MONEYMAKING HYPOCRITS

One of the most telling accusations by detractors of Y2k preparation and awareness is that somepeople are (GASP!) MAKING MONEY OFF Y2k by selling books and newsletters. What exactly Does this tell us?

1. Making money is bad.......Say What? It is the American Way to make money at any cost! There is a lot of evidence that corporations and government are not honestly reporting their real state of unreadiness lest stocks decline, businesses switch to other suppliers, the boss finds out and fires people, etc. Surprise!

2. It is fine to make money by selling books and newsletters on just about any other stupid thing you can think of.....just not Y2k. All those companies spending 600 million on Y2k remediation cant really think there is anything to worry about.... all that money is just a humanitarian welfare program to keep poor programmers employed.

3. Making money and having truthful information is apparently the preserve of the predators only......slap down those troublemakers who think they have any right to know what is going on, much less make a Profit by telling anyone else.

thanks for letting me blow off some steam...

-- seraphima (seraphima@aol.com), July 19, 1999

Answers

What I find amazing is that in thisso-called capitalist country, you have so many people who have a knee jerk reaction to any mention of a profit motive. The word profit has become a dirty word. I think it's just the result of conditioned socialistic response by the media.

Tim

-- Tim the Y2K nut (tmiley@yakko.cs.wmich.edu), July 19, 1999.

I would certainly hate for someone to sell me something that I need and actually make a profit so that they can buy something that they need. So unAmerican....

-- Dog Gone (layinglow@rollover.now), July 19, 1999.

On that note, let's all pack up our desks and lockers and go home, we certainly don't need money for a roof over our head or food for our stomach.

-- bardou (bardou@baloney.com), July 19, 1999.

Don't you just hate it when people try to make a buck pawning information to the unenlightened? IT JUST TICKS ME OFF. There oughtta be a law, lemmetellya.... ;-)

Television should have no commercials. Cable should be free. I shouldn't have to pay for newspapers/periodicals (especially WESTLAW, SIMBA, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL...they are SO EXPENSIVE...I mean, WHAT A RIPOFF ), and they shouldn't have those fliers that fall out from the middle every Sunday.

The Internet should be free to everyone, sans banner ads to commercial sites such as Amazon.com, ebay, etc.

EOS (End of Sarcasm)

-- Tim (pixmo@pixelquest.com), July 19, 1999.

Tim, you mean like the ads on the Bonkers forum?

-- OutingsR (us@here.yar), July 19, 1999.

I'll have to take your word for it, for I haven't taken the time to visit.

-- Tim (pixmo@pixelquest.com), July 19, 1999.

I'd like to add to Tim's dream list:

All college classes should be free, and professors should volunteer their time to share their knowledge.

College textbooks should be free.

Consultants (i.e. IT, medical, legal, financial) should give their knowledge away for free as a public service, for the common good of humanity.

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If we applied this wish list, then so much for the "information economy", huh? If you don't like what they're selling, DON'T BUY IT. If you don't like what you're watching, CHANGE THE CHANNEL, and if you feel strongly about it, BOYCOTT THE NETWORK AND THEIR ADVERTISER'S PRODUCTS. If you don't like what they're printing, COMPLAIN TO THE EDITOR, AND if it means that much to you, CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION OR THROW IT IN THE TRASH. Life is about choices. Enjoy the many you have at the moment, for you may have fewer by this time next year regarding many, many things.

-- sprite (spirit@iserv.net), July 19, 1999.