Microsoft: Your Potential, Our Passion - unless you’re gay and lesbian

New York Times April 22: Microsoft Comes Under Fire for Reversal on Gay Rights Bill


This comes a few days late, but nevertheless serves only to further endear me to the corporation. (See previous post.)

For all of its perpetrated behemoth of capitalist consumerism, and software incompetencies, I had had a modicum of respect for Gates and his work in the developing world’s health and education. (Well, it really was just the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, but still.)

And I had had even more respect (relatively) to know of Microsoft’s LGBT-friendly employment policy (and from my impressions, office culture).

But now, this?

Even as a non-American I feel betrayed.

What riles me is not this isolated act of irresponsibility and cowardice on the part of one MNC. Heck, if we were to start finger-pointing - ever the constructive exercise - more direct responsibility would be had by the likes of Bill Finkbeiner and other moderate Republicans (if any) with no backbone consistency (if any).

But --

It's the broader shift in politics to the right, as well as its seemingly increasing influence by the fundamentalist right, rather than the cause from which politics itself emerges - governance. Even more than the seed of capitalism itself - economic rationalism.

Whatever happened to separation between Church and State?

One of the most regrettable things in all this, for me, is how there is now such a split between progressive rights advocates (and their supporters), and the collective believers of the Christian faith. I, for one, feel torn between both camps (to differential degrees), as I gingerly tread to find ground that does not crumble under political weight as soon as the exclusive claim to one is trespassed.

But really, this personal battle of mine and, I imagine, many others, is merely secondary to the reality of the battleground our society has been made. There is enough conflict in our world.

It amazes me that two such well-meaning groups, with such capacity for influence and (positive) change, are unable to reconcile on something so fundamental. Perhaps, it is precisely the fundamental nature of the issue that the schism we see is symptomatic of.

This, I fear, has become the face of western identity politics, the impact of which, of course, spreads far beyond those shores.

I struggle to cling on to my airy-fairy hopes of social justice and rights, and simultaneously to the possibility that there may yet be some form of greater force, however nebulous, in my increasingly atheist mind.


ps. If the NYT link doesn’t work, googling [microsoft gay bill] should do the trick. And here are some more, for the enthused:

Microsoft's switch on gay bill stirs anger
Microsoft caves on gay rights
Microsoft abandons gays

pps. Somebody tell me how to get rid of the awful bullet point in the title while keeping the second line, well, in the second line.
[Ed: figured it out - it was embarrassingly simple.]

Title credits
The title of this post was coined originally by Dan Kully of Equal Rights Washington, as a satirical take on Microsoft's newest slogan.

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