It's Complicated, Mein Fuehrer
Searching for an Explanation: No Results Found.
By Dana Milbank Wednesday, November 7, 2007; A02
Yahoo founder Jerry Yang is worth about $2.2 billion, according to Forbes magazine. The Internet giant's general counsel, Michael Callahan, received cash and stock options worth about $10 million last year.
Yesterday, the pair came before Congress to explain why they had paid not one penny to help the family of an innocent Chinese journalist Yahoo had turned over to Beijing's thought police to serve a decade in prison.
. . . "While technologically and financially you are giants, morally you are pygmies," Tom Lantos (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told the corporate titans.
Rep. Christopher H. Smith (R-N.J.) said he saw a "parallel" between Yahoo and companies that helped the Nazis locate Jews to be sent to concentration camps.
. . . Furious, Lantos interrupted. "These were demands by a police state to make an American company a co-conspirator in having a freedom-loving Chinese journalist put in prison," he said. "Will you continue to use the phrase 'lawful orders,' or will you just be satisfied saying 'orders'?"
"I can refer to it that way if you like," came Callahan's insolent reply. Pressed further, he added: "It's my understanding that Chinese laws are lawful."
--read about the entire miserable affair--
__________________________________________________________________
Yahoo is a loser.
Yahoo lied to its users, lied to Congress and lied to itself insofar as moral issues are concerned.
The transcript of testimony in the full article depicts a founder and CEO who simply do not care what they do as long as they are able to penetrate a new market. This is so close to standing behind forces such as Nazi Germany, it's appalling.
It's not necessary to boycott Yahoo--they're getting their ass kicked by Google on a daily basis. Their collective perfidy probably has no connection to the decline of their force as an Internet engine--but wouldn't it be nice to think so?
Sieg Heil! (what's the translation of that to Chinese?)