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Pick Up A Piece of Enron

shintaro points out this massive collection of "gear from Enron on auction. Amongst the more than 3,000 in this auction (1 of 10) are state and federal law books, and numerous notebooks sans hard drives. Might be a good opportunity to pick up a Sun Enterprise Server? Office furniture is also on offer, Herman Miller and Knolls all over, not an IKEA item in sight. Interesting what Enron employees and shareholders must feel looking at this loot."

201 comments

  1. What? by Pig+Hogger · · Score: 5, Funny

    No paper shredders????

    1. Re:What? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Those will be in the Arthur Anderson auction.

    2. Re: What? by jamehec · · Score: 1, Interesting

      The paper shredders went to Ollie North's office.

      --
      This post made with the Dvorak layout.
      "Friends don't let friends use QWERTY"
    3. Re:What? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No matches, lighters or gasoline either....

    4. Re:What? by PhrostyMcByte · · Score: 2, Funny

      Martha Stewart already took all of those.

    5. Re:What? by T-Kir · · Score: 1

      Naa, most of them had to be dumped because they were broken from overuse.

      The rest might have appeared in the "Let it Snow" Heineken advert. :-)

      --
      Are you local? There's nothing for you here!
    6. Re:What? by selderrr · · Score: 5, Funny

      Enron was way past the point of Shredders : they worked with shrinters

    7. Re:What? by fhic · · Score: 1

      Who wants a worn-out shredder?

    8. Re:What? by billimad · · Score: 1

      excellent. i should probably just print my management reports directly to this.

    9. Re:What? by urlgrey · · Score: 1

      No paper shredders, but they do have pallets of keyboards and more importantly, Gondolas of mice!

      I never, ever would have imagined myself saying: "HEY! Look at that! You can get a gondola of mice from Enron!"

      Grrr. Where's George Carlin when you need him. :-|


      --
      Running 'Nix is like owning a Lightsaber. It's "a more elegant weapon for a more civilized time."
    10. Re:What? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I've got a baseball cap & coffee mug sitting on my desk - as a reminder of what can happen when you do the wrong things to good people and are downright greedy. I don't expect this perspective to ever change.

      (I bought mine when there was a lull in the news so prices were fairly low.)

    11. Re:What? by recharged95 · · Score: 1

      I just hope it's as good as the eToy's auction, they had cool furniture and even cooler desk gagdets :)

    12. Re:What? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Wow april fools! Those guys really had me going for a sec!!!

  2. Enron Equipment by superpulpsicle · · Score: 1

    So... if I buy enron equipment and find more damaging files on the computer, can I auction that back and make some $$$?

    1. Re:Enron Equipment by TopShelf · · Score: 2, Funny

      Good luck doing that without the hard drives!

      --
      Stop by my site where I write about ERP systems & more
    2. Re:Enron Equipment by ecalkin · · Score: 1

      not all evidence is on computers... there was probably lots of stuff on *paper*, and i would like to beleive that they've checked all those desk drawers...

      eric

    3. Re:Enron Equipment by DAldredge · · Score: 1

      I bet you a lot of the good office desk and chairs are now in use at goverment offices. That's what happened to some of the desks from SNPC.

    4. Re:Enron Equipment by Rolo+Tomasi · · Score: 1
      What do you mean? E.g., the description clearly states that this Sun mass storage cabinet comes with 28 HDDs. Even if you don't find any data, you can still use it to store your, umm, home videos. In any case not a bad deal for $200.

      OTOH, you probably need the Sun Enterprise 10000 to hook it up, so that's another $200.

      --
      Did you know you can fertilize your lawn with used motor oil?
    5. Re:Enron Equipment by Doctor_D · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I've seen far better descriptions of products on ebay than this site. Looking at this storage rack, the only picture of it is the rack with thr front door closed. So you have no idea what type of disk arrays are inside. Given the age of the 10k's listed nearby I would have to assume these are at best D1000's or going as far back as SPARCstorage arrays. Also given the age the HHD sizes are most likely 9gigs or smaller, so not much space to store your videos, but you could set up a nice RAID array. Since we don't know what arrays are in the storage rack, we don't know what it would take to use them. It could be a simple wide-SCSI or ultrawide-SCSI attach, or more complicated such as a fibre attach.

      So anyway, with such a poor description and supporting evidence, they should give me $200 to take it off their hands.

      --
      "If you insist on using Windoze you're on your own."
    6. Re:Enron Equipment by d474 · · Score: 1
      About the hard drives...I know the article said that, but on the website they are auctioning this:
      1. COMPAQ 12000 STORAGE ARRAY W/ WHEELS, (7) 36GIG HD, (23) 18GIG HD, & ALL NETWORK HARDWARE TO CONNECT THE ARRAY

      Doesn't that mean that their are 7, 36GIG HDs and 23, 18GIG HDs inside this array???
      I'm not much of an online auction guy, but what am I missing?

      Could it be that ENRON is at it again!? Always tryin' to screw the little guy!
      --
      Authority questions you. Return the favor.
    7. Re:Enron Equipment by selderrr · · Score: 3, Informative

      auctions like these have a walk-in day where you can review all the material. The online brochure is to lure buyers who don't know what they are buying.

    8. Re:Enron Equipment by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      One geek to another, you meant "i.e.".
      i.e. means "id est" or "in other words"
      e.g. means "exempli gratia" or "for example"


      Hang in there...some day you'll get it right.

    9. Re:Enron Equipment by bluekanoodle · · Score: 1
      Having been to quite a few high profile .bomb auctions, I can tell you most of this stuff goes for a lot more then its worth. $200 is just the minimum bid. People will be crawling all over the place in person on auction day, and the competition gets hot.


      Not only do most people not seem to have any clue that you can get this stuff much cheaper on ebay, but they are willing to pay extra to say they got it from Enron.

    10. Re:Enron Equipment by MegaHyster · · Score: 1

      Just hit shift-4 three times!

      --
      All good things...
  3. Ha. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    I'm waiting for the Martha Stewart Living auction. Mmmm, cheap pots and pans and bedspreads!

    1. Re:Ha. by Grant29 · · Score: 1

      Does the Martha Stewart conviction make your more or less likely to buy her products? The products themseleves havn't changed, only the reputation of them...

      --
      3 Gmail invitations availiable

    2. Re:Ha. by SquadBoy · · Score: 1

      You are right they always were crap and always will be crap. I'm hoping that they put her on trail for stuffing and then basting a turkey.

      --

      Cypherpunks: Civil Liberty Through Complex Mathematics. Those who live by the sword die by the arrow.
  4. My favorite auction item. by Weaselmancer · · Score: 5, Funny

    Amongst the more than 3,000 in this auction (1 of 10) are state and federal law books

    ...still in their shrink wrap.

    Ba dump bump! Thanks, I'll be here all week. Try the veal.

    --
    Weaselmancer
    rediculous.
    1. Re:My favorite auction item. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      If the legislature doesn't have to read them, why should we?

    2. Re:My favorite auction item. by noahproblem · · Score: 1

      And the best part is you can serve them immediately, because they're already cooked (/me ducks).

    3. Re:My favorite auction item. by WoodstockJeff · · Score: 4, Insightful
      still in shrink wrap

      Ah, but you forget that people like this live by knowing the limits of the law, and exploring their edges. You can't play the game without knowing the rules!

      At least some of those law books are probably well worn. Companies like this spend lots of time exploring what has and hasn't been explicitely been ruled to be illegal, and trying variations on what has been to get around whatever was perceived to be the downfall of the now-illegal ploy.

  5. You can get some good deals.. by DAldredge · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Having purchased at auction a large amount of items from one of my former employers (Sunpoint Securities, Inc - One of the largest brokerage failuers in US History) if you are careful you can make a decent profit on auctions like this.

  6. Wow by thelondonforces · · Score: 0, Redundant

    That didn't last long

  7. $200 minimum bid? by djcapelis · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Some of that equipement is outdated and not worth the minimum bid... I'll go back to pricewatch and ebay...

    --
    I touch computers in naughty places
    1. Re:$200 minimum bid? by Hits_B · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I have 25 shares of Enron I'll sell for $50. You can't beat a price like that!!

    2. Re:$200 minimum bid? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The $200 minimum bid might just be for the proxy bid service. The help says the opeing prices are set by the auctioneer. The 13.5% or 16% fee on top of the final bid is annoying, I prefer to bid what I'm going to pay.

