Bill Gates, Bono drink beer, smoke down, talk policy together after U2 concert

...Ballmer said the intervention of the Rev. Ken Hutcherson, an opponent of the legislation, had prompted the company to clarify its neutral stance on the bill after testimony by two company employees, who offered their personal views in favor of the legislation, had clouded the issue.

Hutcherson had threatened to push for a national boycott of Microsoft products if the company did not relent. But Ballmer said the company had not shifted its position because of pressure from the religious right. He noted that the company declined to grant two of Hutcherson's requests: that the two employees who testified in favor of the bill be fired and that the company issue a strong statement that the bill was unnecessary.

Ballmer said he and Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates "personally support this legislation that would outlaw discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. But that is my personal view, and I also know that many employees and shareholders would not agree with me."

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Shit, he is.. and I'm only #5. The Waltons are doing pretty good for theyselves.

xpost

but, gay and lesbian Microsoft workers are not being denied benefits.. they have same-sex domestic partnership benefits, not unlike a lot of big companies.

It's just that, for reasons beyond my comprehension, MS has decided this past year, according to their spokespeople, to stay away from supporting state bills that deal with "social issues". They claim that this Hutcherson freak (my insult, not theirs) came along after their stance on the bill was made. The Stranger is insinuating that Microsoft buckled down after pressure from Hutcherson. Who do you believe? Who knows.

All I know is:

* Hutcherson is an asshat and should be sent far away.
* The bill didn't pass because of a homophobic Democrat in the Aberdeen area.. an area that could really give a shit about what Microsoft thinks or supports. So Microsoft's support or lack thereof wouldn't have really mattered.

Am I upset about the lack of support of the bill by MS? Yes. Does this mean Microsoft is a homophobic corporation. Of course not! Does this mean Microsoft is incorporating typical "deter bad PR"/"remain neutral in public while being progressive internally" maneuvers? Of course. Does this maneuver always work? In this case, hell no.

I hope MS learns from this. But it would be equally ignorant to start branding MS as a homophobic corporation.

This bill would have radically changed things east of the Cascades, essentially. Gay and lesbians in Spokane, or in more rural, conservative parts of Washington wouldn't have to hide their sexuality in order to get hired anyway in the state. And it sucks that we'll have to wait longer to give this bill another try. Then again, about 95% of the gay population lives in greater Seattle, and I've never heard of any gay person being denied a job for sexuality reasons. It's not as if it's in job questionnares or anything. Also given the large number of gay and lesbian employers in the city, you'd think...

that said, gay and lesbian employers are not immune to bigotry themselves, as I can personally attest from a good friend of mine.

Still, you can't deny Bill Gates has shitty taste in music.

Yeah, Sub Pop should work with Bill Gates and get him to "get" Wolf Eyes. (insert joke about how shitty Wolf Eyes are here)

I did once see a promo MS video where Bill Gates and Queen Latifah were "chillin'".

(I'm not kidding.)

Now, can someone throw Rev. Hutcherson to the orcas, please?

"HOMOPHOBIC REVERENDS = YUMMY"

Microsoft defends ties to Ralph Reed -- Critics want conservative consultant fired

While I don't feel as sick as I did the day after Election Day 2004, today is pretty damn close. MS is gonna have to learn the hard way, i guess. Meanwhile, I'll have to be apologetic when I explain to someone where I work for the next three months.

Can't WAIT to see Ballm3r and Gat3s's reactions to this.

Payments to Reed sully Microsoft

By ROBERT L. JAMIESON Jr.
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER COLUMNIST

The man dubbed "The Right Hand of God" has fingerprints all over Microsoft. Still.

Ralph Reed is more than a Friend of Bill -- he is a paid GOP consultant, getting $20,000 a month from Microsoft to help shape the software behemoth's image in the global marketplace.

Judging from Reed's past -- he was the former head of the evangelical Christian Coalition -- that means serving up vitriolic viewpoints about gays and lesbians.

Judging from Microsoft's actions -- the company just yanked its support of a legislative bill in Olympia to protect gays -- the Reed brand of insight is shining through.

