The gentle art of making false promises. Your local religious group guarantees a better place for you, after you die, provided you've been a good guy. Sure, Microsoft stretches the truth, and they have plenty of company. And that was the trouble in the first place. The U.S. doesn't hold its struggling companies to a higher standard.
Criminal behaviour is rewarded due to benign neglect.
Nothing succeeds like success. Linux promises a lot of hard work and the capacity for others to compete with you effectively. How would I get a Mercedes and a 10,000 sq. Jeez, that would be dumb. Linux is like, communism or socialism or somethin' like that.