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Mar 31, 09 - 10:39 am Comment from: Spark

Talk about a 'Bridge to Nowhere'!

Mar 31, 09 - 10:44 am Comment from: Dasgeek

This is change I can believe in...

Glad we put an end to corporate welfare by making it bigger than ever. Just like we cut the deficit by making it bigger than ever too.

Mar 31, 09 - 10:51 am Comment from: TowerTone

yes, they are creating snow jobs.

Is this a done deal? I hope not!

Mar 31, 09 - 10:53 am Comment from: HMCIV

Open to the public? Not Ballmer's style. A year from now you'll need a MSN/Hotmail premium subscription to cross. Or maybe a Zune Pass.

Mar 31, 09 - 10:53 am Comment from: LTD*

Uh . . . doesn't MS have close to $20 billion cash on hand??

I'd imagine that a corporation like MS wold have enough of their own resources to fund the project themselves.

Pretty damn embarrassing, I'd say.

Once this gets further out on the nets, I think MS will take quite a bit of heat.

Capitalism and Freedom is lost in America.
Partnership between government and companies. No longer free enterprises (Obama like to decide who runs companies).

No Way!!!!!!! Microsoft has a lot of money and Microsoft can pay in full to build a bridge and then get soee tax write off. But use our money and Microsoft is a Republican Company! What a dirty!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And there's plenty more projects like this tucked away in Obama's
porkulus package.

Republicans will have a field day in 2010 taking the DemocRATS to task for their abuse of the tax payer dollar. It's going to be 1994 all over again as soon as our "leadership" gets their heads together (which should hopefully be by the end of this year). That's why Obambi, Nanci Pelosi and Harry Reid want to ram that $4,000,000,000,000.00 nation-buster budget through congress via a crooked scheme known as the reconciliation process. They know their days in power are numbered.

We need to take the country back, by ANY MEANS NECESSARY, before the republic is destroyed. We surround them!

Mr. Hope and Change is at it again!

Mar 31, 09 - 10:58 am Comment from: Ottawa Mark

I think Apple should apply for money to rebuild the Icon Garden on the Cupertino campus...and for the the care and feeding of its army of dogcows...That is a lost treasure, to be sure:

http://www.doogul.com/doug/sites/dmw/icongarden.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogcow

Well if the west is zune, the east is everything else... then you having a floating bridge, with nothing to support it.

You see at least they have something

Mar 31, 09 - 11:06 am Comment from: ericdano

Why not? We are bailout of the failed auto industry, and talks are on to bailout the Newspapers..........

Y'know, that Bridge to Nowhere of infamy was to have connected Ketchikan to Gravina Island, which contains Alaska's 2nd largest international airport. It would have replaced a ferry, which now has to run every half hour 24/7, and promoted development of the island. It would have been money well-spent, creating not hundreds, but thousands of permanent Alaskan jobs. To me, this project with Microsoft is a slap in the face. Worse than that, it shatters what little faith I had in our federal government. This is just ridiculous and I am just totally outraged.

Mar 31, 09 - 11:13 am Comment from: Jubei

Microsoft doesn't need this money. They have a monopoly to fund whatever they need to fund!

Where are all the B. O. mouthbreathers with this one? No smart alack comments.... What gives? These people are so bad it's hard to fathom. I can't believe this freak got elected and the rest of the congressional freaks. Unbelievable. Destroy the economy and then blame it on capitalism and then try to grab more power and control. Destroy achievement. These people have to go and go fast!!!!!!!

Mar 31, 09 - 11:16 am Comment from: Predrag

There are a few fairly regular contributors to this board, who normally contribute relevant stuff related to Apple. However, when MDN throws out political bait (such as this article), they immediately jump at it and spew out this irrational venomous hatred. This is really sad. Especially when this stuff is nothing more than talking points as outlined on rightwingnews.com or some such. There is no rational thought there; just political dogma.

Most amusing, though is the hypocritical take on the pork package. When the President clearly states that the package has way too much pork, but signs it (because weeding out that pork would take another six months, and by then, the Republic WOULD be destroyed), they jump on it, forgetting that when the previous president gladly signed previous budgets, the amount of pork in those made current package barely a single thin slice of smoked ham....

Hopefully, little bit of publicity on this particular piece of pork in Seattle would help it go away, or be redirected elsewhere.

@Bob,

This is nothing new. It was Eisenhower (y'know, the REPUBLICAN president after Truman) who warned against the nascent "Military-Industrial complex" between the Korean and Vietnam wars, even as TRW was making the U2 spyplane on the public's dime. (But of course, that was for national security, but then again, doesn't it always seem to boil down to that as far as military & industrial interests are concerned?) Both political parties have made marriages of convenience between government-military-industrial interests. Even the U.S. highway system was envisioned with a military bent. I have no doubt someone will resurrect this excuse for Microsoft as they have a near-absolute monopoly on military and government computer systems.