Microsoft yesterday confirmed its ongoing relationship with Reed, who raised eyebrows five years ago when he turned up on Microsoft's payroll. At the time, Reed was a hired gun. His charge was to influence future President George W. Bush to support Microsoft in its antitrust battle with the Justice Department.

Some observers figured Microsoft would wipe its hands clean of Reed back then. That didn't happen.

Financial documents posted this week to a Web log show Reed's relationship is far cozier than I imagined when I hinted at his red-state influence on Microsoft on Monday.

Microsoft has been paying Reed's company, Century Strategies, the $20,000 monthly fee since at least November, according to the blog, though Microsoft officials yesterday described the relationship as going back "several years."

Century Strategies, which has offices in Georgia and Washington, D.C., is being paid for expertise "on international trade and competition issues," Microsoft spokesman Mark Murray told me yesterday. "Century Strategies has never advised Microsoft on any social policy issues, including the anti-discrimination legislation."

Murray, who confirmed the accuracy of the information posted on the Americablog Web site, adds, "We do work with a number of consultants, Republicans and Democrats."

This much is true. Microsoft, though, fails to see the bigger picture. What is most troubling here is Reed's bedside relationship with Microsoft around the same time the company backtracked suddenly from gay rights legislation it had embraced just a year ago.

From the outside, it appears Microsoft was influenced by Reed -- a man who has President Bush's ear, has a following of millions of conservative Christians who think homosexuality is a sin, and who pushes the evangelical agenda every chance he gets.

Microsoft may not have hired Reed for his social views, but once he gets in the door it's a full-on Holy Roller revival.

Pastor Ken Hutcherson of Antioch Bible Church on the Eastside shares Reed's mind-set. As The Stranger first reported last week, the minister turned up the heat on Microsoft, which is progressive about gay rights in its workplace. Hutcherson wanted Microsoft to back away from its support of the bill and earlier this year had the audacity to ask the company to take a public stand against gay rights.

The bill died last week.

Microsoft took a neutral position, though the company says it arrived at its decision about the bill in December -- before Hutcherson knocked on the door. The minister says he is the one who moved Microsoft, threatening a boycott.

But even before Hutcherson raised a fuss, Reed was doling out compassionate conservative consulting to Microsoft.

Microsoft's backpedaling has the mark of fundamentalist zealotry and Century Strategies stamped all over it. The consulting company has a reputation for rounding up Christian opposition to dish out a right-wing force-feeding.

And Microsoft swallowed.

Does this make the Redmond-based company a symbol of corporate evil? No.

It does show how Microsoft allowed itself to be manhandled by outside forces and become misguided.

Bill Gates and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer say they personally support gay rights. Both of them are now going through the kind of introspection that makes Hamlet look stoic. Microsoft's struggle -- to be socially progressive or not to be -- raises philosophical questions that would cause angst for any company, much less an industry leader.

Should a company reflect the views of its CEO or its corporate board? Or is a company ultimately responsible to shareholders and the bottom line?

When should a company get involved in politics? Must a company's public position match its internal policies? What does a company do when some employees embrace issues such as gay rights while others do not?

Where does all of this fit in with a company's responsibility to be a good corporate citizen?

Arriving at the answers is a doozy -- and Microsoft deserves some credit for now doing soul searching.

This is also true: When Microsoft faced the question of the gay rights bill it let the right hand of God draw the line in the sand in the wrong place.

he probably also bought that u2 ipod.

blah blah blah

and, heh heh heh...

in The Stranger: REVELATIONS -- Minister and Microsoft Executive Offer Wildly Different Versions of Meeting

#245. Hiring Jon Heder for a recruitment video

http://img53.imageshack.us/img53/8642/gateslollerblading8gl.jpg

I WALK THERE... EVERY DAY!

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!

http://us.movies1.yimg.com/movies.yahoo.com/images/hv/photo/movie_pix/paramount_pictures/rosemary_s_baby/mia_farrow/rosemary1.jpg

he plays Matt Stone's character's little brother!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115819/