Gutless surrenders rarely work

Gays? We don't know about any gays.

AmericaBlog picks up the story about MS turning on gays and then lying to the NY Times

Microsoft Comes Under Fire for Reversal on Gay Rights Bill
By SARAH KERSHAW

Published: April 22, 2005

SEATTLE, April 21 - The Microsoft Corporation, at the forefront of corporate gay rights for decades, is coming under fire from gay rights groups, politicians and its own employees for withdrawing its support for a state bill that would have barred discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Many of the critics accused the company of bowing to pressure from a prominent evangelical church in Redmond, Wash., located a few blocks from Microsoft's sprawling headquarters.

The bill, or similar versions of it, has been introduced repeatedly over three decades; it failed by one vote Thursday in the State Senate. Gay rights advocates denounced Microsoft, which had supported the bill for the last two years, for abandoning their cause. Blogs and online chat rooms were buzzing on Thursday with accusations that the company, which has offered benefits to same-sex partners for years, had given in to the Christian right.

"I think people should feel betrayed," said Tina Podlodowski, a former Microsoft senior manager and former Seattle city councilwoman who now runs an advocacy group for AIDS patients. "To me, Microsoft has been one of the big supporters of gay and lesbian civil rights issues, and they did it when it wasn't an issue of political expediency, when it was the right thing to do."

Microsoft officials denied any connection between their decision not to endorse the bill and the church's opposition, although they acknowledged meeting twice with the church minister, Ken Hutcherson.

Dr. Hutcherson, pastor of the Antioch Bible Church, who has organized several rallies opposing same-sex marriage here and in Washington, D.C., said he threatened in those meetings to organize a national boycott of Microsoft products.

After that, "they backed off," the pastor said Thursday in a telephone interview. "I told them I was going to give them something to be afraid of Christians about," he said.
.............
But State Representative Ed Murray, an openly gay Democrat and a sponsor of the bill, said that in a conversation last month with Bradford L. Smith, Microsoft's senior vice president and general counsel, Mr. Smith made it clear to him that the company was under pressure from the church and the pastor and that he was also concerned about the reaction to company support of the bill among its Christian employees, the lawmaker said.

There is only one thing to say: nothing you give them will be enough.

A boycott of Microsoft? Steve Jobs has tried that for two decades, and it really hasn't worked. What were all the fundies gonna do? Switch to Linux? Refuse to use MSN? Jesus, Disney had more balls in defending their family days.

But now that Microsoft has caved and pissed off their own employees, as well as the large Seattle gay community, and been seen to be giving in to the right, what's next? Removing evolution references from Encarta?

Once you cave in to a bully, then you will find them making more and more demands. Then, it's the removal of benefits for partners, then it's a refusal to hire openly gay people. Their list of demands has no end and no limit.

This guy is going to run around the country and talked about how Microsoft is his bitch. How they hop to his demands. MS thought they were buying peace, but they were only creating a monster on their doorstep. Once they see Microsoft back down once, they expect backdowns to continue.

Microsoft needs to understand that appeasing the right will both cost them support among formerly friendly gays and will never appease the fundies.

posted by Steve @ 10:47:00 AM