No. The internet was a result from a military project that aimed to create a computer network safe enough to withstand a nuclear attack. Therefore, the internet was the by product of the cold war. Google "arpanet" if you are in doubt.

people 'feel entitled' to have what they want when they want it, and if they can't get it for free, 'they'll steal it.'

companies 'feel entitled" to have profit with what they want when they want it, and if they can't get it, 'they'll sue poor grandmas and whine like babies'

Indeed it would be more beneficial to OSS as a whole to have native apps running on linux instead of just running what another OS can run. However, in order for people to be willing to ditch windows for linux, a heck of a lot of apps have to be improved. Let's be real now: most linux alternatives do not compare to what professional apps can do on windows (gimp/photoshop, audacity/sonar, flash, and the list goes on...).

If wine is not to be used, then the only other option is to make OSS be comparable to its alternatives in a way that its not only fairly similar, but exceeds its closed source counterparts in capacity and features. In other words, OSS not only needs to copy, but make it better.

IMHO, the mistake of both Microsoft and Yahoo is to think that this is merely a war for market share, and that they can win by simply duplicating whatever google does.

In fact, this is more of an innovation war: users won't switch to whatever microsoft/yahoo partnership offers unless it does something that people find useful AND that google has not implemented yet.

ActiveX security problems? Easy.

Just make every tab a separate sandboxed process that can emulate x86, so you can install windows inside IE, and therefore run IE inside your windows that you installed on your IE...

(starts getting dizy)

It seems someone needs to add backslashes to their SQL statements...

According to dictionary.com:

au-then-tic
-adjective
1. not false or copied; genuine; real: an authentic antique.

Its hard to have something authentic these days when the same technique is copied over and over, giving us songs that are much alike to each other.

Computer, end program.

Only on slashdot a thread can go from text messaging to high fructose corn syrup.

I agree with the brits on their move for more spying. Certainly, it would be a lot more effective if a ministry were created just to make sure people are who they claim to be, thus identifying possible terrorist. I would call it the "Ministry of Truth".

Also, in order to control terrorism even more,the world could follow EU steps and unify its economies, creating three large economic groups: eurasia, estasia and oceania.