The users of Google’s Gmail were just forced to adopt its newest version, whether they wanted to do so or not. They were never given a choice, although they were warned that it was coming and given temporary “opt-outs” of the impending switch—which lasted only a brief period of time. Then boom, it happened. All of a sudden, the time-tested, simple and elegant version was swept aside, and in its stead is the “ugliest of uglies.”
There is an old adage: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Simply put, this means that change for the sake of change does not make good sense. If there is no evidence of a real problem, and fixing the “problem” would not improve the product or service, then don’t waste time and energy trying to fix it. Microsoft changes Office to sell more products; however, only true geeks understand the changes, much less completely.
What seems clear is that Google—like Microsoft—does not care about what its customers think or want. Indeed, it may be in the process of morphing into Microsoft or worse, inter alia, because Google does not provide customer support or any interface with its Gmail users directly. The new version seems to be the latest example of Google’s “geeks gone mad with power.” The company might have given its users the option of staying with the old version, but this was not to be. Imposing the new version was a crude exercise of raw power, which is not a good omen for long-time supporters and lovers of Google.
Many of us have been with the company and supported its products almost from Day One, when it began with a simple search engine that has not changed—at least from the perspective of its loyal, non-geek users—which undergirds its astonishing success. This rather inauspicious and humble beginning has resulted in its owners becoming rich beyond their wildest earthy dreams, because of customer loyalty. I advertised with Google, and was given advanced access to Gmail many months before it was available publicly; and I loved it, and sent “invitations” to others who began using it as well.
Sadly, Gmail is no longer what it was. Google may be headed in the direction of Microsoft, a company that stopped caring about its users many years ago, and instead has shoved products down their throats that were hopelessly flawed, like its Vista operating system. Rather than change Gmail completely, Google might have tweaked it with changes that constituted “incremental refinements.”
Even Microsoft does not kill off earlier versions of Word for the Mac, which I have been using for about 20 years. Granted one cannot open documents created with them unless the older versions of the software have been retained, but anything is possible. After using Office (and Word) 2008 for the Mac successfully, I became a member of a Microsoft advisory group relating to the next version, Office 2011—called the “Office for Mac Advisory Panel”—and I was given a copy when it was first released. To my great surprise, its Word software would not open documents created with the previous version, Word 2008. I brought this to the attention of Microsoft’s Mac team, and never heard from them again.
Customer support like this drives the “faithful” away, who feel cheated and “used.” However, Google has gone a step farther and mandated the use of Gmail’s newest incarnation. One might think that the company would have learned from the fact that its time-tested search engine’s customer interface has not changed, while ill-fated Google products such as Chromebooks and Knols have never gained much of a consumer following and are disappearing. Also, Google does not address problems with its Chrome browser.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, in terms of customer service and satisfaction, are WordPress, FedEx, Costco and Canon—which go out of their way to keep things simple and help their customers, who inevitably become dyed-in-the-wool, enthusiastic advocates for the businesses, and spread the “gospel” about them far and wide. While Google has not succumbed to the level of disdain enjoyed by Microsoft yet, its heavy-handed changes with respect to Gmail and other similar actions may take the company in that direction and beyond.
Ultimately, customers might spurn its products; however, like Microsoft, Google’s owners and management may not truly care. IBM followed that arrogant path years ago, and suffered greatly because of it. Other companies have come and gone completely. Will this be Google’s fate?
© 2012, Timothy D. Naegele
[1] Timothy D. Naegele was counsel to the United States Senate’s Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and chief of staff to Presidential Medal of Freedom and Congressional Gold Medal recipient and former U.S. Senator Edward W. Brooke (R-Mass). He practices law in Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles with his firm, Timothy D. Naegele & Associates, which specializes in Banking and Financial Institutions Law, Internet Law, Litigation and other matters (see www.naegele.com and http://www.naegele.com/naegele_resume.html). He has an undergraduate degree in economics from UCLA, as well as two law degrees from the School of Law (Boalt Hall), University of California, Berkeley, and from Georgetown University. He is a member of the District of Columbia and California bars. He served as a Captain in the U.S. Army, assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency at the Pentagon, where he received the Joint Service Commendation Medal. Mr. Naegele is an Independent politically; and he is listed in Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who in American Law, and Who’s Who in Finance and Business. He has written extensively over the years (see, e.g.,www.naegele.com/whats_new.html#articles), and can be contacted directly at tdnaegele.associates@gmail.com; see also Google search:Timothy D. Naegele
Arguable. It’s just adaptation and a shear act of “keeping things interesting.”
Another giant that does this regularly, much more regularly than Google is Facebook. Majority of the reactions complain and hate pretty much every major GUI update Facebook has brought out since the beginning but this keeps it interesting and innovating and everyone eventually gets used to it.
I suppose the changes to a social media site is more prevalent and “acceptable” than perhaps a *professional* service provider like Microsoft and Google but regardless, we all eventually grow into accepting these things and move on.
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Facebook is losing its audience
See, e.g., http://business.time.com/2014/01/15/more-than-11-million-young-people-have-fled-facebook-since-2011/ (“More Than 11 Million Young People Have Fled Facebook Since 2011“)
Does anyone really care whether Facebook sinks or swims? After all, before Facebook there was MySpace; and after both of them, there will be other Web sites to take their place.
