January 19, 2000
Page A4
ÿtarUatth (©baeruer
1 Opinion
Portiani)
_
as T om C. L a n d m th
USPS 959-680
Established 1970
iJ-rieq luo
STAFF
d it o r
P
C
in
h ie f
,
u b l is h e r
Charles H. Washington
E d
i T o n
Larry J. Jackson, Sr.
B
M
u s in e s s
anager
GaryAnnTaylor
C
opy
E
d it o r
Joy Ramos
C
r e a t iv e
D
tElje ^ p o rtla n i» (H b a e rrie r
AOL - Time Warner merger Report recognizes the
proves that Microsoft is no threat importance of treating
3Tl|e
^Portiani»
© b sertier
E
Articles do not
necessarily reflect or
represent the views of
ir e c t o r
Shawn Strahan
4747 NE Martin Luther King,
Jr. Blvd.
Portland, OR 97211
503-288-0033
Fax 503-288-0015
The recently announced AOL - Time
Warner mega-merger proves that the
government never had a serious case
against Microsoft; and even if its
case once had a small kernel o f truth,
the marketplace and computer and
Internet technology are progressing
so rapidly that the government’s case
is now moot.
The A O L -T im e W am er merger will
break all records w ith its total
estimated value o f nearly $350 billion.
It will combine AOL, the largest
Internet provider in the world and
ow ner o f Netscape software, with
T im e W a rn e r’s vast system o f
broadband Internet technology as
well as its media, entertainment and
news services. The new AOL Time
W arner Company will dw arf most of
its competition and will have the
resources to take on virtually any
projectorcompetitoritchooses. With
these facts in mind, how can the
government continue to argue that
Microsoft exercised monopoly power
to bully AOL out o f the market?
F o r the p ast y e a r and a half,
government attorneys warned us in
grave tones that Microsoft was and
is using its market to hamper its
competitors and harm consumers.
These charges rang hollow then, but
in light o f the recently announced
mega-merger, the charges have been
exposed for the absurdity that they
are.
The public should have sensed that
it was about to be sucker-punched
when the governm ent’s attorneys
p ro m ise d to p ro te c t us from
M icrosoft’s free and very popular
In tern et E x p lo rer and O utlook
Express. Consumers don’t need
protection from high quality, free
software. However, Americans do
need protection from a Justice
Department that wastes tax dollars,
c h e a p e n s the law , and abuses
government power to benefit some
competitors while harming others.
G iven the rapid development o f
technology and swift changes in the
marketplace, government attempts to
regulate the high tech computer and
Internet market will be ineffectual and
irrelevant - at best. At worst, such
meddling will impede innovation and
halt economic growth. In either event,
citizens and consumers would be the
hardest hit.
T he g o v e rn m e n t c la im s th a t
Microsoft is one o f the most powerful
and predatory m onopolies ever
known. Moreover it now argues that
the only solution is to impose the
“death penalty” on M icrosoft placing
the S o ftw are C om pany in the
government’s corporate guillotine -
to be broken up into two or three
pieces. Before imposing such a drastic
sentence, a brief look at the facts is in
order. AOL has the market power and
resources to purchase Time Warner
in the largest merger ever.
This mega-merger provides ample
proof that there is, and will continue
to be, an abundance of competition in
the high tech computer and Internet
arena. Government lawsuits are not
needed to promote competition. Such
lawsuits only endanger the dynamic
and rapidly advancing high tech
economy. Simply stated, it is time for
the government to stop its jihad
against Microsoft.
O ne is left to w onder why the
government continues to waste its
tim e and the taxpayer’s m oney
relentlessly pursuing Microsoft and
trying to impose the corporate death
penalty. AOL is obviously thriving.
M ic ro so ft has not harm ed or
hampered AOL. In fact, one could
now plausibly argue that a large,
healthy Microsoft is needed as a
counterbalance to the new mega
Internet firm AOL Time Warner.
Ifthe government lacks the judgment
to drop its lawsuit against Microsoft,
then Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson
should dismiss the governm ent’s
case as moot and let the competition
and innovation continue. Consumers
will be the biggest winners.
Letter to the editor
To the Editor:
Lets encourage students to achieve
excellence in the New Year! As an
in c e n tiv e , tell them about the
Independence Essay Competition,
which will award up to $5,000 to
Oregon high school students for the
best essays on the foundation o f
freedom.
O rg a n iz e d by C a sc a d e P o licy
Institute, the sixth annual Essay
Competition is open to all Oregon
public, private, and homeschool
students o f high school-age (winners
to date include sophom ores and
juniors, as well as seniors). Students
compete only against their in-state
peers.