    3. Re:$200 minimum bid? by timeOday · · Score: 1
      I have 25 shares of Enron I'll sell for $50.
      Would that entitle me to a cut of the cash they're raising with this auction? Any money should go to shareholders, right?
    4. Re:$200 minimum bid? by tftp · · Score: 1

      There is a very long waiting list, and common stock holders will be the last to see any money. Besides, there isn't a coin small enough to be paid to you for those 25 shares.

    5. Re:$200 minimum bid? by mvdw · · Score: 1
      Some of that equipement is outdated and not worth the minimum bid... I'll go back to pricewatch and ebay...

      While not looking too closely at this particular auction, if you choose well at an general auction, you can make money re-selling those items on ebay. I know, I have done it. It is particularly the case with auctions that occur during business hours - if you have a flexible employer (like mine), you can attend these auctions occasionally and pickup some old but still functional gear that can be resold for reasonable profit. And also pick up a whole bunch of machines for home, too...

  8. YRO? by Staos · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Why is this under YRO?

    --
    In Soviet russia, only old Koreans profit from pictures of Natalie Portman stored on Beowulf Clusters.
    1. Re:YRO? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      Because... uh... Enron... Bush... Ashcroft taking your rights online away!!!!!!

    2. Re:YRO? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      How can you be a pseudo-socialist libertarian?

    3. Re:YRO? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Way to bite, biter. Now go brush your teeth.

    4. Re:YRO? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, I just think if someone is going to troll, they should at least be consistant in their trolling. Like, if the troll called someone an antisemetic jew lover, I'd have a problem with that.

    5. Re:YRO? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well, they ARE all pals if you s/Enron/Kenny Boy/

  9. Ethics Handbook by ltsmash · · Score: 3, Funny

    I wonder if they'd have the ethics training handbook available. I'd definitely buy that.

    1. Re:Ethics Handbook by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually, I own a copy of the ABA's ethics guidelines. Shrinkwrapped or not, there's not much in it that's really on point to Enron. Most of what they did is unethical on a different plane from what the ABA provides ethical guidelines for.

      This is not to say they're not unethical, just that the ABA's ethics code deals more with sleeping with clients, proper representation of a client's interests (which is kinda germaine to this situation, but less than you'd thing), etc.

    2. Re:Ethics Handbook by The+Jonas · · Score: 2, Informative

      I wonder if they'd have the ethics training handbook available.

      They have been on sale on eBay for a while now.

  10. Let it be known by krray · · Score: 2, Funny

    Let it be known that we'll no longer "/." a server upon a story. Based on how slloooowwwww their servers are now operating we've "Enron'd" the Enron Auction.

    Nah, /. is quick and geekie...

    1. Re:Let it be known by Almost-Retired · · Score: 1

      I'd say. They really should have enlisted some of those suns to serve the site, and/or bought some more bandwadth. I think it melted down in the middle of the 4th page for me, after about 3 minutes waiting for page 4 to load, I gave up and came back here.

      Setting up a web auction without the iron to handle it should be criminal since the web viewers are going to be at such a lengthy time disadvantage.

      I was looking for a decent tape system myself, but there's no way in hell I'll be able to find it before the auction is over on the 21st when the site is so slow.

      No Cheers, Gene

    2. Re:Let it be known by big_a · · Score: 1

      It's totally dead now.

  11. Now come on! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    THIS is funny!

    Not that stupid Doom 3 framerate joke from the last story.
    (But please mod it underrated, the guy needs some karma)

  12. Re:Ethics Handbook - Never used! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    If they have one, it's certainly in mint condition-- probably still in the original shrink wrap. :-)

  13. Great Looking Sun Ultra Enterprise 6000.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    esp. with the faux wood grain veneer finish - ahh, they don't make em' like they used to...

    http://www.dovebid.com/assets/display.asp?ItemID=w eb2165924

  14. Still waiting. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    I'm still waiting for SCO to go down, so I get get me a load of cheap Linux licences.

    1. Re:Still waiting. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If SCO goes down, I'm sure there'll be a line. I don't think most people will pass up a chance to have someone go down on them.

  15. We can tell it has been slashdotted by jsm008us · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Well, if you are there now, you can tell it is going slooooooowwww... Good Game Slashdot. Same thing happened to thinkgeek.com when the slashdot effect hit them!

    --

    mysql>SELECT * FROM users WHERE clue > 0
    0 Rows Returned
  16. Re: Accounting Optional by shubert1966 · · Score: 3, Insightful


    Enron made campaign contributions totaling more than $5.7 million between 1989 and 2001. Republicans received 73% of this money. Ken Lay was an ardent supporter of George W. Bush during Bush's time as Governor of Texas. During the 2000 campaign, Lay allowed Bush to use Enron corporate jets to fly from stump speech to stump speech. So close were these men that Bush granted Lay a nickname: 'Kenny-Boy.'

    About this time my '.com' was watching venture capital dry up. We had a meeting with Arthur Andersen to discuss our accounting product and I distinctly remember the 23 or 24 year guy not having the slightest clue why he was even meeting with us. Uniterested and pathetic questions. No wonder every audit firm in the universe used to APPROACH US at tradeshows - they must've thought EVERYONE was on the take.

    Well my life since then plays like a broken country album. And Larry Ellison still looks like the devil. I hate this mellenium so far.

    --
    Stuff that matters.
  17. Books unused by ryen · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Amongst the more than 3,000 in this auction (1 of 10) are state and federal law books

    and you can bet they're unopened new, too.

  18. Wouldn't it be more appropriate by Dishwasha · · Score: 1

    if they donated that equipment to underprivileged schools in the California area or set up a program to assist in identifying needs for computer equipment in honorable community programs? Sounds like a company who has taken so much from the community should give something back rather than liquify assets in to other potentially corrupt businesses.

    1. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by TheAdventurer · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Community programs are a bottomless pit into which tons of cash is wasted, I mean spent.

      At least some up and coming business can get some good deals on expensive equipment.

    2. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by CheechBG · · Score: 1

      Honestly, what the fuck would a underprivledged school need with a UltraSparc 10000? I can see your point if they were getting rid of a whole bunch of desktops, but what do they need a Sun Data Array for, a space heater?

      And before you go off in a tangent about how they can learn on the hardware, you need to master the desktop, THEN you go to the big iron. That's the natural progression, not the other way around.

    3. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by Tony · · Score: 0, Troll

      Yeah. We don't want to give money to people who don't *have* money. They obviously wouldn't know what to do with it.

      Logically, we give money to the people with the most money, as they have a fucking clue.

      --
      Microsoft is to software what Budweiser is to beer.
    4. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by Ubergrendle · · Score: 1

      Unfortunately all of the creditors would be left high and dry in those circumstances. That sort of scenario would be resulting in two evils... the bankruptcy of a corporation that was thoroughly unethical and deceptive in its dealings, and the bankruptcy of innocent/not so innocent creditors. Even if the subsidiary lenders were corrupt, their shareholders probably had no idea what was being orchestrated...they shouldn't lose their savings.

      Now, if the penalties faced by Enron involved financial fines, and they were to take precednecne over the payment of creditors, your scenario would be a valid payment scheme.

      --
      John Maynard Keynes: "When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do?"
    5. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by TheAdventurer · · Score: 2, Insightful

      It's not a question of whether they know what to do with it. They simply didn't earn it.

      Every single thing in this country that we have is courtesy of business. Even government services are funded by corporations that pay taxes. A world without "greedy" business is a world of foraging for berries and dying of mysterious ilnesses like the flu.

      Giving people with no ability money is a backwards way of doing things.

    6. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by CaptainZapp · · Score: 2, Insightful
      They simply didn't earn it.

      Considering Enrons dirty tricks during the California energy crisis this is arguable, to put it politely.

      Even government services are funded by corporations that pay taxes.

      Considering that the ilks of Microsoft don't pay taxes (with some 60 billion $ cash reserve) and the fine people of Arthur Anderson fled to Bermuda as a tax shelter in order to stiff the community you're talking out of your arse, sir.

      --
      ich bin der musikant

      mit taschenrechner in der hand

      kraftwerk

    7. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Enron's "dirty tricks" (I question your wording, as in that case they were just a company earning money for their shareholders...yah, I know, disgusting, ain't it) were enabled by the Democratic administration's sham "deregulation".

    8. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by Tony · · Score: 0, Troll

      Every single thing in this country that we have is courtesy of business.

      Incorrect, Sir. Everything we have in this country is courtesy of *people.* Many things have happened that have nothing to do with business; take, for instance, Linux and many other Free Software projects. Business has grown around them, but that is secondary to the original, non-commercial project. Or, there's the millions of people who volunteer in their community *every day,* whether providing help at school or cooking food for homeless shelters, or assisting at hospitals.

