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I remember in 2001 (could be 2002) having a discussion with a flat mate, in which he argued that ultimately, Bill Gates would be a force for good through his fo

I remember in 2001 (could be 2002) having a discussion with a flat mate, in which he argued that ultimately, Bill Gates would be a force for good through his foundation. I was unconvinced, given the Microsoft of the 1990s, but I think that ultimately he was right. The more interesting question is: Would the world be a better place had MS not been so successful? A back of the envelope analysis would suggest that, given how Bill Gates has behaved with his fortune, who is likely to benefit from his foundation work and who suffered from MS practices, overall the world is a better place.

dvfjsdhgfv 7y ago
Unfortunately, in economics not only we cannot perform randomized, controlled, double-blind studies, but also reproducibility is impossible.
bobosha 7y ago
I couldn't agree more. Bill G. is arguably the greatest philanthropist of our time, perhaps of all time. Not only does he bring his considerable wealth, but the business acumen to make sure the money is effectively spent, and a keen eye for detail into solving some of the world's toughest problems. I can't think of anyone more deserving of the Nobel Peace Prize than Bill & Melinda.
- palae 7y ago
  > I can't think of anyone more deserving of the Nobel Peace Prize than Bill & Melinda. What about this, though: https://www.wired.com/story/microsoft-surprise-winner-dollar10b-pentagon-contract/ https://www.wired.com/story/microsoft-surprise-winner-dollar... "Late Friday, the Department of Defense announced that Microsoft has won the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure contract, known as JEDI. The decision was the culmination of a two-year process that also included Google, IBM, and Oracle, and where Amazon was long seen as the favorite. JEDI, potentially worth $10 billion over 10 years, has been positioned by the Pentagon as crucial to modernizing its use of technology—and making the US military more deadly. “We must improve the speed and effectiveness with which we develop and deploy modernized technical capabilities to our women and men in uniform,” DoD Chief Information Officer Dana Deasy said in a statement. At an event launching the bidding process in early 2018, the department’s chief management officer, John H. Gibson II, told tech industry leaders that one priority was “increasing the lethality of our department.” "
  - segmondy 7y ago
    Consider this, without scientists and engineers helping the US military, we would not have been able to defeat the evils of WWII. There were code breakers, bomb makers, plane makers, medical care and so many that helped the military industrial complex. This very internet we are using to share our ideas has deep roots from the military. Computers was really funded by the military, they needed to know how to calculate and blow ships and planes far away into pieces fast.
  - reallydontask 7y ago
    I don't think that they are (Bill and Melinda) involved in the running of Microsoft these days. I think Bill has a seat at the board but that's about it (He's also a technical advisor, it would seem)
    - palae 7y ago
      For sure, but I feel like he still has enough share of the company ("only" 1.3%, but that's a lot of money) that what they are doing is relevant to the discussion.
hliyan 7y ago
Question: Would Netscape exist today, and if so, would they have been like Google? At the hands of Netscape, would the Internet have been more open today?

dvfjsdhgfv 7y ago

Unfortunately, in economics not only we cannot perform randomized, controlled, double-blind studies, but also reproducibility is impossible.

bobosha 7y ago

I couldn't agree more. Bill G. is arguably the greatest philanthropist of our time, perhaps of all time. Not only does he bring his considerable wealth, but the business acumen to make sure the money is effectively spent, and a keen eye for detail into solving some of the world's toughest problems. I can't think of anyone more deserving of the Nobel Peace Prize than Bill & Melinda.

palae 7y ago
> I can't think of anyone more deserving of the Nobel Peace Prize than Bill & Melinda. What about this, though: https://www.wired.com/story/microsoft-surprise-winner-dollar10b-pentagon-contract/ https://www.wired.com/story/microsoft-surprise-winner-dollar... "Late Friday, the Department of Defense announced that Microsoft has won the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure contract, known as JEDI. The decision was the culmination of a two-year process that also included Google, IBM, and Oracle, and where Amazon was long seen as the favorite. JEDI, potentially worth $10 billion over 10 years, has been positioned by the Pentagon as crucial to modernizing its use of technology—and making the US military more deadly. “We must improve the speed and effectiveness with which we develop and deploy modernized technical capabilities to our women and men in uniform,” DoD Chief Information Officer Dana Deasy said in a statement. At an event launching the bidding process in early 2018, the department’s chief management officer, John H. Gibson II, told tech industry leaders that one priority was “increasing the lethality of our department.” "
- segmondy 7y ago
  Consider this, without scientists and engineers helping the US military, we would not have been able to defeat the evils of WWII. There were code breakers, bomb makers, plane makers, medical care and so many that helped the military industrial complex. This very internet we are using to share our ideas has deep roots from the military. Computers was really funded by the military, they needed to know how to calculate and blow ships and planes far away into pieces fast.
- reallydontask 7y ago
  I don't think that they are (Bill and Melinda) involved in the running of Microsoft these days. I think Bill has a seat at the board but that's about it (He's also a technical advisor, it would seem)
  - palae 7y ago
    For sure, but I feel like he still has enough share of the company ("only" 1.3%, but that's a lot of money) that what they are doing is relevant to the discussion.

hliyan 7y ago

Question: Would Netscape exist today, and if so, would they have been like Google? At the hands of Netscape, would the Internet have been more open today?