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Why Help Google Deal With Fraud Or Anything Else?
Fraud is massive and prevalent all over the Web today; and millions of people globally are being affected by it, and they will lose billions of dollars because of it.
See, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2010/01/31/lawyers-and-internet-scams/ (“Lawyers And Internet Scams”)
I have dealt with it for many years, beginning well before the Internet became a worldwide “information highway,” and I know what to spot, so others are warned. Indeed, before its latest “revolting” and totally-unnecessary changes, Gmail had a way for its loyal users to flag phishing messages with a red banner, which would warn others.
Users cannot do this anymore. Thus, instead of checking my spam folder methodically every day, and flagging such messages, I don’t bother. If Google does not take fraud seriously, why should I waste my time?
It is clear that Google does not care, so why should anyone care about Google? Microsoft’s loyal customers abandoned it years ago. This seems to be the future of Google.
See, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/ (“Is Google Becoming Microsoft Or Worse?”)
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When you said ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ –
you said all that needed saying.
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Thank you, Terri, for your thoughts. Yes, I agree.
Because Google has virtually no customer support, sadly it seems to be another entity—be it part of government or business—which does not care. Perhaps I simply deluded myself into believing otherwise.
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Why Apple?
The Wall Street Journal‘s SmartMoney has an article entitled, “10 Things Apple Won’t Tell You,” which is worth reading.
See http://www.smartmoney.com/spend/technology/10-things-apple-wont-tell-you-1344031439347/?link=SM_hp_ls4e
My responses are as follows:
Long live Apple! 🙂
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Google Could Disappear in Five Years
For all of the reasons set forth in my article and comments above, Google is not user friendly except for its search engine. Thus, how long can it carry Google? Yahoo! found out the hard way, and Google may be following a similar path.
My sentiments are echoed in a CNBC.com article, which states:
See http://www.cnbc.com/id/49477730
My loyalty to Google has been disappearing, and the same thing may be true of many others.
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Google Is “Pimping” For Obama!
What appears directly above is a “screenshot” of a Google search page today—replete with an “ad” for Barack Obama; an American flag, just as he is trying to “gut” our military; and a link to another Web page touting him.
See https://plus.google.com/events/ck7p5i47e2pfqlq4bkk6lo8sml8 (“State of the Union: Fireside Hangout with President Obama”)
It is crystal clear that Google is “pimping” for Obama, which is outrageous and a travesty. Republicans, Independents, members of the Tea Party movement, and other political factions in the United States deserve and must demand equal time . . . and/or boycott Google+.
More and more Americans are tuning out Obama. Most of them refused to watch his State of the Union speech to Congress last night; and they change to another channel when his image comes on the TV screen, or that of Moochie aka Michelle “Marie Antoinette” Obama.
See http://www.politico.com/blogs/media/2013/02/obamas-state-of-the-union-lowestrated-since-156993.html (“Obama’s State of the Union lowest-rated since [Bill Clinton’s final State of the Union address in] 2000“) and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2010/12/03/barack-obama-is-a-lame-duck-president-who-will-not-be-reelected/#comment-1172 (Michelle Obama: “Let Them Eat Cake!”)
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Google Chromebooks: Will They Gain Any Traction?
Google is in the process of introducing its Chromebook Pixel laptop.
See https://play.google.com/store/devices/details?id=chromebook_pixel_wifi; see also http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/google/9886158/Chromebook-Pixel-Google-takes-on-Apple.html
I have been with Apple for more than 20 years. I have been with Google since shortly after its search engine was launched. I have used Google’s AdWords for advertising; and I use Google’s Gmail and its Chrome browser now.
Why on earth would anyone buy a Chromebook Pixel (or any other Chromebook for that matter) when (1) it costs as much as a Mac, and does not allow one to use standard business and personal applications (e.g., MS Word, iTunes); (2) Google provides zero customer support; (3) “they only function fully with a web connection,” as the author notes; (4) it only offers “[u]p to 5 hours” of battery life; and (5) there is no built-in CD/DVD SuperDrive?
Also, Google launches products and services, and then they disappear (e.g., Knol), as mentioned in the article above. The Chromebook Pixel represents a lot of money for a product that may or may not be supported by Google. It is a bet that most of us are unwilling to make, especially when the alternative is a proven and dependable MacBook Pro. Also, depending on the cloud is not something that I wish to do, nor do I want to rely on an Internet connection for my work.
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More Bullshit From Google
As indicated in my article above, Google may be in the process of becoming far worse than Microsoft, which is quite an accomplishment. Not only does Google have no customer support, but they keep dreaming up new ways to make Gmail more complicated and unworkable.
Their latest foray is something called: “Gmail’s new compose and reply experience.”
See https://support.google.com/mail/answer/2645922?p=newcompose&rd=1#
As my article states:
Yet, the techies at Google must sit around devising new ways to make our lives more difficult.
I am a lawyer, and I started using Gmail before it was available to the public, because I was advertising with Google and was given advance access to it. The original version of Gmail worked just fine; however, the latest version as well as the changes to the “compose and reply experience” are unnecessary, burdensome, and frankly idiotic.
Surely Google employees’ time can be better spent doing other things, which are actually productive and help people!
