May 1998
Libertarian students hold DC rally for Microsoft
Young Libertarians used an old political technique to show their displeasure of the Justice Department's antitrust investigation of Microsoft Corporation -- the protest rally.
About two dozen George Washington University students gathered in front of the Department of Justice building in Washington, DC, on April 7, carrying signs and chanting, "Don't punish success; leave Gates alone!"
The students, members of the GWU College Libertarians and GWU Objectivists Club, said their protest was designed to send the message that the "government has gone too far" in its prosecution of the giant software company.
"We, as believers in private property and the free market, believe that the government has no place in regulating the business practices of Microsoft," said Ryan Sager, the vice president of the GWU Libertarians. "It is time for the American people to tell the government to back off. Decisions about product design and packaging should be left to companies -- not the government."
Students at the rally echoed his sentiments, with signs that read, "Freedom Leads to Success" and "Bill Gates is Good For America."
Shannon MacDonald, the co-president of the GWU Objectivist Club, accused the government of punishing Microsoft for "having had success" in the software industry.
"Mr. Gates, according to the Justice Department, is guilty of nothing more than having had success in his business practices; of having possessed the intelligence required to continue surpassing, in every aspect imaginable, his competitors," she said.
Gates is the target of a possible anti-trust suit by the Department of Justice, which has charged Microsoft with engaging in "anti-competitive business practices" by bundling Internet Explorer with its Windows 95 operating system.
