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Microsoft Fakes Citizen Letters of Support
An Anonymous Coward writes: "According to this Seattle Times article, Microsoft is sending letters to Utah's Attorney General in support of the company, but with fake signatures of citizens (some of whom are dead!). The article says: "Letters sent in the last month are on personalized stationery using different wording, color and typefaces, details that distinguish Microsoft's efforts from lobbying tactics that go on in politics every day. State law-enforcement officials became suspicious after noticing that the same sentences appear in the letters and that some return addresses appeared invalid."" The original source appears to be this story in the LA Times today. We here at Slashdot would like to take the time to say that strong competition and innovation have been the twin hallmarks of the technology industry, and if the future is going to be as successful as the recent past, the technology sector must remain free from excess regulation.
http://128.241.244.96/portal/uploads/27000/27549_w inrg.swf
This
> Microsoft is sending letters to Utah's Attorney General
> in support of the company, but with fake signatures
> of citizens (some of whom are dead!).
Oh my God! The dead have risen, and they're supporting Microsoft!
(with apologies to the Simpsons)
Insert simplistic political, ideological, or personal proselytization here.
The two of us, undersigned, wish to protest your needless hassling of the legendary innovator Microsoft. Please desist.
(signed)
Generalissimo Francisco Franco (Ret.)
John Lennon (Beatle)
This innovation allows the user to create form letters with ease. It automatically searches the Social Security Administration for deceased individuals to use as senders.
Great for mass marketing.
I think Microsoft was just trying it out.
Sean D.
"Hmm. I am to metaphor cheese as metaphor cheese is to transitive verb crackers!"
Maybe there should be an investigation into how these people died!
A letter from one of the deceased:
"I have been happily using microsoft products for years, and have never had a problem with them. In fact i recently requested that my life support machine be converted to run with win 95, and have not had a problem with it"
they've been astroturfing this place for years with bogus "I love MSIE, w2k, VB, and all other MSTD" posts. It's nice to see them busted.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
I think it's shameful the way Slashdot $shameful_adverb dumps on Microsoft, a $supportive_phrase of our community. Without Microsoft, we might all be {a computerless nation|carving our own boot disks}. Thumbs up for Microsoft and its right to {innovate|forcefully monopolize} on our desktop!
Yours, etc. -
$name
$address
Mormon City, UT 96629
Microsoft: Not quite as bad as the Mafia
Reality has a liberal bias
Hey read the /. writeup. It was michael, not CmdrTaco.
Paperclip: /pr/astroturf/currentsuits.asp , line 145] case?
It seems that you are writing a letter. Do you want me to change it into a letter supporting Microsoft in the [ODBC: SQL Error in
[Yes] [Yes]
__
Men with no respect for life must never be allowed to control the ultimate instruments of death.
GW Bu
Brings a whole new meaning to 'Blue Screen of Death' dosen't it?
Face it, Microsoft has millions of supporters, buy a tiny, vocal group of anti-Microsoft crazies (like Guy Kawasaki).
And I bet it is really hard to articulate when you have been dead for 10 years. Or perhaps when you don't exist, I bet it would be hard then too.
Dead peoples and peoples who don't exist have valid opinions that need to be addressed!
Dude! insulting Mafia like that's not a smart thing. Unless you _like_ breathin water!
How much you want to bet the letters begin with "I send you this file to ask your advice"?
"I may not have morals, but I have standards."