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Google Is Far Worse Than Microsoft: It Is Godless!
On Easter, Google is honoring farm organizer and Leftist hero Cesar Chavez. How sacrilegious and utterly absurd!
Among other things—to their credit—most Hispanics are Catholics, and devoutly so.
As Patrick Howley has reported in The Daily Caller:
See http://dailycaller.com/2013/03/31/google-honors-cesar-chavez-on-easter/; see also https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2010/09/27/the-economic-tsunami-continues-its-relentless-and-unforgiving-advance-globally/#comment-2517 (“The Great Green Con—’Global Warming’ Is A Myth“)
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What do you expect from a company created by someone named “Sergei” Brin that has a 666 as its Google Chrome logo?
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Thank you, Brad, for your comment.
I did not realize that Google “has a 666 as its Google Chrome logo.”
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Computer Sales in Free Fall
This is the title of a Wall Street Journal article, which is subtitled “Quarterly Shipments Drop 14% as Windows 8 Fails to Stem Advance of iPads,” and mirrors other similar reports:
See http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324695104578414973888155516.html
Some of us are long-time Apple users—more than 20 years in my case—and we were not surprised at all when Microsoft’s Windows Vista operating system failed so completely. Now Windows 8 seems to be doing something similar, which will drive PC sales down even farther.
In libraries (especially law school libraries) where few Apple laptops were seen years ago, Apples are becoming the computer of choice.
Microsoft keeps adding “bells and whistles” to its software (e.g., MS Office), which most of us never use, much less understand. Google has been doing the same thing, with respect to “refinements” of its e-mail system, Gmail.
Because Google has no customer support, users are apt to abandon the company’s products, sooner rather than later. Indeed, it is arguable that Google is becoming Microsoft, or far far worse.
Companies like Google and Microsoft seem to forget what made them great. To the consumer, Google’s search engine has not changed; however, its techies seem to be bent on destroying everything else. Perhaps both companies are “run” by techies who have too much time on their hands, so they design most software for total geeks like themselves, and forget that there is a “real world” outside.
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Gmail’s New Compose And Reply Experience: Worse Than Microsoft!
Not satisfied with changing Gmail in ways that are NOT user-friendly—certainly for lawyers and others in business—Google has FORCED its Gmail users to adopt a new compose and reply system, which is atrocious!
See https://support.google.com/mail/answer/2645922?p=newcompose&hl=en&rd=1#survey=true
Google has not changed its time-tested search engine, but its GEEKS must have too much time on their hands, so they are screwing up Gmail. Instead, they should be fired!
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Google’s Chrome Is The Worst Browser And Unusable!
Aside from its non-existent customer support and other problems discussed above, Google’s Chrome browser is terrible.
Without any warning, and with few tabs open, the browser stops working and a message similar to the one shown above appears. Normally, more tabs are affected adversely; and all of them are frozen—along with the browser itself—and will not work.
I was just writing a comment at a Web site and the curser and Chrome browser froze, as a message similar to the one above appeared!
One can consult Google’s fact sheets and forums, but nothing makes any difference. Like so many Google products, this is another one that is flawed.
GOOGLE’S CHROME BROWSER S-U-C-K-S!
Like its other products that have been scrapped, will this browser be the next product that Google ceases to support, rather than fixes?
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The Latest From Google’s Chrome Browser: Aw Snap!
When this happens, the tabs that are open—relating to Web pages that you have been using, including your favorites—become inoperable completely!
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Google Scraps Its Notifier Too
Google has announced:
See http://www.naegele.com/documents/ImportantAnnouncementonGoogleNotifier.pdf
Notifier is an excellent and very useful product, which performs regardless of the browser that we choose. However, Google’s “techies” have decided to scrap it!
When will management ever learn that the company is morphing into Microsoft . . . or IBM? Once Google’s customers abandon the company, they are unlikely to come back. Facebook is learning this the hard way.
See https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-3285 (“Facebook is losing its audience”)

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For those like me who one day found Gmail notifier didn’t work anymore and can’t live without it:
Forget about the options google offers as replacement. Search “Gmail Notifier Pro” and install it. It’s free, it does the same as our old notifier and does it better.
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Imagine If The Internet Went Down: Court System Hit With Cyberattack
POLITICO has reported:
See http://www.politico.com/story/2014/01/cyberattack-federal-courts-102594.html
I can personally confirm that certain courts could not be accessed yesterday.
A bigger question involves: could any documents be changed or deleted as a result of a Cyberattack?
Anything is possible. However, the federal court system maintains hard copies of recent filings, which are also available online. Thus, it is unlikely that hacking would make a difference in that regard.
Because America’s court system is already burdened by budget cuts (e.g., shorter hours, layoffs), hacking’s immediate effect is to create chaos in the system.
It seems that this hacking episode was relatively short lived. A sustained and effective hacking effort could bring the legal system to a screeching halt. So many filings are made online these days.
Yet, one must realize that the federal system is way ahead of State systems. Docket sheets and individual filings are not available online in many if not most States. However, as the States transition to fully online systems, they will become vulnerable too.
Obviously, all of this raises the larger question about efforts to bring down the Internet itself. Imagine if someday we went online and there was nothing except a blank screen. Worldwide terrorism is growing, not receding; and anything is possible.