To receive the guidelines interested
persons should call (503)242-0900, or
rev iew
them
at
w w w .C a sc a d e P o lic y .o rg . The
deadline for entering is March 15.
Send address changes to
Portland Observer
PO Box 3137
Portland, OR 97208
eor
T he P ortland O bserv er
I was privileged in December to be a part o f what 1 hope was the beginning
o f and to stigma and discrimination toward people with mental illness.
I attended a news conference in Washington, D.C., at which Surgeon
General David Satcher made public his extensive and groundbreaking
report concluding that mental illness is diagnosable ands treatable, and
that mental health is as essential as physical health to overall quality o f 1 ife.
Mental health professionals have been waiting for years for science and
government policy makers to catch up and embrace the knowledge that
treatment o f mental illness is a public health issue just as important as
treatment o f other illness such as cancer wish the report were a magic that
could instantly erase centuries o f stigma and embarrassment suffered by
people with mental illness. Unfortunately, we have a long way to go, even
with Dr. Satcher’s summary o f the scientific evidence that effective
treatment exist for most mental disorders.
Stigma is difficult to overcome, partly because people with mental illness
such as bipolar and schizophrenic disorders often display behaviors that
frighten the public and lead to rejection. People often hide their illness and
don’t seek help. Private insurance often discriminates by offering limited
coverage for treatment services, adding financial disincentives to seeking
care.
Commercial insurance companies and Medicare provide only bare-bones
coverage for serious and disabling mental illness that falls far short of the
treatment needed, particularly for children and the elderly.
Find what you are
looking for in
(Htje ^ortlanit ©bscruer
T he
In d e p e n d e n c e
E ssay
Competition is an opportunity for
Oregon students to be recognized-
and rewarded for extracurricular
academic excellence. Please spread
the word!
STOP!
GET HELP!
FREE COUNSELING!
Sincerely,
Angela Eckhardt
Program Coordinator
Cascade Policy Institute
Portland, Oregon
SAVE MONEY!
BUY A HOME OR INVEST!
__________ O fflo n • Washington • Africa
A-ZEBRA Realty Inc
5 0 3 -2 8 1 -9 9 0 0
e-mail pdxobserv@aol.com
P ostmaster :
mental illness
Have your opinions heard send them to
®lje ^ o r t l a n b © b s e ru e r
PO Box 3137
Portland, OR 97208
Periodical Postage
paid in Portland, OR
3 I7 NE Kilhngsworth St.
Portland. Oregon
3 6 0 -6 9 0 -0 2 8 1
4225 NE St James Rd
Vancouver. Washington
G eorge Hendrix, Broker
J
We Represent Buyers
ARMACY
Subscriptions are
$60.00 per year
F E A T U R IN G
D E A D L IN E S
FOR ALL SUBMITTED MATERIALS:
ARTICLES:
Monday by 5 f . m .
ADS:
Friday by noon
NATUROPATHIC PHYSICIAN
& CONVENTIONAL PHARMACIST
LOCATED AT THE FOLLOWINc
NATURE S NORTH V EST STORE
CONSULTATIONS
The Portland ( )bserver welcomes tret-lance
submissions. M anuscripts and photographs
B Q Q N E S F E R RY
PRESCRIPTIONS
should b e c le a rly labeled and w ill be returned
ifaccompan led byaselfaddressed envelope. A ll
created design display ads becom e the sole
property o f the new spaper and cannot be used
I 7 7 I ■ JE A N R C A ;G
i A < E O S W E G )
NATUROPATHIC MEDICINARY
m other publications or personal usage without
the w ritten consent o f the general m anager,
unless theclient has purchased the composition
o f such ad. O 1996 T H E P O R T L A N D O B
SERVER A LL RIGHTS RESERVED,
REPRODUCTION IN W HO LE OR IN
PART W ITH O U T PERMISSION IS PRO
HIBITED.
COMPOUNDING
TR E M O N T
Selfcare at Nature's is about helping people live well by making healthy lifestyle choices
to prevent illness and integrating the best of conventional & alternative medicine in treating illness
The Portland ( )bservcr--O regon's Oldest
M u lticultural Publication—ts a m e m h e r o f the
National Newspaper A ssociation-Founded in
1885. and T h e National Advertising Represén
ta m e Am algam ated Publishers, In c.N ew York.
N Y . and T h e W est Coast Black Publishers
Association* Serving Portland and Vancouver
«
I
T
W A Y
O
F
L I F E
I