Bonum Certa Men Certa

Consumer Watchdog Funded by the Rose Foundation, Which is Funded by Exxon, Banks, Others...

Following the anti-Google grant...

"...Microsoft wished to promote SCO and its pending lawsuit against IBM and the Linux operating system. But Microsoft did not want to be seen as attacking IBM or Linux."

--Larry Goldfarb, Baystar, key investor in SCO



Summary: Consumer Watchdog, formerly hosted by an AstroTurfing firm, has its Google attack funded ($100,000) by the Rose Foundation, which in turn has other funders

YESTERDAY'S POST about Consumer Watchdog brought the attention of those involved, who mostly defected the questions we asked.

Here is slightly tidied-up log from a conversation that took place over the past hour.

schestowitzUK Gov't Considers Google Tax? http://techdirt.com/articles/20... See my argument with a PAID anti-Google shill: http://boycottnovell.com/2009/05/04/consumer...May 05 13:08
schestowitzHoly FUD! The Mother Of All Anti-Google Rants: Comparing Google To The Taliban < http://techdirt.com/articles/2... >May 05 13:11
oiaohmYou will find its a web in the PR world to hide exactly where the money came from.May 05 13:13
schestowitzoiaohm: yes, there's a limit to how much you can followMay 05 13:13
schestowitzIt becomes challenging at some stageMay 05 13:14
schestowitzSee SCO->BayStar->MSMay 05 13:14
schestowitz"On the same day that CA blasted SCO, Open Source evangelist Eric Raymond revealed a leaked email from SCO's strategic consultant Mike Anderer to their management. The email details how, surprise surprise, Microsoft has arranged virtually all of SCO's financing, hiding behind intermediaries like Baystar Capital." --PerensMay 05 13:14
schestowitz"...Microsoft wished to promote SCO and its pending lawsuit against IBM and the Linux operating system. But Microsoft did not want to be seen as attacking IBM or Linux." --Larry Goldfarb, Baystar, key investor in SCOMay 05 13:14
schestowitz"[Microsoft's] Mr. Emerson and I discussed a variety of investment structures wherein Microsoft would 'backstop,' or guarantee in some way, BayStar's investment.... Microsoft assured me that it would in some way guarantee BayStar's investment in SCO." --Larry GoldfarbMay 05 13:14
oiaohmHmm that template looks strangely linked at www.rosefdn.org  going to check out domain would not be surprised if it not another grassroots site.May 05 13:15
schestowitzhttp://techdirt.com/ar... -- Intel's co-founder says patents are like a bubble waiting to burst.May 05 13:16
schestowitzoiaohm: which one?May 05 13:17
schestowitzI mean, which is like the rosenfdn?May 05 13:17
schestowitzSourceWatch has some good research that show who created what umbrella/shells and whyMay 05 13:17
schestowitzMore details on Elsevier's corruption. http://techdirt.com/articles/2009... Another reason for me never to publish in Elsevier (other than the MS connection)May 05 13:18
oiaohmhttp://electricembers.net/aboutus.php  I wonder if we should contact www.rosefdn.org host.May 05 13:20
oiaohmThey have a strict rule against advertisement of any form.May 05 13:20
schestowitzoiaohm: what about?May 05 13:21
schestowitzI don't quite follow. What to look at..?May 05 13:21
oiaohmelectricembers.net is www.rosefdn.org web host.May 05 13:22
*kentma has quit (Read error: 110 (Connection timed out))May 05 13:22
schestowitzit took the Bulldogs (Watchdog) just HOURS to mail me after I posted in BNMay 05 13:23
schestowitzSo they stalk their own imageMay 05 13:23
schestowitzAnd then they try to police it...May 05 13:23
oiaohmOpp I left out a them and about.May 05 13:23
schestowitzIt's not easy to find me E-mail addy, either.May 05 13:23
schestowitzis rosenfdn rotten?May 05 13:23
schestowitzAll we know is that they make donations to attack GoogleMay 05 13:23
schestowitzBut the question is, on whose behalf, if anyone?May 05 13:24
schestowitzPeople don't just attack Google as a hobbyMay 05 13:24
schestowitzThat's just how people portray themselves in foundationsMay 05 13:24
oiaohmhttp://techdirt.com/articles/200...  Its simple to find the hosts email address.May 05 13:24
schestowitzLike the Gates FoundryMay 05 13:24
schestowitzOr BaystarMay 05 13:24
oiaohmOops wrong link.May 05 13:24
schestowitzMicrosoft's funnel for lawsuits against LinuxMay 05 13:24
schestowitzOh waitMay 05 13:24