Clearly, an EMP Attack would bring this country to a screeching halt . . . killing millions of Americans in the process..
See https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2010/01/19/emp-attack-only-30-million-americans-survive/ (“EMP Attack: Only 30 Million Americans Survive“)
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RUSSIA AND CHINA PUSH FOR CONTROL OF INTERNET
Our two major adversaries and/or enemies are trying to step into the breach of American weakness, created by Barack Obama, and control the Internet.
See https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2010/02/09/russias-putin-is-a-killer/ and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2011/01/13/china-is-americas-enemy-make-no-mistake-about-that/ (see also the comments beneath both articles)
Both countries have demonstrated their willingness and ability to manipulate the Internet in their own countries for political and strategic advantages. Imagine the damage they will do to the United States and the West if they control the Internet in any way.
Brendan Sasso has written for the National Journal:
See http://www.nationaljournal.com/tech/when-u-s-steps-back-will-russia-and-china-control-the-internet-20140317 (emphasis added); see also http://www.nationaljournal.com/tech/republicans-fear-obama-will-let-russia-seize-internet-power-20140402 (“Republicans Fear Obama Will Let Russia Seize Internet Power”)
We are on the verge of war with Russia’s dictator-for-life Putin; and China is challenging the United States and our allies in the Pacific. Is there any reason to trust either country?
At a bare minimum, freedom of speech is at stake. Equally at risk are our national security and Internet commerce.
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Is The Cloud Safe?
This is an issue that Penny Crosman of the American Banker addresses in a new article, which is worth reading. She is Editor in Chief of Bank Technology News and Technology Editor of the American Banker. She has had senior editorial roles at Bank Systems & Technology, Wall Street & Technology, Intelligent Enterprise and Network Magazine, among other titles.
See http://www.americanbanker.com/issues/179_170/are-cloud-services-safe-icloud-breach-revives-debate-1069736-1.html
“Password gaming” is the least of the problems. Those who are bent on hurting and/or destroying the United States will try to take down entire clouds (e.g., using “Denial-Of-Service Attacks”).
Rajiv Gupta is quoted as asking: “How safe is a motor car?” With all due respect to him, our adversaries (including State adversaries and terrorists) are not bent on destroying the motor car, but there are with respect to America’s business and national security operations.
Indeed, our adversaries want to take down whole systems, not merely penetrate them.
James Gordon is correct in citing Snowden, who is in Russia presently, where they have granted him asylum; and who knows what secrets he has provided to the Russians.
However, I respectfully disagree with Gordon: the cloud cannot be made safe, especially when individual clouds can be taken down on a wholesale basis by America’s adversaries.
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Are Google Smartwatches Here To Stay?
See http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2015/02/11/slow-start-for-android-smartwatches
Google has many strengths that have served it well. Its search engine is still the best on the market; and to its regular users, it has not changed at all. However, the company goes into some areas “half-heartedly,” and then abandons them; or its techies institute unnecessary changes apparently because they have too much time on their hands.
For example, Google abandoned its Knols after a whole culture existed around them. Its Chromebooks have never really gained any traction. It has no customer support, which Apple excels at. Its Chrome browser becomes unresponsive after a while, and messages appear that say:
It scrapped its “Notifier,” which was very helpful; and instead, it tags e-mail messages with labels—such as “promotions,” “updates” and the like—which is a total waste of time. Most of the labeling is inane and does not fit the individual messages at all.
Google’s Gmail has been complicated with other changes that are unnecessary—which apparently, once again, reflects the fact that its techies have too much time on their hands.
How soon will Google abandon its watches? It may be just a matter of time.
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The Death Of Adobe Flash
In an article by Robert McMillan, the Wall Street Journal has reported:
See http://www.wsj.com/articles/tech-world-prepares-obituary-for-adobe-flash-1437341315 (“Tech World Prepares Obituary for Adobe Flash”) (emphasis added)
I have been on the Web for more than 20 years, since I bought my first Apple. Adobe Flash is a nuisance; and I have been concerned about security problems recently.
No more did I upgrade to the latest version than I was prompted to do so again. This has never happened before. Indeed, I would go months if not years without upgrading.
Adobe essentially offers no customer support, even after you buy their products and a short time passes. It is not a customer-friendly company. Like Microsoft that has botched one consumer product after another, Adobe’s monopoly seems to be coming to an end.
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The Lawless State Bar and Microsoft Ruin The California Bar Exam [UPDATED]
Joe Patrice of Above the Law has written:
See http://abovethelaw.com/2017/07/microsoft-ruins-the-bar-exam/ (emphasis added)
The real culprit is the despicable State Bar of California. Anyone who believes in or trusts the State Bar is ignorant, or part of the problem. It is lawless and a travesty, and it should have been abolished years ago.
It is like belonging to a private club that discriminates, and is run by an inbred clique or cabal. At best, it is a third-rate trade association—and Sacramento and Washington, D.C. are full of them.