      Self-righteous selfishness aside, we are all in this together. Very few people earn what they make; CEOs make more money than they deserve, in most cases. *I* make more money than I deserve. Businesses leach off the productivity of the people cooperating within the business framework. In that respect only, businesses are good: the provide a framework for organisation, and in most cases, I do not think the "leaching" is that undeserved.

      In too many cases, though, businesses have abused their position to fuck over large portions of the citizens of this country, and of the world. Enron is just one case in which a company used their position to fleece billions of dollars. (Most companies don't have the resources to steal that much, of course.)

      Plus, the government gives more welfare to corporations than to citizens. Seems to me without the billions of dollars the government spends every year propping up business, either through DoD contracts or directly as handouts, "business" wouldn't be doing much at all.

      (And, yes, the $175B in corporate welfare kicks the ass of the $150B cost of social services.)

      --
      Microsoft is to software what Budweiser is to beer.
    9. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by TheAdventurer · · Score: 1

      And where do people get money? From businesses. Free software is highly insignificant on a large scale. The economy is not driven by free software and people cannot eat free software or build autobiles out of it.

      I was right about everything I said in my first post.

    10. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by McCrapDeluxe · · Score: 1

      A public corporation has no morals. Charitable donations are made solely to boost image, and, as Enron's is already completely shot, such things would not happen.

    11. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by WoodstockJeff · · Score: 1
      Considering that the ilks of Microsoft don't pay taxes (with some 60 billion $ cash reserve)

      What does having $60B in cash have to do with how much taxes anyone pays? We do not, at present, have "wealth" taxes in the United States (The exception to this is property taxes, where we pay rent on what we own to the local government bodies to let us own it.). We only pay taxes on the wealth as we accumulate it.

      If I pay taxes on my corporate profits, and put them into a vault, I could accumulate a lot of cash, and still not owe any additional taxes on that money. Unless you can prove that Microsoft managed to accumulate that money without paying the 15-34% corporate income tax on the net profits, then the "arse" isn't the original poster!

    12. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by Moofie · · Score: 1

      Ayn Rand called. She wants her morally bankrupt philosophy back.

      --
      Why yes, I AM a rocket scientist!
    13. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by jlgolson · · Score: 1

      Morally bankrupt? Possibly.

      But still great?

      Absofuckinglutely.

      Isn't socio-economics fun kids?

    14. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by orcrist · · Score: 1

      And where do people get money? From businesses.

      To see how well businesses do without government look at any of a number of countries (including - to some extent - Iraq, these days) where there is not (yet or anymore) a strong system of laws with a government enforcing them. Notice how well-off the people all are? Government and rule-of-law provides the guarantees that paper (or electronic) money will be honored, contracts can be enforced, etc. Otherwise, you have nothing but armed enclaves ruled by warlords who handle all their 'business' through barter, gold, or foreign currency transported around by heavily armed guards.

      Those taxes are nothing more than a modest contribution to a system which more than pays for itself by providing a legally-stable environment with a banking system. I'm sure some more economically trained people could provide a better list of the effects lack of government has on an economy.

      Summary: The world is not a simple place. Stop pretending it is.

      -chris

      --
      San Francisco values: compassion, tolerance, respect, intelligence
    15. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by tweek · · Score: 1

      I just had this discussion with my fiancee last night. Her philosophy may be morally bankrupt (who's morals - Jesus? Allah? Krishna? Common sense?) but business is neither moral or immoral. It is simply amoral. Morality is not a business rule either should it be. If a business owner wants to operate his business on the basis of his personal morals, that's fine but to assume that a business has some sort of greater responsibility beyond making money is about as ludicrous as saying a fish has a greater purpose beyond eat, shit and mate.

      Companies have one obligation, make money for the shareholders. You can't make money for the shareholders outside the boundries of the law (Enron) or by screwing over your customers for very long though.

      And in the end, you confused several things. Ethics and morality, objectivism and capitalism.

      --
      "Fighting the underpants gnomes since 1998!" "Bruce Schneier knows the state of schroedinger's cat"
    16. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by Tony · · Score: 1

      And where do businesses get money? Why, from the people creating the goods or providing the services off which companies profit.

      You may have been correct in your original post. I won't argue that point. (You're wrong, though.) However, even if businesses do provide all that, it doesn't preclude the rightness of providing assistance to those who cannot make the salaries of people who could afford to go to Harvard in the first place.

      Our business-oriented system is geared to rewarding those who are already in positions of power, and punishes those who are not. Businesses *may* be the machinery of economics; it doesn't mean they also don't cause most of the problems in our society.

      --
      Microsoft is to software what Budweiser is to beer.
    17. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by syberanarchy · · Score: 2, Insightful
      Oh, go fuck yourself.

      Companies have two obligations - to make money, and to do so LEGALLY.

      You can't make money for the shareholders outside the boundries of the law (Enron) or by screwing over your customers for very long though.

      Unless, you know, you buy off enough officials so that the law fits your purposes. Then, you can screw the cust..erm, consumer all you want! The RIAA, MPAA, Microsoft, Wal-Mart, and other "fine american companies" have been doing this for years.

      Pull your head out of your ass, and stop blindly worshipping at the altar of capitalism.

    18. Re:Wouldn't it be more appropriate by Moofie · · Score: 1

      Just because you're acting on behalf of a business does not make an immoral act (deceiving, defrauding, murdering somebody) an amoral act.

      Corporations are made up of humans, and they are not self aware. Every human in that organization is responsible for their own behavior, and I feel justified in criticizing them when that behavior is immoral, unethical, unjust, or illegal. (None of those four items have 1:1 and onto relationships with each other)

      --
      Why yes, I AM a rocket scientist!
  19. State and Federal law books by mikael · · Score: 1

    Amongst the more than 3,000 in this auction (1 of 10) are state and federal law books

    Yeah, they couldn't get approval to spend money on toilet rolls, so they used pages from the law books instead.

    --
    Vintage computer adverts: http://www.vintageadbrowser.com/computers-and-software-ads
    1. Re:State and Federal law books by base3 · · Score: 1

      Same problem as the U.S. Attorney General's office is having. Only they're buying copies of the Constitution.

      --
      One CPU cycle wasted on digital restrictions management is ONE TOO MANY.
    2. Re:State and Federal law books by Draknor · · Score: 1

      Just make sure Ashcroft doesn't get his dirty hands on the original!

    3. Re:State and Federal law books by TastyWords · · Score: 1

      Only they're buying copies of the Constitution

      and several cases of white-out.

      Why write half a joke?

    4. Re:State and Federal law books by slideshot · · Score: 1

      That's honestly all they are probably good for now. The law changes so much that I have seen literally whole bookshelves worth of books thrown away and replaced. Basically, if you need shelf decoration and want to look smart, that's all these books are worth.

      Oh, by the way, IaNAL yet, but I only have to pass the bar. :)

  20. Company Auctions by jchawk · · Score: 4, Interesting

    These company auctions rarely offer discount prices on anything... People get caught up in the moment and end up paying crazy prices for hardware. Often times you actually do better by buying newer hardware, then picking up things from these auctions.

    There are exceptions... If you don't mind picking up a couple of hundred computers you can get a reasonable price per unit, but most on slashdot are probably not looking for that, nor could they afford it...

    Just my 2 cents.

    1. Re:Company Auctions by Zak3056 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      These company auctions rarely offer discount prices on anything... People get caught up in the moment and end up paying crazy prices for hardware. Often times you actually do better by buying newer hardware, then picking up things from these auction

      No joke--another thing to consider is that any hardware you pick up is going to be at least three and a half years old (Enron died 12/2000.)

      Something I noticed in the listings is that everything seems to have a minimum bid of $200, no matter what it is. Compaq server rack? $200. Compaq server rack with builtin 15" LCD, keyboard, trackball, and KVM? $200.

      Like you noted, anyone who finds a good deal is someone willing to buy by the pallet at fifty to seventy cents on the dollar. If you're a surplus dealer who can move that kind of volume, more power to you. Else, best advice is stay away.

      --
      What part of "shall not be infringed" is so hard to understand?
    2. Re:Company Auctions by selderrr · · Score: 1

      I can second that. I recently did a project for a local publisher who really really wanted his journals online on his own machine. Besides the fact that he's hooked up on a 256Kb upstream sDSL line (for transfering 5MB pdfs), he spend 10.000euro on a Sun Enterprise 450. Not a bad machine (quad processor, 4GBRam, a half a TB SCSI diskspace, lots of redundancy). But he had better bought a dual Xeon for half that price, and upgraded the sDSL to 512. Or even better : swallow his pride and go colocation.

