🚀 go-pugleaf

   It is not just OS/2 that has been emasculated by the abuse of market 
power, in this case by M$.  The deep problem is that the "American way" 
does not really want "free markets".  It wants domination.  Every 
company has that attitude latent if is not overt.  If the tape of 
computer life over the last 15y could be re-run and it then turned out 
that IBM was top dog they might be the same as M$ (IBM did undergo an 
anti-trust case about 10y before M$).

   Have a look at the following relating to MP3.  The crooked intention 
is shown not only by M$ but also by Apple!

http://www.lindows.com/lindows_michaelsminutes.php

   What America needs is something like Australia's ACCC run by a tough 
leader like Prof Allan Fells!

   Before someone objects that this is leaning towards "communism" it 
should be noted that the ACCC does not regulates "industries" and tries 
to "picks winners".  It regulates the health of "markets" or the market 
place.  Quite different!

   ACCC regulates take over proposals to examine that it does not weaken 
"competition" (the underlying notion is that only when there is healthy 
competition does the consumers get the best results; and since most 
people are consumers, "consumers" is a proxy for the economy and society 
as a whole).  If there were no ACCC, Australia we may well not have four 
big banks - one or more may have been swallowed by a bigger one!  There 
are many such examples.  They can't pretend to "compete" and fix prices 
either.  If caught they face jail!

   If a goverment, which is an *elected* body, does not or fails to 
regulate the market in some way then the biggest kid in the block will 
dominate.  When a big kid dominates they effectively "regulate" or 
dictates how others behave just as surely as a government would do.  So 
ironically *someone* dictates, the question is who?  In the latter case 
this gets done by an *unelected* body who acquires power in some other 
area to dictate you in an area you are interested.  Often in this case 
the coercive nature of the situation is modestly not mentioned!  It's 
the "freedom" of the bully to do anything to you eh?  People who make 
the "you're a communist"charge, are they advocates of commercial and 
industrial bullying?

   You Yanks should lobby your pollies for political and legal 
mechanisms to protect your markets.  Since you are the biggest players 
on the planet, improvement out your way will help the world.