See https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2014/09/08/the-state-bar-of-california-is-lawless-and-a-travesty-and-should-be-abolished/ (“The State Bar Of California Is Lawless And A Travesty, And Should Be Abolished“); see also http://www.courthousenews.com/california-closer-creating-sanctuary-state/ (“California Closer to Creating Sanctuary State”—”Over objections from sheriffs’ unions and the California Police Chiefs Association, the California Assembly Judiciary Committee took a step forward in making the Golden State a sanctuary for undocumented immigrants”) and http://abovethelaw.com/2017/07/california-bar-examiners-stripped-of-authority-to-determine-passing-score-on-state-bar-exam/?rf=1 (“California Bar Examiners Stripped Of Authority To Determine Passing Score On State Bar Exam“)
Microsoft has been ripping off its customers for years. Its forced upgrades are unconscionable, but predictable to the Apple faithful who watch with amusement.
See, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/ (“Is Google Becoming Microsoft Or Worse?“)
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High Court: Online Shoppers Can Be Forced To Pay Sales Tax
Jessica Gresko has written for the Associated Press:
See https://apnews.com/332abb7455cb4b60b2effc0852ff3c89 (emphasis added); see also http://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/south-dakota-v-wayfair-inc/ (South Dakota v. Wayfair, 17-494)
Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist issued the following statement on the South Dakota v. Wayfair decision:
See https://www.atr.org/norquist-statement-south-dakota-v-wayfair?amp
Norquist is correct. Lots of us began using the Internet more than 25 years ago, when it was referred to as a “dirt road,” not the super-information highway that it has become. It has grown dramatically since then, because it was free, and free of the reaches of taxing authorities around the world.
With this decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, the EU and every taxing authority globally may deem it to be “open season” on taxes, and the result may be chaos beyond belief.
See also https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_taxes (“Internet taxes“) and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Dakota_v._Wayfair,_Inc. (“South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc.“)
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Dethrone Google Bigtime?
The users of Google’s Gmail are being forced to adopt its second new version, whether they want to do so or not. This smacks of what Gmail users went through when my article above was written.
More importantly, John D. McKinnon and Douglas MacMillan have written in the Wall Street Journal about Google’s biases (see the Obama-centric logo above) and censorship:
See https://www.wsj.com/articles/google-workers-discussed-tweaking-search-function-to-counter-travel-ban-1537488472 (“Google Workers Discussed Tweaking Search Function to Counter Travel Ban“) (emphasis added); see also https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-2479 (“Google Is ‘Pimping’ For Obama!”)
Sadly, Google—in which lots of us have believed—has been “outed” as being biased for many years.
Its biases must be flushed out and eliminated permanently and/or it must be broken up pursuant to U.S. or EU antitrust laws.
Nothing less will suffice.
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Has Amazon Joined The Ranks Of Google And Facebook In Despicable Leftist Censorship? [UPDATED]
Reportedly, Bill O’Reilly paid $32 million to FOX’s Lis Wiehl to settle her sexual claims against him. He has never denied the settlement or the amount.
No one pays a staggering sum of money to someone else in settlement of claims, much less $32 MILLION, unless they are guilty as sin.
See, e.g., https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/21/business/media/bill-oreilly-sexual-harassment.html (“Bill O’Reilly Settled New Harassment Claim, Then Fox Renewed His Contract“)
O’Reilly was fired by FOX at the very height of his fame, because of multiple claims of sexual harassment. The disgraced former anchor has been shamed, yet he is appearing in TV spots on FOX, touting his new book “Killing the SS: The Hunt for the Worst War Criminals in History.”
First, like Harvey Weinstein, Roman Polanski, Bill Cosby and other sexual predators, O’Reilly and his new book should be boycotted. Indeed, I wrote a review at Amazon that essentially said that, which was posted on Amazon’s Web site. [Amazon review of O’Reilly book] Then, it was taken down, for no apparent reason.
Second, O’Reilly is irrelevant today, and spurned like the other sexual predators, which is probably why he is taking out ads on FOX, hawking his book.
Third, by implementing censorship, Amazon has become complicit in the O’Reilly-Wiehl cover-up. This is akin to Google and Facebook censorship, which is despicable.
Amazon must be boycotted for censorship. Nothing less will suffice.
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Boycott The Leftist Wall Street Journal [UPDATED]
The Editorial Board of the Wall Street Journal has written:
See
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-high-school-deplorables-11548202058 (“The High School Deplorables“) (emphasis added); see also http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/death-threats-and-protest-kentucky-town-reels-from-fallout-over-lincoln-memorial-face-off/2019/01/22/dfefef74-1e63-11e9-9145-3f74070bbdb9_story.html (“Kentucky town reels from fallout over viral National Mall faceoff“) and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-14837 (“Dethrone Google Bigtime?“) and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-14975 (“Has Amazon Joined The Ranks Of Google And Facebook In Despicable Leftist Censorship?“) and https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/jan/24/don-shipley-finds-nathan-phillips-stayed-us-during/ (“Nathan Phillips stayed in U.S. during Vietnam War and went AWOL 3 times, ‘stolen valor’ hunter finds“)
Every bit as ugly as “a righteous leftist mob”—and America is full of them (e.g., Antifa, “Black Lives Matter”)—is censorship by the Wall Street Journal, which should be run out of business and boycotted.
Today, the Journal engages in despicable Leftist censorship as much as Facebook, Google and Amazon. To refer to Leftists, or so-called “progressives,” as retards is to see one’s comments banished from the Journal.