      Some people really don't know what they are doing, and that's where these auctions get a lot of their cash from. On the other hand, they were doing away a lot of old Pentium3 machines that our school could have used nicely. But they gave priority to high volume bidders, so some dork baught all 600 of them and probably sleeps with them ow every night considering himself a real smartass...

    3. Re:Company Auctions by 1hurcoman · · Score: 1

      It's funny you mention that, the computer I'm using right now at work is a Dell GX1 with a property tag that says "property on Enron Corp." We are a small company, about 100 workstations in total, half came from an Enron auction. Enron's contribution to the computer infrustructure of small buisness lives on!

    4. Re:Company Auctions by Lumpy · · Score: 4, Informative

      to a point.

      Local company bankrupcy auctions can be a goldmine, espically if your area has less-than-savvy companies and citizens.

      A Local Machine shop went belly-up after they over expanded from the dot-bomb boom. they dies about 2 years ago and a year after they had an auction.

      Things like compressors were going for nuts prices, espically the executive laptops and office pc's.

      I picked up a toshiba toughbook for $10.00 and was the only bidder as nobody bidding knew what it was including the auctioner. "A briefcast test instrument object." I also picked up two SGI "fuel" CAD stations with 21 inch monitors and input tablets. They were auctioned as "special computers that dont run windows"

      I got them for $100.00 each. One was still in the boxes.

      if it's normal stuff, then the idiots will be bidding like crazy, if it's slightly wierd, it can be had for absolute dirt.

      and yes, I love my P-III 800 toughbook.

      --
      Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
    5. Re:Company Auctions by TastyWords · · Score: 1

      How is this any different than an auction on eBay? Plenty of auctions there have reserves to ensure a reasonable bid is made. If not, then just put tags on it out on the street and have a yard sale.

    6. Re:Company Auctions by k98sven · · Score: 1

      I disagree. Well, I don't know about this particular type of auction (i.e. online), I've only been to real-live ones, most of them for failed dot-coms.

      It's really a question of the crowd. The dot-com ones I've been to had a large number of used-computer dealers in the crowd, and so it was natural for the prices to end up at just below what you'd pay at an ordinary used shop.

      Usually you could get a reasonable deal on hardware, but nothing spectacular, basically the same you would've gotten in a used shop with some haggling.

      However, the other stuff, e.g. furniture and so on, which was usually quite nice, went for practically nothing. The computer dealers weren't interested, and I suppose the used furniture dealers didn't suppose this small stuff was worth their time.

      Now you could've made a real killing on that stuff. At least at the one's I've attended.

    7. Re:Company Auctions by Zak3056 · · Score: 1

      How is this any different than an auction on eBay? Plenty of auctions there have reserves to ensure a reasonable bid is made. If not, then just put tags on it out on the street and have a yard sale.

      Hey, I'm not decrying the practice--it seems some sucker always comes along and pays way more than something is worth. Given that the job of the auctioneer is to recoup as much as possible for the creditors, I'd say that's a good thing.

      My comment was mostly directed at anyone planning to bid, not the sellers.

      --
      What part of "shall not be infringed" is so hard to understand?
  21. Server slow as hell by Prince+Vegeta+SSJ4 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Why is their server so slow, this happened the last time there was an Enron auction, who wants to wait 5 minutes for a search?

    1. Re:Server slow as hell by One+Childish+N00b · · Score: 4, Funny

      You're new here, aren't you?

      --
      Dealing with lawyers would be a lot less tedious if they all looked like Casey Novak.
  22. Re:What Enron employees and shareholders must feel by base3 · · Score: 1

    Right--as if they went to that kind of prison. No, they are going to go or have gone to a minimum security facility like the one Martha Stewart, if she really ends up doing any time at all, will go to. I guarantee you that the upper classes are not subject by the state to ass-fucking like the hoi polloi are when imprisoned.

    --
    One CPU cycle wasted on digital restrictions management is ONE TOO MANY.
  23. how? by ArchieBunker · · Score: 1

    What rights do you speak of, and how do corporations violate them? Heres a list of my rights

    http://www.archives.gov/national_archives_experi en ce/charters/bill_of_rights_transcript.html

    --
    Only the State obtains its revenue by coercion. - Murray Rothbard
  24. Article link won't load in Firefox .9. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Am I the only one having this problem?

  25. I thought headline referred to stock by Mudcathi · · Score: 1

    Interestingly, it's still traded at 3-1/2 cents per share. Which is up 75% from a low of 2 cents per share. If each certificate represents one share of stock, that's a pretty good value -- for toilet paper!

    --

    "He who throws mud, loses ground." - proverb

  26. Skip right to page by mobby_6kl · · Score: 5, Informative

    11 - VCR/TV
    13 - plasma displays (mostly with screen burn :/)
    15 - projectors, cameras, UPS
    16 - huge boxes full of keyboards, modems and other cards, CAT5,
    17/18 - Compaq deskotps, in groups of 20
    18 - Sat. phone, '96 Chevy truck
    19 - Pallets of plastic TRASH RECEPTACLES, sate and federal law books
    20 - IBM and Compaq PII and PIII laptops (NO HDD!)
    21 - IBM 600 and T21 laptops
    >22 - couches and other boring stuff
    25/27 - SUN and IBM servers
    27/28 - Compaq servers

    uhh sorry don't have time to go through all of this, maybe someone could continue. just one more random page: 50, Lucent digital phones, SUN servers and Cisco switches

    1. Re:Skip right to page by Jodka · · Score: 2, Informative

      You left out video wall.

      --
      Ceci n'est pas une signature.
    2. Re:Skip right to page by zelbinion · · Score: 1

      16 - huge boxes full of keyboards, modems and other cards, CAT5

      Hey there, BACK OFF...

      The "Gondola of Mice" and the four boxes of pagers are MINE. [page 16]

      Vibrating mice...
      Yeah, that's what I'm talking about...

      Go get some surrealism!

    3. Re:Skip right to page by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or this Inspirational poster Share the Wealth

    4. Re:Skip right to page by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The last 10 pages or so are flat-screen monitors (Compaq and IBM mostly, a few NEC)

  27. Sick amount of storage by Aaden42 · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I couldn't resist... I did the math. Of the Compaq and Sun drive arrays that have their disk sizes/model numbers listed, there's 11.8 TERRABYTES of drive on auction!

    In other news, of about 40 plasma TV's on auction, 33 of them are suffering from phosphor burn, and the rest are 'untestable.' Guess that settles my decision on whether to go w/ plasma or LCD....

    1. Re:Sick amount of storage by intekra · · Score: 0

      Is there any known fix for burn in? If it costs $500 to fix burn in and you get a plasma screen for $200, I'd say it's well worth it. But, I'm sure that won't be the case anyway. I bid on one. If i win and can't fix it... It's a very pretty broken wall decoration. 50" Pioneer Plasma! sheesh!

      --
      [intekra] - [www.plex.nu]
    2. Re:Sick amount of storage by Aaden42 · · Score: 1

      The only fix is, "buy a new TV." The phosphorous in the flat panel can only take so much abuse before it gives up. It's the exact same problem as CRT burn-in. Once it's done, it's done.

      Burn-in is also explicitly EXCLUDED in all of the plasma manufacturer's warranties, so even if you buy a new TV and it burns in after a week, you're screwed.

  28. $200 minimum bid for everything by treat · · Score: 1

    This is insane. Everything has a $200 minimum bid. A good portion of the items here are not worth $200. What are they going to do with that stuff when it doesn't sell?

    1. Re:$200 minimum bid for everything by mveloso · · Score: 4, Insightful

      What they do is keep it around, and you can call in after the auction to buy bunches of unsold items at a price.

      For best results, do the webcast or go in person. There are massive deals to be had. At one auction I attended, a loaded Sun E450 (quad proc, 1gb ram, lots o disk) went for $900 + buyers premium of around 16%.

      The downside to having many lots is the auctioneer will sometimes collapse identical lots into one to save time. If you've got the cash, it's a great way to get great deals. You can also propose lots, like "I'll take the next 10 sun boxes for $8000 total."

      Auctions are a real trip, but you have to know how much stuff is worth, definitely. I've seen things go for above-retail prices, so be warned.

