03.23.09
Microsoft Shows the United States Who’s the Boss
Summary: BSA lobbies the government; Microsoft builds bridges at taxpayers’ expense, sends jobs away
Earlier this month we wrote about the BSA's connections with Bill Gates' father and his firm. There are overlaps that cannot and should not be simply ignored because consequences are occasionally seen and it is easier to rationalise and defend explanations with more evidence at hand.
Now, it may be just a coincidence and for the sake of safety, benefit of the doubt will be given the skeptics, but it’s interesting that just a week or so after a Microsoft executive took power at the Department of Homeland Security [1, 2] Reuters comes up with this report about the BSA lobbying for software companies to take greater responsibility in national security.
Software lobby seeks greater role in U.S. security
[...]
The Business Software Alliance, which represents companies including Microsoft Corp and Dell Inc., told White House officials this week the government should share more threat and attack information with the industry.
Need it be shown again how close the BSA is to Microsoft? The BSA not only fights against Microsoft’s enemies [1, 2, 3, 4, 5] but it also has residues of Bill Gates’ father, who helps his son a lot [1, 2, 3]. Could there be a connection between this latest BSA lobby and the appointment of Microsoft’s Phil Reitinger? This gives Microsoft an even greater role in the United States government. For background, we recommend reading the following recent posts (mostly from 2009):
- New United States Government Already in Microsoft’s Pocket
- United States of Microsoft?
- Microsoft as Political Movement in the US, Maybe India Too
- More Microsoft Cronies in United States Government, Other Companies
With so much influence inside the government, need people be surprised that taxpayers are now building bridges for the tax-evading Microsoft? Here is some newer coverage of this story:
- Money at ‘work’: U.S. taxpayers funding Microsoft campus bridge
- US taxpayers to build Microsoft a bridge
What has Microsoft done for Americans recently? This new article from Fox News speaks about the offshoring of labour, in which Microsoft plays a significant role.
Microsoft Corporation led U.S. companies receiving H-1B visas last year with a total of 1,037. Microsoft’s announcement in January that the company would shed up to 3,000 jobs over the next 18 months does not seem to be putting a damper on its search for foreign talent.
Bill Gates and his father are largely responsible for what came to be known as Abramoff visas; not even a state senator can do much about it. According to another article, “H1-B workers laid off by Microsoft, but US workers took biggest hit.”
The Seattle press (what’s left of it) reports about worker unrest at Microsoft.
Members of the Service Employees International Union Local 6 demonstrated at Microsoft’s Redmond campus for a second day Monday. Their gripe is not with the software giant but with a subcontractor, SBM Site Services of Sacramento, Calif., which was awarded the custodial contract in December to clean buildings at the corporate campus.
There is some more information at BizJournals.com:
Unhappy janitors at Microsoft protest subcontractor’s cuts
Janitors who work at Microsoft Corp. as employees of SBM Site Services are protesting cutbacks by the subcontractor, saying their workload has increased substantially as a result of recent layoffs in their ranks.
This is part of a growing problem which was inevitable, so all Microsoft has left is press control like Waggener Edstrom. Watch how they all come together in this new short report:
Here’s why Gary Locke got $19K from Microsoft’s PR firm
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It was that he also made $19,250 consulting for Waggener Edstrom, the Bellevue-based PR firm known mostly for its longtime association with Microsoft.
Locke, the Commerce Secretary nominee and former Washington governor, is tight with Bill and Melinda Gates, so it makes you wonder.
Waggener Edstrom is a subject we wrote about in [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11] and we also watch the Gates Foundation quite carefully because it invests in companies and in governments.
Speaking of which, Paul Allen is a notable investor in Ticketmaster, he’s not just Microsoft’s co-founder. As a quick lesson in history:
After posting record sales and profits in 1993, Ticketmaster’s fate was changed again when Paul Allen beat out several big media players in a bid to purchase controlling interest in the company. The 40-year-old Allen, who had gained fame as the cofounder of Microsoft, paid an estimated $300 million for his stake.
Last week, Ticketmaster came under an investigation from the Department of Justice, which probably views Ticketmaster as a monopoliser.
The Department of Justice has asked Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc. and concert promoter Live Nation Inc. for more information about their proposed merger, the companies said Friday.
Ticketmaster is the world’s largest seller of tickets to concerts and shows, and Live Nation is the largest U.S. operator of concert venues, with more than 140. The companies have been expecting to complete the deal in the second half of the year.
Could Paul Allen have his hand in another monopoly? He also had a personal stake in some media/entertainment company (DreamWorks) until recently, just like another Microsoft co-founder, Bill Gates. Media companies control people’s perceptions and feelings, so this has real ramifications, predominantly to people’s minds. █