It is not worth reading anymore. Like its sister publication, The Times of London that many of us stopped reading years ago—and the UK’s Economist and Financial Times, Time and Newsweek magazines—they are relics of a bygone era.
See https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2017/05/16/americas-newest-civil-war-2017-and-beyond/#comment-14564 (“Newspapers Are Dead, Not Dying“)
What the Journal‘s editorial neglected to mention are the anti-Catholic sentiments in America and other areas of the world, and how they underpin and underscore what has happened to the young boys of Covington Catholic High School. This flagrant omission is unconscionable and seeming intentional.
Lots of us have criticized the Catholic Church’s leadership in countless ways, but it is the only Christian religion that stands its ground in important ways, such as its consistent pro-life positions. Other Christian religions and sects amount to watered-down Christianity at best.
See, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/12/20/abortions-and-autos-kill-more-in-america-than-guns/#comment-14156 (“Bogus Catholic Web Site Attacks Trump“)
And yes, the families of lots of us have been Catholics for literally hundreds of years; and we are coming back to the Church to reform it, not to betray or destroy it.
See, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2010/04/05/the-catholic-church-at-a-crossroads/ (“The Catholic Church At A Crossroads“) (see also the comments beneath the article)
Next, there are no such creatures as “Native Americans”—unless the term applies to all of us. Each of our ancestors came from somewhere else; and like the term “progressive,” it has been fabricated by the despicable Left to garner sympathy and votes. As I have written:
See https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2010/02/26/america-a-rich-tapestry-of-life/ (“America: A Rich Tapestry Of Life“)
Also, the Journal‘s half-hearted defense of the Catholic boys is consistent with its Leftist leanings for years now. With so much genuine news available on the Web for free, why would anyone pay a cent for the Journal now or in the future?
See, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2017/01/04/the-president-and-first-lady/#comment-10060 (“The American Left Needs To Understand: Democracy Is Not Your Plaything“) and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2015/12/06/islamophobia-is-un-american/#comment-7908 (“The Ugly Face of Islamophobia: Wall Street Journal’s Bret Stephens”) and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2015/12/11/boycott-the-gop-and-ignore-foreign-naysayers/#comment-7960 (“More Trash Talk About Donald Trump From Bret Stephens“)
Lastly, what has happened to these young boys is reminiscent of what happened to the Duke lacrosse players and Ray Donovan, who were found to be innocent. As Donovan famously and rightly stated:
See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duke_lacrosse_case (“Duke lacrosse case“) and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_J._Donovan (“Raymond J. Donovan“)
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Censorship In The UK, And The Loss Of Fundamental Freedoms
[Wallis Simpson and Meghan Markle]
Jo Tweedy has written for the UK’s Daily Mail:
See https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-6768921/One-BLOCKED-Royal-family-issues-stern-social-media-guidelines-followers.html (“Royals get tough on cyberbullying: Aides warn social media followers they could be reported to POLICE for abusing Meghan and Kate online – after Kensington Palace admitted it spends hours blocking vile comments“) (emphasis added)
This is not about the lovely Kate Middleton: the Duchess of Cambridge and future Queen of England; and the mother of a future King, Prince George.
The “safe environment” that they are seeking to create is for #MEGXIT, or Meghan Markle, the unknown American “B” TV actress and divorcee whom Kate’s husband and the future King William’s brother Harry married, after dumb and dumber Harry lived a life of addictions and debauchery.
Also, it seems that the Daily Mail is implementing such “guidelines” already at its Web site, and censoring or eliminating comments that do not adhere.
The Daily Mail must be boycotted until such censorship stops. Harry and his paramour may bring about the downfall of the UK’s Royal Family, certainly after the present Queen Elizabeth is gone.
Like Wallis Simpson before her, Markle may produce unintended consequences for the Royal Family, which may be dramatic.
See, e.g., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallis_Simpson (“Wallis Simpson“)
[Wallis Simpson and former king Edward VIII]
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Decline In Readers, Ads Leads Hundreds Of Newspapers To Fold [UPDATED]
This is the title of a fine article in AP NEWS by David Bauder and David A. Lieb:
See https://apnews.com/0c59cf4a09114238af55fe18e32bc454 (emphasis added); see also https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-15829 (“Boycott The Leftist Wall Street Journal“) and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2017/05/16/americas-newest-civil-war-2017-and-beyond/#comment-14564 (“Newspapers Are Dead, Not Dying“) and http://www.tucsonsentinel.com/local/report/032119_star_press/daily-star-halt-presses-republic-will-print-tucson-newspaper-phoenix/ (“Daily Star to halt presses; Republic will print Tucson newspaper in Phoenix”)
I have been on the Web since late 1992—more than 25 years ago—when I purchased my first Apple laptop, and when the Web was referred to as a “dirt road,” and not the information superhighway that it is today.
Web sites can be started for peanuts, quite literally. If the news is truly newsworthy, put it on the Web where it can be updated and disseminated instantly.
There is no magic to any of this. It is common sense.
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Censorship Is Rampant At The UK’s Daily Mail And Elsewhere [UPDATED]
The UK’s Daily Mail commenced wholesale censorship and discrimination recently when the decadent British monarchy instituted strict censorship guidelines to protect Prince Harry’s American TV actress/wife from blistering criticism and comparisons to Wallis Simpson.