    2. Re:$200 minimum bid for everything by intekra · · Score: 1, Informative

      Also note: even if your bid is $200, DoveBid will authorize $500 on your credit card.

      --
      [intekra] - [www.plex.nu]
    3. Re:$200 minimum bid for everything by madcow_ucsb · · Score: 1

      More flexible, but no more dangerous than ebay. My roommate in college made his money reselling Dell PCs. He'd buy them direct from dell when they had a sale and suckers would still pay more than non-sale retail prices a lot of the time. If it's at an auction, it *must* be cheaper!

      Human stupidity knows no bounds...

  29. Notebook vs lawbook by HermanAB · · Score: 1

    Hmm, is a lawbook a special Apple MAC for lawyers?

    --
    Oh well, what the hell...
    1. Re:Notebook vs lawbook by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, it extends the standards MAC Steve Jobs Reality Distortion Field to the areas of accounting and corporate ethics.

  30. "server dovebid.com is currently unavailable" by Chris+Tucker · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Hah!

    The first page DID load pretty quickly. But then...

    I tried searching for "aeron chair" and got timed out. Many times.

    A WHOLE LOTTA geeks must be searching for their dream chair for the home office/frag station.

    --
    Guaranteed! This comment 100% Anthrax free!
    1. Re:"server dovebid.com is currently unavailable" by ottothecow · · Score: 1
      The first page loaded semi ok.

      Pressing next or using direct links from the discussion never ever loaded (I was suck looking at a few racks and a bunch of filing cabinets)

      But then I read this and searched for "aeron" (its what I wanted to see if they had anyways...) and POOF instant 17 results.

      --
      Bottles.
    2. Re:"server dovebid.com is currently unavailable" by Chris+Tucker · · Score: 1

      Probably the slashdotting is subsiding.

      I'll try again and see what happens.

      --
      Guaranteed! This comment 100% Anthrax free!
  31. Ack by Malevolyn · · Score: 1

    Noooo, this stuff is tainted!

    --
    Your ad here.
  32. Re:What Enron employees and shareholders must feel by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ummm... hate to break it to ya, but he wasn't talking about the Enron *executives*, but rather the people the executives *screwed over*. You know, the "employees and shareholders"? The ones who had their retirement savings turn into a steaming pile of dung almost overnight? The ones that have to see the equipment of the company liquidated so they can try to recover a *tiny fraction* of the money they invested in the company?

    Please, try to restrain yourself from jumping on any perceived opportunity to bash the "establishment" when you clearly do not grasp what a 9-word post really means.

  33. Re:What Enron employees and shareholders must feel by Lying+Superbastard · · Score: 1

    Say what?
    http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/business/ 2675067
    According to the Houston Chronicle, she'll be doing her time in a facility in downtown Houston that's about as cheery as Sadaam's spider-hole. I can't find the exact link for the actual description of her cell (8x10, frosted glass windows no regular sunlight), but she's doing her year in a very ugly place.

    I hope Ken Lay gets this times 50...

  34. Not only that... by Xypheri · · Score: 1

    But you need a $500 reserve on the Credit Card you use to register for the auction for those two days..

  35. Enron had one decent product... by zogger · · Score: 1

    ... and GE bought them out, their industrial wind power division.

    They got a deal on that stuff. GE popped 380 million for an installed up and running massive wind energy business that actually had a good product and was selling great. I don't know about enrons other scams, but this wasn't one of them, just a good product that worked and hit the market at the right time. There's farmers now all over the midwest got these things installed and they are getting a decent check every month that pays them better than farming, harvesting wind. Can't beat it with a stick, demand for electricity ain't never gonna go down.

    Enron was weird,megalomania wouldn't let them see their own insanity. In todays world, being in the legitimate energy business is a license to print money almost, even a half assed company with any medium ethics can make boatloads of money. You have to go out of your way to NOT make money. Can you imagine being so steenking greedy that you had to have *more* than that? It's mind boggling how far into love of money depravity some people can get.

  36. My Favorite by Cavio · · Score: 4, Funny

    My favorite personal piece of Enron memorabilia is a yellow rubber ducky they mailed me when they were selling bandwidth.

    Just the goofyness of it. It is so dotCom. Completely unrelated to networking, but here sits this happy little duck with an Enron logo plastered across it's chest and the slogon "GetCapacity" in it's URL.

    I use it to talk to when I'm in my office alone and face a moral dilema. Whatever the duck says, I do the opposite.

    --

    Please bid on this Karmann Ghia! Please pleas

    1. Re:My Favorite by TastyWords · · Score: 1

      Bid on the car?

      Because it's your auction? Or you can't retract and you want someone to override yours so you're out of hot water?

      Inquiring minds want to know.

    2. Re:My Favorite by Anonymous+Meoward · · Score: 1

      Rubber ducky, you're the one..
      you're the one who makes malfeasance fun..
      Rubber ducky I'm particularly FOND of yoo-oo-oo...

      Sorry, just felt like bursting out in song today.

      --
      --- The American Way of Life is not a birthright. Hell, it's not even sustainable.
  37. Art by Seft · · Score: 1

    Don't miss the auction of Enron's art.

    Some interesting pieces there.

  38. In case of slashdotting... by 1010011010 · · Score: 1

    ASP 500 Error

    An error occurred processing the page you requested.
    Please see the details below for more information.

    COM Error Number: -2146827864 (0x800A01A8)

    File Name: /lang/LR/en/includes/Internationalization.inc

    Line Number: 74

    Brief Description: Object required: 'Application(...)'

    --
    Napster-to-go says "Fill and refill your compatible MP3 player", which is a lie. It's not MP3. It's WMA with DRM.
    1. Re:In case of slashdotting... by TastyWords · · Score: 1

      I'd be more inclined to think it's a threading error where someone crammed an ADO object into the Application() collection/object. We'd need to see the code to be certain, but that'd be my first guess.
      My other guess is the performance of the site is very, very slow, /. or not. It doesn't take long to bog a system like that down.

  39. Re: Accounting Optional by fmaxwell · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Try quitting the Communist Party. That should improve your viewpoint.

    Right. Everyone who dislikes Bush and the Republicans is a Communist. At least that's what the Young Republicans on Slashdot would have us believe.

    But how do you explain why the so-called "Communist" to whom you replied was working for a .com that was seeking out venture capital and selling accounting products? That doesn't sound very Communist to me.

  40. Where Silicon Valley goes to die by Animats · · Score: 1
    Consolidated Office Distributors is where Silicon Valley companies go to die. That's where we buy office furniture. Their building looks like the warehouse from Raiders of the Lost Ark, a dimly lit cave of racks and piled furniture covering a city block. Prices are very good, and very negotiable if you buy in bulk.

    Ross-Dove, the auction house, seems to run high on price. I've been to one of their auctions, and everything sold above blue book.

  41. Bargains by Jodka · · Score: 1, Redundant

    "Amongst the more than 3,000 in this auction (1 of 10) are state and federal law books"

    Unopened, in original packaging?

    --
    Ceci n'est pas une signature.
  42. Dibs! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Dibs on the 36" CRTs!

  43. They just sold the Server... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ASP 500 Error

    An error occurred processing the page you requested.
    Please see the details below for more information.

    COM Error Number -2147467259 (0x80004005)
    File Name D:\INETPUB\SUBDOMAIN_WWW_ROBOCOPY\AUCTIONS\../incl udes/appearance.inc
    Line Number 186
    Brief Description [Microsoft][ODBC SQL Server Driver]Timeout expired
    Page Stack

  44. Holy crap.... by DiscoOnTheSide · · Score: 2, Funny

    Unless my brain is still scrambled from waking up... each one of those Compaq storage servers has a total of 666GB of storage... either someone over there has a sense of humor or we're close to the appocalypse :P

    --
    Viva La Revolucion! Buy a Mac!
    1. Re:Holy crap.... by TastyWords · · Score: 1

      I'd be more concerned about the story in the previous 7-10 days about the Mexican(?) official who has an ID/chip in his right arm which cannot be removed and is used for security.

      IIRC, the mark will be the right arm or the forehead.

      tick...tick...tick...tick...

  45. Sun Enterprise 6000 by Danathar · · Score: 1

    Hey! I had no idea Sun made Tables...

    Says here that it's a "Sun Enterprise 6000"

    but the picture is of a table...awsome name for a table if ya ask me!

    1. Re:Sun Enterprise 6000 by SmurfButcher+Bob · · Score: 1

      It's serious... I've got a PDP-8 in my basement that makes a *great* coffee table...

