We interrupt this series for....
Microsoft's Educational Hypocrisy
(Sorry to bust up my Firefox series so early... but I can't just leave this alone!)
In an astonishing act of hypocrisy BillG lambasted education in the U.S. on Friday, saying that we had to raise our standards and our commitment to education.
Well, as Jeff Reifman pointed out back in October, this is not the first time Microsoft has been hypocritical about education and their contribution!
What do I mean? Let's pull out the calculator!
Microsoft has not paid WA state $105 million since 2003 by off-shoring their revenue in shell tax-free corporations in Nevada! As Rep. Sharon Tomiko-Santos of Seattle, who sits on the WA House Finance Committee, notes: "One hundred million dollars more for schools could go a long way toward improving teacher compensation, reducing class size, or directing some targeted dollars to those struggling schools and students who might be able to use additional resources." (quote and calculation from Reifman)
If Microsoft just put its money where its mouth is, those schools that BillG characterized as "ruining the lives of our children" would be FIXED -- the problem would be over. Hell, if Microsoft just put their educational marketing budget into improving schools, the problem would be FIXED!
So, what do you say, fellow MS shareholders? Care to ask our corporation to put up or shut up?
Feel free to e-mail me your requests for financial clarity (or an apology) from MS and I'll collate for in-person delivery to Microsoft's finance office in Redmond (I live just down the street).
In an astonishing act of hypocrisy BillG lambasted education in the U.S. on Friday, saying that we had to raise our standards and our commitment to education.
Well, as Jeff Reifman pointed out back in October, this is not the first time Microsoft has been hypocritical about education and their contribution!
What do I mean? Let's pull out the calculator!
Microsoft has not paid WA state $105 million since 2003 by off-shoring their revenue in shell tax-free corporations in Nevada! As Rep. Sharon Tomiko-Santos of Seattle, who sits on the WA House Finance Committee, notes: "One hundred million dollars more for schools could go a long way toward improving teacher compensation, reducing class size, or directing some targeted dollars to those struggling schools and students who might be able to use additional resources." (quote and calculation from Reifman)
If Microsoft just put its money where its mouth is, those schools that BillG characterized as "ruining the lives of our children" would be FIXED -- the problem would be over. Hell, if Microsoft just put their educational marketing budget into improving schools, the problem would be FIXED!
So, what do you say, fellow MS shareholders? Care to ask our corporation to put up or shut up?
Feel free to e-mail me your requests for financial clarity (or an apology) from MS and I'll collate for in-person delivery to Microsoft's finance office in Redmond (I live just down the street).
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