OTOH, I could be wrong. I wonder if public monies are involved in order to ensure this a public-access bridge that will be maintained by "the local authorities". I, on the other hand, would have no problem with letting Microsoft pay for the bridge themselves and have exclusive access to it; they can certainly afford it. But, then again, I don't live in Redmond, and I don't know what the local issues are, or how the citizens there feel about it.

NAH!

MDN word: "tax", how ironic

Mar 31, 09 - 11:17 am Comment from: Ottawa Mark

@Chris in Alaska,

Of course, your bridge's earmark was $398 million...Even your Saint Sarah jumped off its bandwagon, didn't she?

Mar 31, 09 - 11:17 am Comment from: Toasty

@Mark S.

HA HA HA so Obama is now responsible for Microsoft's douchebaggery too? I suppose next we should blame Windows 7 on him.

And to top it all off, I can't even get a $15,000 LOAN from the government to complete upgrades I've started to my home to bring it up to code. I don't make enough for a bank loan, but too much to qualify for a HUD loan. Gotta love a government that'll GRANT $11,000,000 to the richest frackin' corporation on the planet, but can't spare to LEND a citizen a $15,000 HUD loan!

Mar 31, 09 - 11:19 am Comment from: Sir Gill Bates

Apple should make a new Mac/PC commercial talking about the fact that they aren't taking stimulus money.

Hey, if MicroSoft wants to play dirty ...

Saint Sarah jumped off the bandwagon after it became apparent the
project was becoming politically toxic. Ted Stevens, who originated the project, was also beginning to become toxic. The project had become a joke to those in Lower 48, who never seem to dig deep enough to get to the bottom of a story. To them, it was just a bridge to an island with 50 people. No one down there knew there was an international airport, that there would be development and businesses. No, they would rather get their news from Jay Leno than find out what was really at stake.

Mar 31, 09 - 11:27 am Comment from: Ouate de Phoque

Painting crosswalk lines across a busy highway would be cheaper and assist in controlling the Microsoft population. Target practice anyone.

Mar 31, 09 - 11:34 am Comment from: Ottawa Mark

@Ouate de Phoque

Great idea! We can finally establish "Death Race 2000"! The fact it's nine years late fits in perfectly with Microsoft's release schedules!

Mar 31, 09 - 11:34 am Comment from: Sir Gill Bates

"No, they would rather get their news from Jay Leno than find out what was really at stake."

Hey, Leno is probably the most truthful and accurate source of news you can find on anything connected to NBC.

They _applied_ for the money. It doesn't mean they'll get it. Hell my little town is applying for some of it too. They have the 'we won't get this' applications, the 'we probably won't get this applications but who knows', and the 'we probably could get this' applications.

Mar 31, 09 - 11:37 am Comment from: Ottawa Mark

Persumably @Chris in Alaska

Shouldn't Saint Sarah have defended the bridge by patiently explaining its benefits instead of calling it a "bridge to nowhere" herself, instead of wimping out? I thought she was politically courageous...apparently not...if she and Bobby Jindal represent the "young blood "in the GOP, maybe Romney should get the 2012 nod after all...

But I digress...

Mar 31, 09 - 11:39 am Comment from: Sir Gill Bates

I saw where some broad applied for money to get liposuction and a boob job. How about us?

Don't we all deserve a new Mac Pro? I'd be stimulated.

Mar 31, 09 - 11:40 am Comment from: Big Als MBP

Why did the Microserf cross the bridge?

He wanted to laugh at the idiots responsible for the Zune Fiasco.

Mar 31, 09 - 11:40 am Comment from: ron

MS top earners will have their pay regulated by Barney Wank.

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/politics/Beyond-AIG-A-Bill-to-let-Big-Government-Set-Your-Salary-42158597.html

Hmmm. GM took a loan from the government and the government forced their CEO out, maybe they can do the same for MS?

Mar 31, 09 - 11:47 am Comment from: critic

"even as TRW was making the U2 spyplane on the public's dime. (But of course, that was for national security, but then again, doesn't it always seem to boil down to that as far as military & industrial interests are concerned?)"

One of the best deals the government ever got, actually. They are still flying, 50 years later. I know a U2 pilot, and they are very busy keeping an eye on some very scary things.

Thank you yet again MDN for keeping us informed about all things Apple.

Mar 31, 09 - 11:56 am Comment from: lurker

If a bridge goes from nowhere to nowhere, does the traffic make any sound?