Obviously intimidated, the Daily Mail and its sister entity, MailOnline, followed suit immediately.
See, e.g., https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-6768921/One-BLOCKED-Royal-family-issues-stern-social-media-guidelines-followers.html (“Royal family issues stern social media guidelines for followers“); see also https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-16287 (“Censorship In The UK, And The Loss Of Fundamental Freedoms“) and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallis_Simpson (“Wallis Simpson“)
The Daily Mail routinely trashes our President Trump, and the McCann family who have suffered since the disappearance of their young daughter Madeleine.
See, e.g., https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6816327/The-48-questions-Kate-McCann-didnt-answer-disappearance-daughter-Madeleine.html (“The 48 questions Kate McCann didn’t answer about the disappearance of daughter Madeleine“)
Both the Daily Mail and MailOnline should be banned and/or boycotted in the United States. Massive defamation and/or libel suits should be brought against it and its management, including its editor, Geordie Greig—who can be reached at geordie.greig@dailymail.co.uk
See, e.g., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geordie_Greig (“Geordie Greig“)
The measures adopted in the UK, and enforced by Greig’s Daily Mail and MailOnline, are not dissimilar to the draconian rules being put into effect by Russia’s killer Putin.
See, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2015/11/29/the-death-of-putin-and-russia-the-final-chapter-of-the-cold-war/#comment-16498 (“Russia’s Killer Putin Seeks To Silence His Critics“)
Also, what about censorship by Amazon, Google, Facebook and other American entities?
See, e.g., https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/mar/19/trump-says-twitter-facebook-engage-collusion-suppr/ (“Trump says Twitter, Facebook engage in ‘collusion’ to suppress conservatives”) and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-14975 (“Has Amazon Joined The Ranks Of Google And Facebook In Despicable Leftist Censorship?“)
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Can Google Be Trusted? [UPDATED]
In an e-mail message entitled, “Save your Google+ content before March 31, 2019,” the Google “faithful” just learned:
Google has done this before.
See, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-14837 (“Dethrone Google Bigtime?“) and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-3289 (“Google Scraps Its Notifier Too“) and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse (“Is Google Becoming Microsoft Or Worse?”)
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RIP Google+
Annie Palmer has written for the UK’s Daily Mail:
See https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-6878265/RIP-Google-Firm-officially-shuts-failed-social-media-network-today.html (“RIP Google+: Firm officially shuts down its failed social media network today and begins to wipe users’ content from the site”); see also https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-16505 (“Can Google Be Trusted?“)
Again, the question must be asked, and answered: Can Google be trusted?
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TIME 100: Irrelevant [UPDATED]
The failing Time magazine released its issue cataloging the “Most Influential People” for 2019.
See http://time.com/collection/100-most-influential-people-2019/
First, Time is irrelevant today. It has been for many years. Few Americans buy or read it. Sometime in the not-too-distant future, it may cease to exist altogether.
Second, most Americans have never heard of “all but a few” of the people named by Time, nor do they recognize the photographs.
Third, largely missing from the listing are White Americans (including White Hispanics), who constituted 72% of the total U.S. population in the 2010 United States Census.
See, e.g., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Americans (“White Americans“) and https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/04/16/pew-research-hispanics-to-outpace-black-americans-as-largest-voting-minority-in-2020/ (“Hispanics to Outpace Black Americans as Largest Voting Minority in 2020“)
Fourth, the selected writers are absurd; for example, Chris Christie who trashes President Trump regularly, and Sally Yates who should be in prison along with Robert Mueller.
See, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2018/03/11/robert-mueller-should-be-executed-for-treason/#comment-16041 (“Robert Mueller Is A Traitor Who Must Receive The Most Severe Punishment Possible Under American Laws“) and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2018/05/06/what-atrocities-did-robert-mueller-commit-in-vietnam/ (“What Atrocities Did Robert Mueller Commit In Vietnam?“)
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Ban Or Boycott Discriminatory DISQUS
More and more Americans and people from other countries are rising up and saying “enough is enough” with Disqus, which is the autocratic decision maker regarding comments at Web sites, blogs and other portals around the world.
They are calling for the deletion or complete banning of Disqus because, like Facebook and Google, it is discriminatory. If one posts links with comments, they are immediately flagged as spam and disappear. Also, some commenters are banned by Disqus because of their political views.
More and more Web sites, blogs and other portals need to ban and/or boycott Disqus completely. Keith Lang, the founder of FatFrogMedia, has written:
See https://fatfrogmedia.com/delete-disqus-comments-wordpress/ (“Why I Deleted Disqus And Why You Should Too“) (emphasis added; graphics omitted); see also https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disqus (“Disqus“)
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Boycott AT&T And CNN [UPDATED]
Sandy Fitzgerald has written at Newsmax.com:
See https://www.newsmax.com/finance/streettalk/trump-att-cnn-boycott/2019/06/03/id/918637/ (“Trump: AT&T Boycott Would Force CNN to ‘Make Big Changes'”) (emphasis added); see also https://thehill.com/homenews/media/441557-cnn-sees-ratings-swoon-in-april (“CNN sees ratings swoon in April“) and https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2019/04/29/the-democrats-are-evil-but-smart-while-the-republicans-are-neanderthals-and-dumb/#comment-17068 (“The Freaks Are Running The Circus’ Asylum“) and https://www.breitbart.com/the-media/2019/06/04/nolte-far-left-cnn-suffers-double-digit-primetime-ratings-crash-in-may/ (“Far-Left CNN Suffers Double Digit Primetime Ratings Crash“)
Only by having both AT&T and CNN pay, and pay dearly, will much-needed changes be made, such as firing the despicable Don Lemon.