      --

      help me i've cloned myself and can't remember which one I am

  46. Enron prisoners - where they are now by Animats · · Score: 4, Interesting
    We track this on Downside. Only two people involved with Enron are in Federal prison right now: Lea Fastow, the CFO's wife, and Andrew Glisan, the corporate treasurer. Andrew Fastow, the CFO, pled guilty and will be going soon, but he's not behind bars as of today. Skilling and Lay have been indicted but not yet tried.

    If you haven't been following this, Glisan gave up Fastow, and Fastow gave up Skilling and Lay. We're waiting to see if Lay gives up Bush.

    • Inmate Register Number: 20290-179
      Name: LEA W FASTOW
      Age: 42
      Race: WHITE
      Sex: FEMALE
      Projected Release Date: 7/10/2005
      Location: HOUSTON FDC
      1200 TEXAS AVENUE
      HOUSTON , TX 77002
      Phone Number: (713)221-5400

    • Inmate Register Number: 20293-179
      Name : BEN F GLISAN
      Age: 38
      Race: WHITE
      Sex: MALE
      Projected Release Date: 1/17/2008
      Location: BASTROP FCI
      1341 HIGHWAY 95 NORTH
      BASTROP , TX 78602
      Phone Number: (512)321-3903
    Source: BOP.

    Bastrop is a low-security prison, with a plant making bulletproof vests. Houston FDC is an "administrative" facility, for short term prisoners, those in transit, and those with court proceedings nearby.

    1. Re:Enron prisoners - where they are now by Moofie · · Score: 2, Insightful

      The Fastows were permitted to arrange their prison sentences so that one of them could be "at home with their children".

      Must be nice. If a husband and wife team had, say, broken into the Fastow's house and stolen 1/10000 of the dollar value that the Enron flacks DESTROYED (not stole), that couple would be thrown in the darkest hole the court could find them, and their kids would be lucky if they got into foster care.

      --
      Why yes, I AM a rocket scientist!
    2. Re:Enron prisoners - where they are now by Animats · · Score: 1
      The Fastows were permitted to arrange their prison sentences so that one of them could be "at home with their children".

      No, that deal fell through. Both of them will be in jail for part of this year.

  47. buying enron's assets... by 0WaitState · · Score: 4, Funny

    Maybe California can buy its power back?

    --

    Remain calm! All is well!
  48. Wooden Sun Ultra Enterprise 6000! by tek_hed · · Score: 1

    Oh baby!

    http://tinyurl.com/6ucks

  49. crap by itzdandy · · Score: 0, Troll

    this slashdotting effectively destroyed any opportunity to get a deal, as 100,000,000 greedy geeks will LIVE at dovebid til the auction is over.

  50. Sun has gone downhill with their desing by Fizzl · · Score: 1

    Who would want a server that looks like this.

    (They mixed item desctription for item 141, and picture of 1441)

  51. From an employee view by dsingram · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Interesting what Enron employees and shareholders must feel looking at this loot In a word... Sad. Just like most of you, I went to work everyday and worked my tail off. I worked at Enron for 3 years, right till the end. I can honestly say this, I never again expect to work with a group of people as smart, driven and passionate as I did with the crooked E. That is the saddest part. Some of the best people I have ever worked with are going through the same thing.... very sad.

    1. Re:From an employee view by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What did you do for them? By the sound of things, unless you were the janitor you had to know something was up with the company.

  52. Parcel Scanner! by crashley · · Score: 1

    They have a Parcel Scanner on page 9. They are selling rolling stands in a lot of 4 pallets. (So if I need 80 rolling stands at home I know where to go) Plus 2 pages of refrigerators, a Noritake China Set (with gold and platinum ring) And they have a lot of 19 microwaves. (Could have 2 in each room of the house) And Even a ping pong table! Lot 781 is 4 boxes of pagers. Considering they are selling on E-bay, you would think they could sell everything an item at a time. (then again, who would want to spend that kind of time filling out the paperwork.)

  53. Worse, extra fees too. by Penguinoflight · · Score: 1

    From here...

    "DoveBid shall charge and collect from each successful bidder a 13% buyer's premium for each sale at the auction, in addition to the purchase price as bid. Purchasers who pay in the form of cash, cashier's check, company check (with a letter of guarantee) or wire transfer, shall receive a discount from the buyer's premium equal to 3% of the purchase price. In addition, Auctioneer reserves the right to charge a nonrefundable $25 registration fee for its own account to purchasers who bid over the Internet at a Webcast auction. All subsequent references to a "Buyer's Premium" shall include this registration fee."

    13% plus $25 registration, plus texas sales tax...

    --
    "And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the World"
    1 John 4:14
  54. Re:What Enron employees and shareholders must feel by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Please go fuck your pretentious self. Thank you.

  55. UK ministry of defense by panurge · · Score: 1
    (equivalent to DOD) has just excelled itself by vastly overrunning budget just moving its computers from its old electronic surveillance building to the new one. They have apparently also bought top of range Hermann Miller chairs for everyone claiming this will save them money in time off for backache. And, as we know, they can't equip the soldiers properly for Iraq or find the WMDs.

    If they go the way of Enron , I guess before long someone will be auctioning a used Carnivore or Echelon system, one careful owner. But don't hold your breath.

    --
    Panurge has posted for the last time. Thanks for the positive moderations.
  56. Bah by bobdole369 · · Score: 1

    $200.00 minimum bid for a black leather ergonomic rolling office chair?

    --
    Lousy facepalm.
  57. We got the Enron Aerons by xenoploid · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I'm a grad student in the Interactive Media Division at USC. In our media lab meeting space we have 6 aerons from enron (it's been rumored they were board room chairs).

    1. Re:We got the Enron Aerons by twiddlingbits · · Score: 1

      Let's hope students get to learn ETHICS lessons from the collapse,not just get some kewl chairs for the lab.

    2. Re:We got the Enron Aerons by bani · · Score: 1

      If anything, the lesson will be 'you have to launder your money better, enron was sloppy'.

    3. Re:We got the Enron Aerons by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Thank goodness those aeron chairs have webbed seats otherwise you'd be sitting in chairs steeped in board member farts.

    4. Re:We got the Enron Aerons by enronman · · Score: 1

      Hate to break it to you, but there were no aerons in the boardroom.

    5. Re:We got the Enron Aerons by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Before appearing on F%ckedCompany, we had Aeron chairs in every cube. They were nice except for two things:

      1) We wore shorts all of the time and the mesh chewed into the cloth.
      2) The biggest thing padded chairs offer: a noise muffler. You had to be careful how/when you made a right-cheek sneak.

    6. Re:We got the Enron Aerons by twiddlingbits · · Score: 1

      So it's OK to have bad ethics or commit crimes as long as you are smart enough to avoid getting caught? Thats certainly NOT a lesson I would teach MY kid or my students. You should apply the intelligence and creativity to understanding how to make money within the rules!!

  58. So how does this work... by Ibanez · · Score: 1

    I've never actually been to one of these, and being in Austin figured I might go, or get someone to go for me.

    Whats the procedure for bidding? Is any of this stuff actually worth bidding on, and do they actually go for decent prices?

    Blake

  59. Re:What Enron employees and shareholders must feel by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Consider my foppish and deserving ass properly fucked (and spanked, though not in that order). Bless you for your admonition.

  60. Industrial baby! by DigiShaman · · Score: 1

    Enron didn't use paper shredders. They used wood chippers. Yeahh baby!! You need industrial strength at the last hour.

    --
    Life is not for the lazy.
  61. Re:What Enron employees and shareholders must feel by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    After some reflection, I feel I should point out that the previous response was dripping with sarcasm. It's already been pointed out that you have difficulty understanding sentences longer than "See Spot run", and chances would seem small to expect you to notice *subtle* things such as sarcasm.

    Since all these sentences are longer than 9 words, I doubt you'll be able to make sense of any of it. I expect you will promptly reply with some intricately designed combination of profanity... or a link to goatse.

  62. I already own a piece of Enron... by mrbrown1602 · · Score: 0, Troll

    116 pieces, to be exact, worth approx 6 cents each. If I sell now, it can be a tax deduction! :-D

    1. Re:I already own a piece of Enron... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why was the parent moderated a troll? He's talking about the stock.

  63. Shareholders? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Imagine what the shareholders feel? Imagine what the state of California and other government bodies feel, since they were the ones bilked out of hundreds of millions of dollars.

