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Bill Gates to Receive Honorary UK Knighthood
jolyon writes "Yahoo is reporting that Bill Gates will receive his honorary UK knighthood on Wednesday. He doesn't get to call himself 'Sir' though. He becomes a Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire."
Regardless of how we feel about Microsoft as a corporation and Bill Gates as a ruthless evil business-demon, he has done wonderful things through his Bill and Melinda Gates foundation. I don't know if he is deserving of knighthood. He is a good capitalist, if that is something to be proud of.
Like the dept tagline says, all it takes is billions of dollars. Knighthood must be hurting for worthy people these days.
-- Having a Creationist Museum is like having an Atheist place of worship
But he's given enough of what he stole to decent charities that I say let him be crowned or sainted or venerated by the sort of people who do that sort of thing. As long as he keeps giving to charities, I just don't care.
... nevermind the millions he may have destroyed elsewhere. Be a good American(tm) and venerate him, for as a very wealthy man (never mind how he got there) he is akin to God.
It is exactly that attitude that has allowed the status quo to remain largely unchanged, despite the fact that humanity has had the resources and technical knowhow to end all poverty since about the 17th century.
As long as we get a few crumbs, we'll tolerate any amount of injustice. Add to that the vague dream that we may become one of the haves and enjoy the privelege of trampling on the have-nots that folks like Bill Gates enjoys, and we'll defend to the death their right to grind the rest of us beneath their heals.
It's OK. He's saved a few lives here
The Future of Human Evolution: Autonomy
Microsoft might be an unethical monopoly, but is Gates complicit in the deaths of his own employees, as Carnegie was ?
People of the time didn't exactly have a high opinion of the steel magnate after that incident. People aren't fond of Gates now.
As an employee of the Carnegie Museums, I say give it a hundred years. We have Carnegie to thank for the museum of art, the museum of natural history, and the Pittsburgh public libraries. You think anyone remembers the labor strike?
Microsoft can't last. What Gates does with his money, however, has the potential to.
The dude has billions of dollars - more money than anyone else in the world. It is really that generous of him to give small fractions of it away?