computers, I put my choices of software on the hard drive.
Other than Windows, Publisher, and Encarta, there are no Microsoft programs on my computers.
If I need to read one of the many Word documents that come to me, I open it in Quick View Plus
6.0. WordPerfect can convert a document to the Word format, if I absolutely have to send a .doc
to somebody. Another advantage has been that without Word, Xcel, and Outlook on my disk, I
have escaped the multitude of viruses that attack those programs.
For years the public went along blissfully buying computers that came with the Microsoft Office
Suite or Microsoft Works installed. Most did not even know the names of many of the competing
products. Microsoft was also loathe to share more of their code than they absolutely had to do to
allow third part software vendors to make their programs "Windows compatible." This no doubt
contributed to many of the frequent "crashes" in Windows, as the third-party vendors often had
to take an educated guess at to exactly how they should interface with Windows.
The settlement requires Microsoft to give computer makers the freedom to install software from
other vendors on their new machines. This means that we should see such choices in ads as
"comes complete with either Microsoft Office OR WordPerfect Office Suite." One can only
hope. One consequence of Microsoft's strong-arm tactics was that a program like WordPerfect,
which had been top dog after WordStar faded, constantly lost market share. The latest version of
WordPerfect is so bug-ridden that owners (like me) in large numbers are deleting it and going
back to the earlier version. Maybe, with a chance to rebuild some market share, they can make
WordPerfect the program it deserves to be. The consumers need viable alternatives.
Microsoft is now required to share more code with outside software vendors, in order for the
third-party software to work closely with Windows. This is an important step. There are other
facets to the settlement, but the Mob-like cartel once enjoyed by Microsoft appears to have been
brought to the bar of justice. The lawsuit went far astray, with the nonsense about breaking up
Microsoft, et al., when the crux of the issue was always that Microsoft used unlawful and
unethical means to force their software on consumers.
Star Office 6.0, from Sun Microsystems, with a free beta and a modest fee for the final version,
will be an attractive alternative to many of the products in Microsoft Office. Eudora 5.1 is
already a solid alternative to Microsoft's Outlook mail package, which seems to be the bug and
virus capital of the world. WordPerfect Office 2002 (which has a new SP2 bug fix release), is
perhaps a good choice versus Microsoft Office. Netscape 6.2 and Opera 6.0 are nice alternatives
to Internet Explorer 5 or 6. Alpha Five (and later) is a superb relational database. MusicMatch
Jukebox 7.0 is a fantastic CD, MP3 player and ripper and now even burns CDs. And on and on.
There is some great software out there besides the stuff Microsoft foisted off on you for years
when you took delivery of your new computer. Maybe some of it will work better, now that
Microsoft has to share some code to tell developers where the "handles" are.
I am building a Pentium 4 from parts. After all the uproar about the "activation" process for
Windows XP OS, and all the complaints about bugs and incompatibility of XP with software and
hardware, I installed Windows ME. Somebody else can be the test case for getting XP to work.
Let me know. Now, to install Eudora, Alpha Five, WordPerfect, et al., and live happily without
Microsoft Office.
Suggested Reading From Past Columns
(Right-click on an underlined link and select: "Open in New Window" to leave this window in place)
Terrorism
"Whose Side Is the ACLU on?" Saturday, Dec. 1, 2001
Global warming and environmental debate:
"Rush to Glacier National Park Before All the Glaciers are Gone" September 8, 2001
Politics:
"My Friend Senator Jesse Helms," September 8, 2001
The Media
"How the Media Should Cover a Covert War" Sunday, November 4, 2001
Prescription drugs - advertised on TV - abuses in the pharmaceutical industry - supplements:
"Prescription Drug Plans," September 8, 2001
Health - General:
"Trans Fatty Acids - The Hidden Fat," August 4, 2001
Computers and Technology:
"Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 and Platform for Privacy Preferences (P3P)" Saturday, Nov. 10, 2001
Interesting Books to Read:
"Your Body Clock," August 4, 2001
A case history of horrendous abuse by Federal law enforcement:
"FBI Sniper At Ruby Ridge My Be Tried For Manslaughter," June 9, 2001.
Crime, spying, guns, gun-control:
" 'The Agency' on TV" Saturday, Dec. 1, 2001
Late Night TV Cruel Humor, et al.:
(I quit watching late night in disgust, so there are no new articles on the subject.)
"David Letterman Grovels For The Colombians," May 19, 2001
Hollywood, Entertainers, Celebrities:
"Is Hollywood Finally Irrelevant?" Saturday, Dec. 1, 2001
Telemarketing:
"Telemarketers, Caller-ID, et al.," August 4, 2001
Miscellaneous:
"TV 'Crawls' - Annoying and Distracting"Sunday, October 28, 2001
COPYRIGHT 2001 Richard C. Rhodes
You are welcome to quote sections from this page - or the whole page, as long as the source URL is included. Of course, I would be flattered if anyone linked to this page. It is very hard to be the writer, editor, fact checker, copy editor, and publisher of anything. So, I welcome corrections of fact, notes of misspelled words, and so on.
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