On alliances and enemies.

[James A. Donald]

    --
Hollywood and the government, would like the internet to be like
television, a few big businesses steadily churning out content,
and everyone else passively consuming it.

Microsoft really would not like that, since, despite all their
faults, they are in the computer business.

This is analogous to the difference between Hitler and Stalin.
Hitler wanted to enslave the whole world right away, Stalin wanted
to enslave the world bit by bit as the opportunity permitted, and
whenever the time was ripe .

Thus it made sense for the west to ally with Stalin.  Trouble was,
Stalin thought it made sense to ally with Hitler.

My concern is not that Bill Gates is in bed with hollywood, but
rather than Microsoft may be trying to compromise, may be trying
to make a deal, over a matter where in truth no deal is possible,
no compromise can work.

Microsoft really does not want an internet that is regulated like
TV.  Hollywood really does.  Analogously Stalin wanted most of
Eastern Europe, and Hitler wanted all of Eastern Europe, and then
some.   Sooner or later, Microsoft has to come out on our side.
Let us hope sooner, rather than later.

Microsoft, like Hollywood, wants unreasonable and burdensome
levels of intellectual property protection, but they do not want
to destroy computing in order to get it.  Hollywood, and to a
lesser extent the government, would be happy to destroy
unauthorized individual and small business computing and
networking even if it did not help them sustain unreasonable and
burdensome levels of intellectual property protection.

This does not mean we should give Microsoft the benefit of the
doubt on Palladium.  It does mean we cannot automatically assume
that Microsoft is completely in bed with Hollywood. 

    --digsig
         James A. Donald
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