Lots of us used to watch CNN regularly, but haven’t watched it since President Trump began running for office, and CNN savaged him daily.
[Rachel Maddow and Don Lemon]
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Big Media Is being Taken Down By The American People [UPDATED]
[Rachel Maddow and Don Lemon]
The freaks of Nature are being rejected by Americans.
Rob Bluey and Virginia Allen have reported for The Daily Signal:
See https://www.dailysignal.com/2019/07/01/big-media-is-plotting-to-take-down-trump-what-can-you-do/ (“Big Media Is Plotting to Take Down Trump“) (emphasis in original; audio omitted)
So-called “Big Media” or “FAKE NEWS” is collapsing. A shining example is what had been happening at CNN. Its viewership has declined dramatically. For example, John Nolte has reported at Breitbart:
See https://www.breitbart.com/the-media/2019/07/03/nolte-cnn-death-spiral-continues-with-double-digit-q2-ratings-collapse/ (“CNN Death Spiral Continues with Double Digit Q2 Ratings Collapse“) (emphasis in original; video omitted); see also https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-17505 (“Boycott AT&T And CNN“) and https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/jul/4/inside-the-beltway-sunday-talk-shows-falter-in-the/ (“Sunday talk shows falter in the ratings“)
Lastly, Brent Bozell is correct, CNN has committed suicide:
See also https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7353901/Don-Lemon-accused-grabbing-genitals-shoving-fingers-Florida-mans-face-suit.html (“Don Lemon accused of grabbing his genitals, then shoving his fingers in a Florida man’s face in suit“)
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Tim, great information.
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Thank you, Sarah. 😊
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In 2018, U.S. Newspaper Circulation Reached Its Lowest Level Since 1940 [UPDATED]
Michael Barthel, a senior researcher focusing on journalism research at Pew Research Center, has reported:
See https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/07/23/key-takeaways-state-of-the-news-media-2018/ (“5 key takeaways about the state of the news media in 2018“) (emphasis in original; diagrams omitted); see also https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/25/is-google-becoming-microsoft-or-worse/#comment-16403 (“Decline In Readers, Ads Leads Hundreds Of Newspapers To Fold“) and https://apnews.com/b56662573647af12c6d7d9c9c4a10c6f (“California newspaper ends print publication after 161 years“)
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Google’s Climate Change Party Brings 114 Private Jets And An 800-Ton Carbon Footprint [UPDATED]
As my article above and the extensive comments beneath it make crystal clear, man-made so-called “global warming” is a total hoax and a $34 trillion swindle. As if anything is necessary to underscore these conclusions, Tim Stickings and Dianne Apen-Sadler have written in the UK’s Daily Mail:
See https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7311015/Google-splashes-20million-Italian-climate-change-party.html (“The $20million climate change party: How Camp Google racked up an 800-tonne carbon footprint flying ‘hypocritical’ celebrities to environmental talking shop on 114 private jets to watch Coldplay and hang out on mega-yachts“) (emphasis added); see also https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2015/11/30/a-34-trillion-swindle-the-shame-of-global-warming/#comment-7850 (“Marie Antoinette’s Merry Band Of Elitist Warmers“)
The UK’s Prince Harry and his American-born B-actress Meghan Markle—known to her detractors in the UK and globally as #MeAgain—are infamous for wasting the monies of UK’s taxpayers. And the rest of the guests at Google’s party seem oblivious to the impact that such climate hucksters are having on our planet.
See, e.g., https://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-7320461/STEPHEN-GLOVER-hypocrisy-party-loving-elites-like-Hugh-Grant-Leona-Lewis-shameless.html (“From gun control to climate change, the hypocrisy of party-loving elites like Hugh Grant and Leona Lewis is shameless“) and https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7345369/Prince-Harry-stayed-gas-guzzling-super-yacht-Googles-green-summit.html (“Prince Harry ‘stayed on a gas guzzling super-yacht for Google’s green summit'”)
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See https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2022-03-10/exclusive-facebook-and-instagram-to-temporarily-allow-calls-for-violence-against-russians (“Facebook Temporarily Allows Posts on Ukraine War Calling for Violence Against Invading Russians or Putin’s Death”)
This is a lie. Russia’s psychopathic megalomaniac KGB-trained killer Vladimir Putin’s censors must work at Facebook. Freedom of speech is not allowed there, in the midst of his savage slaughter of innocent Ukrainians, and threats to launch World War III.
We know that China’s censors work there.
Facebook’s so-called “Oversight Board” is a complete travesty. Indeed, Facebook must be broken up or regulated out of existence. Its practices are as sinister as any suppressions imposed by the odious Putin, or his predecessors Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin.
#FFacebook or #FFB
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