  64. Where does the money go? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    I worked for a large company that stiffed the employees for back wages, and when it got liquidated another shill company setup by the owners bought pretty much all the equipment back for just about nothing at one of these auctions. The employees didn't see a cent from the proceeds.

    The company is now 'back' in business under a new name, employees still stiffed, old company drained of assets.

    So, where does the money from this Enron go? Anyone actually deserving?

  65. Re:What Enron employees and shareholders must feel by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I think it more likely you will reply to this with another attempt to glorify yourself at the expense of the OP, further demonstrating your insecurity in your own relatively shallow understanding of the language.

  66. You missed it by Jesus+IS+the+Devil · · Score: 1

    This story is about a year too late! I was there when Dovebid sold all those Enron balls, pens, and even a HUGE sign that used to hang outside their headquarters.

    I didn't buy anything though, because everything was bid up to and obscene amount.

    --

    eTrade SUCKS
    1. Re:You missed it by Faust · · Score: 1

      Enron sign currently inside MicroCache off 45, small oriental computer shack. Have it in a dark room surrounded by lcd panels and crts, an eery shrine.

  67. Re:What Enron employees and shareholders must feel by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Of course. This must be about my insecurity not about your unability to understand a nine word post. Dumbass.

  68. Re:What Enron employees and shareholders must feel by geekoid · · Score: 1

    People who commit these yps of crimes shouldn't go to those kind of prisons. There not violent, and it cost more to put them their.
    Personally, I think the Enron people should be stripped of all everything they own. put into a min. federal prison. I think Marths Stwerts sentence is appropriete for her crimes, and Ken Ley should be put into one for 25 years.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  69. Re: Accounting Optional by mAineAc · · Score: 2, Insightful
    Try quitting the Communist Party. That should improve your viewpoint.

    It is funny you should say that. It seems America is moving closer and closer to being a socialist society. We just had Medicare say that obesity was a sickness so now we will have more tax dollars go to people who can't stay away from McDonald's and get some exercise. We work longer and longer every year to pay our share of the taxes. Soon those who work will get no real money and everyone will be on state aid with all our earnings going to the state. Those who can't work(probably most if the current trend persists)won't.

  70. Ridiculous by mgeneral · · Score: 1

    Wow...as if much of this stuff wasn't already available through other "dot-bomb" crashes. Like I'm going to bid on it just because it was property of 'enron'...hah...what a sham.

    --

    Goals are deceptive - the unaimed arrow never misses.
  71. Damn by rollingrock · · Score: 1

    I was really hoping to buy enron.com, no such luck.

  72. Eh. by mcpkaaos · · Score: 1

    With all the religious fervor [the collective] we exhibit over the evils of various corporations (Enron easily among them), I'd be shocked if anyone actually purchased from this auction. Or maybe a cheap Sun server is worth a little hypocrisy?

    --
    It goes from God, to Jerry, to me.
  73. Enron still is posting jobs online? by captain_macosx · · Score: 1

    Why would anyone take a job from them now?

  74. Item details? by [tsa] · · Score: 1

    Anyone familar with dovebid? How do I
    get any details about an item? Int'l shipping?
    (I'm in .de, so local pickup is not an
    option)

  75. Re: Accounting Optional by fmaxwell · · Score: 2, Insightful

    It seems America is moving closer and closer to being a socialist society. We just had Medicare say that obesity was a sickness so now we will have more tax dollars go to people who can't stay away from McDonald's and get some exercise.

    The reason that Medicare did that was that obesity-related illnesses cost them far more that addressing the problem of obesity. If they can pay for weight loss drugs along with diet and exercise counseling now, it's a lot cheaper than paying to treat diabetes, heart attacks, strokes, and cancer later.

    As to your concerns about a "socialist society," what is a society if not a group of people joining together and helping one another? Perhaps you would prefer to live like a pack animal, abandoning those who are sick or injured to die, but I would not. I'd rather that some of my money go to help the less fortunate. I'd rather have government/taxpayer aid help keep an unemployed person from losing their house and ending up destitute. I'd rather see someone born into poverty get government grants and subsidized loans for education. Keeping poor people uneducated and poor, and allowing the unemployed to slide into poverty, costs society far more than giving them aid.

  76. Re: Accounting Optional by operagost · · Score: 1
    I'd rather that some of my money go to help the less fortunate.
    Then pick a cause or two and donate your time and money. Please don't take away my choice to do so.
    --

    Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
  77. Re:What Enron employees and shareholders must feel by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
  78. $200 for a 4 port belkin kvm switch? no thank you by the_B0fh · · Score: 1

    http://www.dovebid.com/assets/display.asp?ItemID=w eb2164446

    Minimum of $200 for each? Hah. Thank you very much.

    -the B0fh

  79. Re:What Enron employees and shareholders must feel by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That link doesn't seem to work.

  80. Re: Accounting Optional by utlemming · · Score: 1

    One of the fundamental goverment roles is to provide basic services. If the power were to go out, I would bet people would be up in arms. They also provide for roads and other public goods. The problem is that most Americans, and a good part of the first-World consider medical care a basic service. As the trend continues for medical cost to rise, such basics to our standard of living, like medicane is begining to be prohibitive. The problem then becomes who can afford medicial care? If it reaches the point where you have to make a small fortune every year to afford medical insurance, then there is a problem. IMHO if a significant majority of American's are overweight then that is a social problem that needs to be addressed. The same argument could be stated for other diseases. The question that you have to ask when deciding if something is a bad thing for society is whether or not the social benefit outweighs the social cost. But to argue that pretty soon state aide will be more attractive than working is short-sighted. The state can only supply services based on income. If the majority of people get on social-aide, then the system won't be able to support them and they will be forced to work. With the current trends, some believe, the Social Security system will collaspe by 2030 -- with nearly 3 people on Social Security and 1 person working. Also, it is estimated that by the same time that people will be paying nearly 80% of their real income to pay for medical care. Now the question I have to ask: at what point is state aide for medical care reasonable? When only the super rich can afford it? Just in case your wondering, I am a republican. But I also have seen how unreasonable medical costs can consume the lives of people and destroy the finanical livelyhood of familes.

    --
    The views expressed are mine own and do not express the views of my employer.
  81. looking for the rolodex by SethJohnson · · Score: 1


    Just curious. What page offers Ken Lay's rolodex with Dick Cheney's direct phone number? That's what I want to get my hands on.
  82. The fraud continues... by zxflash · · Score: 1

    Selling old junk for big money is a great idea... Works well when people think they are getting a deal 'cause the co. is bankrupt... I'd like to know what will happen to the cash... Will it be used to pay creditors? It's certainly not going to the shareholders who lost their shirts.

    --

    All the torrents you could want.
  83. Give me some of that thing you are smoking. by jotaeleemeese · · Score: 1

    And then try to explain yourself because you made absolutely no sense whatsoever.

    Not even a little bit.

    Nope.

    --
    IANAL but write like a drunk one.
  84. Re: Accounting Optional by fmaxwell · · Score: 1

    Then pick a cause or two and donate your time and money. Please don't take away my choice to do so.

    You do have that choice. You can donate time and money to any cause that you want. You just can't completely opt out of your societal obligation to help the needy. That's all that the current system prevents. It just sets the lower limit.

    I don't have a choice as to whether my money buys a new bomber for the Pentagon, do I? If you think that solely voluntary donation is such a good system, why not run all aspects of government like that? Why not have the FBI rely on donations? How about letting people decide whether to donate to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration? What about letting people decide whether they would rather spend their money supporting the CIA, funding the Department of Agriculture, or buying themselves a new Lexus?

    I don't want you to be able to choose to help no one but yourself. I don't want there to be a monetary reward for selfishness. I don't want you to be able to afford a better lifestyle than your neighbor simply because you choose to spend all of your money on yourself while he steps up to bat to help the needy.

    To shoot the final hole in that tired old argument, if you eliminate the current system for a voluntary one, then money would go to popular causes rather than where it's needed. There would be plenty of money for cherub-faced children in densely populated areas. But there wouldn't be a lot of money for drug and alcohol rehab programs on American Indian reservations.

  85. Re: Accounting Optional by ncc74656 · · Score: 1
    Then pick a cause or two and donate your time and money. Please don't take away my choice to do so.

    You do have that choice. You can donate time and money to any cause that you want. You just can't completely opt out of your societal obligation to help the needy.

    Um...what "obligation" is that, exactly? Could you point out what part of the Constitution authorizes the government to take money from one group of people (by force if necessary) and give it to another group of people? The OP is correct...perhaps instead of being generous with other people's money, you might try being generous with your own money (or time) instead.

