Attorneys from the federal government and 20 states are posing as heroes while they file antitrust suits against Microsoft. Like buffoonish sheriffs in a spaghetti western, they are heralding their new plan to eliminate public spitting in Dodge City. Meanwhile, the real bandits are cleaning out the bank. If we could get these guys to put half as much energy chasing truly abusive monopolies, we could all sleep soundly at night.
Prices are the lowest in history, and the technology keeps getting better.
The truth is, consumers are better served by the computer industry now than ten years ago when Microsoft wasn't so dominant. In memory of those notorious robber gangs of the last century, we could call them the Ma Bell Gang. The sheriffs killed off Ma Bell in 1983 when they broke up the Bell telephone system. All they really did, however, was replace her with her children, companies such as U.S. West, who carry on Ma's work on a smaller scale. We've been accepting the Baby Bells' inattention to technology and customer service for so long that they've somehow convinced us this is normal.