I know nothing of Redmond area, but when I read a story about this earlier I heard that it impacts other companies as well. Its not just for the benefit of MS.

Regarding:
Federal stimulus package" = U.S. taxpayers' money

Can we also stop calling it a stimulus package. Its not going to stimulate anything. Can we call it the Federal Spending Package

I absolutely agree! But Palin's "advisors" decided that the political firestorm surrounding the project had essentially gotten so out of control that when Ted Stevens, whose own problems were beginning to surface, offered to re-introduce the legislation any amount of "patient explanation" would have fallen on ears gone deaf from all the "Bridge to Nowhere" shouting.

As politically "courageous" as Sarah Palin may, or may not, be, being tied to the project AND Ted Stevens would have been suicide. The decision to not follow the project may not have been courageous, but it was prudent.

Kevin J Weise refers to TRW "making the U2 spyplane on the public's dime". Actually, the U2 was created by Lockheed's Skunk Works - the same group that developed the F-117 and SR-71. All brilliant advances in aircraft design.

He continues, "(But of course, that was for national security, but then again, doesn't it always seem to boil down to that as far as military & industrial interests are concerned?)" Do you have a problem with national security? Perhaps you think an enemy can be deterred by renditions of Kumbaya.

Mar 31, 09 - 12:01 pm Comment from: Ampar

Wouldn't it be a Bridge to NO-ware?

Microsoft. A name you can truss spanning the here rafter.

Ampar - that's good.

Mar 31, 09 - 12:06 pm Comment from: Ampar

"Perhaps you think an enemy can be deterred by renditions of Kumbaya."

Sure you can, if you bombard their airwaves with HD video of a sweaty Ballmer in a thong singing Kumbaya in his best falsetto while threatening the enemy with his simian anatomy.

MacBU is in west campus - far from nowhere. The bridge project should ease the traffic in the area, which should be good for everybody living there.

Mar 31, 09 - 12:14 pm Comment from: Ampar

Thanks, Smile!

Try to understand MS?

I can't. I lever alone.

@Mac Dev Vet:

The door out is over there...

Ooops, sorry. That's the broom closet. The door out is over there...

No, not that one. That's the room with the Woz Dancing loop. That's for people with ADD. The door out is over there...

Yep, that's the one. The one with the elevator stuck on the bottom floor...

I'm sorry. That was just mean. I apologize.

Mar 31, 09 - 12:23 pm Comment from: mike_in_helsinki

More Hussein bullshit. That guy is worse than even that asshat Jimmy Carter.

Mar 31, 09 - 12:24 pm Comment from: hardmanb

It makes me wonder how much Microsoft contributed to President Obama, Chris Dodd, and Barney Frank. A breakdown of amounts, recipients and party affiliation would be interesting.

Maybe our economy has an incest problem.

@ critic
@ Raymond in DC

Please don't misunderstand me. I agree with you that the U2 & SR-71 were definitely monies well spent. No, I don't have a problem with national defense; I work for a defense contractor (but can't tell you what I do). I was just lamenting, perhaps badly, that whenever apparent Republican big business doesn't get what it wants, it resorts to how important it is for national defense, and all you commie wussie Democrats should shut up and fund them. It doesn't matter who's in office, it will still end up that way, but the lunatic fringe on both sides of the political spectrum go ballistic during the evolution of the solution.

I have no doubts that there's a great deal of defense-related items in what alot of people would call "pork". Problem with that is, one never knows how important some of those projects turn out to be. Think of ARPA funding BBN to develop a packet-switching digital communications technology back in the late '60's & early '70's. No doubt the ultra-right could have viewed it as pork back then, what with IBM already having computer communications technology with their mainframes & all. But that's were TCP/IP eventually came from.

But by now, this discussion has gone way past the original political post about the Microsoft bridge. I'm almost sorry I said anything at all; I was just attempting to inject some points no one else had considered into the thread. And you gotta admit, MS definitely has government & military OS and apps locked up.

MDN word: "also", as in "I also thought I had something to offer here."

B-... Bu-... Bu-...But I thought Joe "Sixpack" Biden was going to "watchdog" the stimulus spending!!!
How could this possibly be???
[sarcasm]

Mar 31, 09 - 12:59 pm Comment from: Predrag

Jake,

Compare this stimulus package to any budget signed by GWB. The amount of pork there is colossal compared to this one. Keep in mind; this IS Washington, after all, and nothing can ever get done there.

Kevin J. Weise:

The Bradley Vehicle? The Osprey? The amount of money and time spent on the development of those is mind-bogglingly disproportionate to the eventual results, regardless of how useful the final product eventually came to be to the military.