RE: Hatch wants Gates back

["Tom Kaighin" <tkaighin@interlog.com>]

In reference to the 'law' crack,  I will have to take moral offense (and if
you knew me, you'd be shocked, too)

While you, Declan, may be technically correct in your criticism, we had all
better hope Eric is closer to the heart of the matter.

Our laws (and those laws of most free countries) are supposed to represent
what a society considers justice. Just because the spirit of the law is
nullified by the minutia inherent in the process and the perpetrator cannot
legally be called a 'criminal', does not make him innocent.

Which book would you like Eric to read, Declan?  Any one of thousands
dealing with laws, interpretations, sociological issues, justice or morals.
Heck, you could probably list 50 that expouse your particular views
(whatever they may be on a given issue, not meant as a condemnation) right
off the cuff.

I think Eric is just trying to call a spade, a spade.  Bill is guilty in my
book of subverting the free enterprise system, lying to the masses and
proving P.T. Barnam was right.

While, I don't think it will ever come to this (in this particular
situation), look to history to find out what punishments are metted out when
the Judiciary officials fail to listen to, or fool the masses.  Usually,
when the masses find out, fire and brimstone abound.  Historically, when
power and money, not truth and honour, become the standard, anarchy follows.

Everyone seems to forget that, as individuals, we are not powerless, just
frightened, lazy or complacent (I'm talking those being taken, not those
pulling the strings).  When we're sick of taking the oppression,
strength-of-arms will be brought to bear again (be it political, financial,
or physical in nature)

I forget what sociological paper or theory this was written in or even who
the author was but this always rang true to me,  'Society, as we know it is
just a gauze veil covering our predatory instincts.  No modern society is
more than 10 days from savagery.  Without the fear of reprisal (law), all
the trappings of civilization would fall by the wayside in a remarkably
short time.

This just started out to be a short snippet commenting on two opposing
viewpoints.  I'm going to end the philosophical ramblings here and hope I
made a point.

And for Declan :)

-----Original Message-----
From:	am-info@essential.org [mailto:am-info@essential.org] On Behalf Of
Declan McCullagh
Sent:	Friday, July 24, 1998 7:10 PM
To:	Multiple recipients of list AM-INFO
Subject:	Re: Hatch wants Gates back

Eric, if you're going to be talking about the law, use a legal dictionary.
Or better yet, learn a little about the law. Otherwise you look more than
a little foolish.

Signed,

A friend



On Fri, 24 Jul 1998, Eric M. Bennett wrote:

>
> Declan wrote:
>
> >Yes, yes. Something can be unlawful without being a crime. Like I said,
> >who's charging Microsoft with a crime? Fantasies don't count.
>
> As I said before, that depends entirely on your definition of crime.  My
> dictionary says:
>
> crime, n.  1. An act committed or omitted in violation of a law forbidding
> or commanding it and for which punishment is imposed upon conviction.  2.
> Unlawful activity.  3. A serious offense, esp. one in violation of
> morality.  4.  An unjust, senseless, or disgraceful act or condition.
>
> Note that the legal definition you're probably referring to doesn't even
> show up in my dictionary.  It does show up under "criminal":
>
> criminal, adj.  1. Of, involving, or having the nature of crime.  2.
> Pertaining to the administration of penal law as distinguished from civil
> law.  3.  Guilty of crime.  4. Shameful; disgraceful.
>
>
>
> So who is right?  Unless you're going to argue with a panel of
> lexicographers, Microsoft has definitely been accused of a crime as that
> word is definined in common use.  The dictionary is the American Heritage
> Dictionary, second college edition.
>
>
>
> --
> Eric Bennett (http://www.pobox.com/~ericb/), Cornell Biochemistry
Department
>
> [If you are Bill Gates and you] want to control video? Just add it to
> Windows. Want to control Java? Just add it to Windows. Want to control the
> Internet? Just add it to Windows. Everyone has to buy Windows.
> -Larry Ellison, Oracle CEO
>
>
>
>