    --
    20 January 2017: the End of an Error.
  86. Re: Accounting Optional by fmaxwell · · Score: 2, Insightful
    Um...what "obligation" is that, exactly?

    It is a societal obligation -- as in something that you are morally obligated to do as a member of society.

    Could you point out what part of the Constitution authorizes the government to take money from one group of people (by force if necessary) and give it to another group of people?

    Article 1, Section 8, Clause 1: "The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States;..."

    The OP is correct...

    No, he, like you, is incorrect.

    perhaps instead of being generous with other people's money, you might try being generous with your own money (or time) instead.

    No, I prefer the system as it stands -- the one put in place by our elected representatives. I'd rather have laws to help ensure that everyone pays their fair share rather than having only the generous and decent people shoulder all of the financial burden of helping the less fortunate. I don't want you to be able to opt-out of helping the needy. I don't want you to be able to use the money you withold from from the needy to fund your next BMW purchase.

    Now answer the remaining questions that I asked in the parent post rather than trying to come up with snappy sound bites:
    I don't have a choice as to whether my money buys a new bomber for the Pentagon, do I? If you think that solely voluntary donation is such a good system, why not run all aspects of government like that? Why not have the FBI rely on donations? How about letting people decide whether to donate to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration? What about letting people decide whether they would rather spend their money supporting the CIA, funding the Department of Agriculture, or buying themselves a new Lexus?

    I don't want you to be able to choose to help no one but yourself. I don't want there to be a monetary reward for selfishness. I don't want you to be able to afford a better lifestyle than your neighbor simply because you choose to spend all of your money on yourself while he steps up to bat to help the needy.

    To shoot the final hole in that tired old argument, if you eliminate the current system for a voluntary one, then money would go to popular causes rather than where it's needed. There would be plenty of money for cherub-faced children in densely populated areas. But there wouldn't be a lot of money for drug and alcohol rehab programs on American Indian reservations.
  87. Re: Accounting Optional by ncc74656 · · Score: 1
    Um...what "obligation" is that, exactly?

    It is a societal obligation -- as in something that you are morally obligated to do as a member of society.

    Perhaps, but how does a moral obligation translate into a legal requirement? Aren't you people always whining that we shouldn't "force our morality" on you? It seems you have no problem forcing your morality on others.

    Could you point out what part of the Constitution authorizes the government to take money from one group of people (by force if necessary) and give it to another group of people?

    Article 1, Section 8, Clause 1: "The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States;..."

    Wrong. You don't seriously expect us to believe that when the Founding Fathers wrote that part of the Constitution, that they had welfare queens living off of the public's forced generosity in mind, do you?

    I don't have a choice as to whether my money buys a new bomber for the Pentagon, do I? If you think that solely voluntary donation is such a good system, why not run all aspects of government like that? Why not have the FBI rely on donations? How about letting people decide whether to donate to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration? What about letting people decide whether they would rather spend their money supporting the CIA, funding the Department of Agriculture, or buying themselves a new Lexus?

    With the exception of defense, none of those functions are authorized by the Constitution. You might be able to read a justification for the CIA into "providing for the common defense" (the military needs good intel if it's to be effective), but the "general welfare" clause and the commerce clause have for decades been abused to bloat the government beyond all reasonable limits.

    I don't want you to be able to choose to help no one but yourself.

    WTFSoF is it to you what anybody does with his money? When you start earning it, you can decide what to do with it. Until then, get bent.

    --
    20 January 2017: the End of an Error.
  88. Re: Accounting Optional by fmaxwell · · Score: 1

    Perhaps, but how does a moral obligation translate into a legal requirement?

    When our elected representatives pass a law requiring it. For instance, you have a moral obligation to not kill people and there is a corresponding legal obligation.

    Aren't you people always whining that we shouldn't "force our morality" on you?

    Who are "you people" and why do you portray the expression of opposing viewpoints as "whining"?

    It seems you have no problem forcing your morality on others.

    Our whole legal code is based on morality. We've decided it is immoral to steal, murder, rape, etc. and have passed laws against those things. What many people oppose is the codification of religious beliefs and writing laws limiting individual freedoms.

    Wrong.

    Use as much boldface text as you want, but you are the one who is wrong. If the current system of welfare was unconstitutional, don't you think that it would have been struck down by now?

    You don't seriously expect us to believe that when the Founding Fathers wrote that part of the Constitution, that they had welfare queens living off of the public's forced generosity in mind, do you?

    You don't seriously expect us to believe that your thinly veiled racist comment about "welfare queens" is a fair characterization of the entire welfare system, do you? You just want to conjure up stereotypical images of overweight, uncouth, ignorant black women surrounded by children when the reality is that the welfare system benefits everyone from low-income college students to out-of-work middle class Americans.

    Your side would have us believe that the Founding Fathers, whose idea of a gun was a muzzle-loading musket, wrote the Second Amendment with the intention of allowing deranged wackos living in the woods to own fully automatic weapons, so please don't even go there about stretching the interpretation of the Constitution.

    With the exception of defense, none of those functions are authorized by the Constitution.

    So you are advocating that we do away with the NHTSA, FDA, Department of Agriculture, and every other non-defense related government function? Wow! That's out there.

    You might be able to read a justification for the CIA into "providing for the common defense" (the military needs good intel if it's to be effective), but the "general welfare" clause and the commerce clause have for decades been abused to bloat the government beyond all reasonable limits.

    The "general welfare" clause is what has allowed us to function as a society and become the greatest nation in the world -- all the while paying about the lowest tax rate of any first-world country.

    WTFSoF is it to you what anybody does with his money?

    I don't want to have to shoulder a greater and greater percentage of the cost of helping the needy as you and your fellow wallet-worshipping peers opt out of helping the needy.

    When you start earning it, you can decide what to do with it. Until then, get bent.

    In case you haven't noticed, my side won decades ago. You're taxed and if you don't pay, you go to jail. Once the government gets the taxes, they can allocate it however they want. They can use it to increase welfare benefits to individuals. They can spend it on corporate welfare (like giving McDonalds millions of dollars to promote their products overseas.) They can spend it to promote eco-tourism in Alaska, plant trees on public lands, or fund studies about the effects of Nutra-Sweet on lab rats. And the only thing you can do is vote. If enough people agree with you, then you'll win. But don't hold your breath waiting for that to happen.

  89. Re: Accounting Optional by shubert1966 · · Score: 1

    Now that a few posts have gone by I can say that yes, I did live on a commune when I was 7-8. I see the inefficiency AND value of Competition, Free-Enterpirse, and Profit. However,all things are relative. I just want US to overcome the various social downsides of Predatory Capitalism in such a way that everyone pulls their own weight AND has a reasonably pleasurable experience while trapped in these bags-of-mostly-water. Stalin was a thug who bullied murderers. Marx was a famous comedian/tragedician(sic). Communists work so as to eat, which may come as a suprising theory to you, but I doubt it will fill your belly. Read some Kurt Vonnegut and remember your humanity. Capitalism without Communism is like a not-so-diversified portfolio. You may get rich today, but how will you handle the certain storms of tomorrrow? I think it's deliciously ironic that this thread occured. I just hope it doesn't come back to bite me in the ass! May the Moderator have Mercy on my Meaning.

    --
    Stuff that matters.
  90. How to Run a Company by Univac_1004 · · Score: 1

    "Companies have one obligation, make money for the shareholders."

    That seems to be the line from management to justify their most questionable actions.

    The actual laws of business success are these two:

    1. A company should provide superior goods and services to its customers.
    2. A company should provide for the wellfare of its employees execept were this will interfer with the first law of business.

    There is no law for self-presevation since a compnay is not a living organism.

    No law for providing return to shareholders is necessary, since these two laws will automatically produce profit for the company. (Also, since modern shareholders are more like gamblers than investors, only pre-IPO investors who have taken a genuine risk to support a new company really deserve a return to reward that risk).

  91. Cross Cutting by TPFH · · Score: 1

    Enron was way past the point of Shredders : they worked with shrinters

    Not secure enough.
    If your shredder, or shrinter doesn't do cross cutting then what is the point?

    Me? I shred EVERTHING, including all junk mail with a cross cutting shredder, I mix up the shreddings really good, and then I burn* them!

    Naturally, I'm on homeland security's watch list because of this.

    * (actually, I just mix it up with my garbage. I don't actually think anyone is going through my garbage, but it would be funny if the police or feds were putting together the little shreds of paper mixed with rotting vegetables just to reveal my junk mail and utility bills.)

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