Naked Conversations

This week a new book was introduced called Naked Conversations. I found this book to be the most interesting of all the reading materials.

Naked Conversations talks about how blogging changed the perception of Microsoft from that of an "Evil Empire" to a human enterprise. I sometimes wonder if this is actually the case? Are people really so taken as to view Microsoft as a good company that cares about humanity now?

What about Bill Gates? Is he suddenly a humanitarian now that he has started giving away money to charities such as Carnegie had done during his time period?

Frankly I'm shocked that Americans have allowed some of Microsoft's "evils" to be glossed over due to their social corporate directives. I think it is good that companies "give". However - the biggest giving seems to be completely missed by many American consumers!

Of the things that Microsoft and Bill Gates are giving away are American jobs!! Bill Gates and Microsoft will never be able to give enough until they put their priorities where they count most - back to the country that gave them the freedoms and economics to become the man and company they are today.

I've run into many an ignorant person who believes that Americans losing their jobs will teach this country a lesson and teach us to be more competive . . . . Honey - have you ever lived through a major recession? I have!!

I've seen small towns wiped out in less than a year, family farms that were passed on through generations gone in a month, people lose their houses that no one will or can buy because everyone is walking away from their mortgage payments they can't pay! Baby parts of this country went through a depression (recession - ha ha) in the 80s that most people don't know about . . .(shhhhhhhh!)

It wasn't pretty to live through or see. Preying on people in order to move programs to be written up in India or other cheap labor countries in the name of "global competition" is as competitive as canibolizing your own family. Microsoft has enough money to cover the appropriate costs to do the right thing.

Perhaps now that Bill Gates has taken a few lessons from Andrew Carnegie in donating to the community he should now take a few lessons from Henry Ford in providing enough employment to the American workers that also make them his customers.

Henry Ford changed the economics in this country by doing the most baffling and idiotic thing in the time of his generation - he paid his employees well! The results of doing this not only made him rich, but more importantly was the starting point in creating the middle class we have today.

If you haven't actually known people to lose their home or haven't personally seen an entire town be shut down . . . then you're theoretical answers to this are purely academic. This is real life baby!