oiaohmhttp://toolbar.netcraft.com/si...May 05 13:24
schestowitzhttp://blogs.ft.com/maverecon/2009/...May 05 13:25
schestowitzGoogle=TalibanMay 05 13:25
schestowitzSays the FT, which is praising Microsoft a lotMay 05 13:26
schestowitzoiaohm: is there anything to say what rosenfdn attacks Google?May 05 13:26
schestowitzI look at their pagesMay 05 13:26
schestowitzNOTHING about privacyMay 05 13:26
schestowitzSo the idea that they promote privacy seems mootMay 05 13:26
oiaohmrosenfdn is all meant to be about the environment.May 05 13:27
oiaohmI think contacting them is required to find out if this is a fake link.May 05 13:27
oiaohmIt would not be the first time I have see a PR try that.May 05 13:28
oiaohmhttp://www.rosefdn.org/contactus.php  If they are not in it they will be highly offended.May 05 13:28
oiaohmFake linking basically says astroturfer.May 05 13:29
schestowitzI'll checkMay 05 13:29
oiaohmhttp://www.rosefdn.org/downloads/...  They are the funding source.May 05 13:32
schestowitz"My name is Roy Schestowitz and I am a reporter investigating an entity called Consumer Watchdog. They claim that you funded a campaign of theirs against Google and I just wanted to confirm this because I realise that you focus on benefits to the environment and communities."May 05 13:32
schestowitz"Looking forward to your response."May 05 13:32
oiaohmIts down right huge $100 000 USD>May 05 13:32
schestowitzThat's the E-mail I just sent themMay 05 13:32
oiaohmI googled.May 05 13:32
oiaohmAnd found there list of 2008 grants.May 05 13:32
schestowitzUsefulMay 05 13:33
schestowitzHaMay 05 13:33
schestowitzGoogle is thereMay 05 13:33
schestowitz$100,000May 05 13:33
schestowitz"watchdogged"May 05 13:34
schestowitzThis is sickMay 05 13:35
schestowitzThey are basically funding lots of lobbyistsMay 05 13:35
schestowitzWhy?May 05 13:35
schestowitzWho gains?May 05 13:35
oiaohmSo you are right the first one is just a hired gun.May 05 13:36
oiaohmWhy are lobbyist funding lobbyist.May 05 13:36
schestowitzoiaohm: money chainMay 05 13:37
schestowitzYesMay 05 13:37
oiaohmhttp://www.rosefdn.org/article.php...  Found more of the money chain.May 05 13:40
schestowitzHa.May 05 13:41
schestowitzWell, yesterday I tried to find an MS funnel without much successMay 05 13:41
schestowitz"San Francisco Bay-Delta Fund: Originally seeded with a $900,000 restitution award from Exxon and supplemented by payments from many additional settlements involving San Francisco Baykeeper, California Sportfishing Protection Alliance,"May 05 13:42
schestowitzWha wha?May 05 13:42
schestowitzExxon?May 05 13:42
schestowitz"...Union Bank and Cal Fed Bank..."May 05 13:43
schestowitzSo it's not some God-like rich dude giving this moneyMay 05 13:43
schestowitzIt's corporationsMay 05 13:43
schestowitzInstead of Exxon funding Grassroots.com  (AstroTurf) it's just some <X> foundationMay 05 13:43
oiaohmAnd the banks were most likely given the money to give to the PR group.May 05 13:44
schestowitzhttp://www.rosefdn.org/article.ph...May 05 13:44
oiaohmSo effectively the money has been well and truly washed.May 05 13:45
schestowitzBanks given by whom?May 05 13:45
schestowitzCompanies that have vested interests?May 05 13:45
oiaohmYep.May 05 13:45
oiaohmThat would be normal.May 05 13:45
schestowitzSome funds come from settlements thoughMay 05 13:46
schestowitzI.e. from penalised companiesMay 05 13:46
oiaohmThis money laundering on a grand scale.May 05 13:47
oiaohmYou get ordered to pay money so you pay it to a PR group who will attack your competition.May 05 13:47
oiaohmIf you can of course.May 05 13:48
oiaohmSo unless they come clean about the complete source of this money we cannot even tell if what they are doing is legal or not.May 05 13:48
oiaohmRemember I said the USA system was rotten to the core this is what I was talking about schestowitz.May 05 13:49
schestowitzI know about the PR riddleMay 05 13:49
schestowitzI mean, look at SourceWatchMay 05 13:49
schestowitzit has extensive documentation of just the edge of the machinations of this systemMay 05 13:49
oiaohmDig deep enough and there is illegally used money.May 05 13:49
schestowitzIt had no page that I could find about the RosefdnMay 05 13:50
schestowitzSueMay 05 13:50
schestowitzSureMay 05 13:50
schestowitzLet's stop it thereMay 05 13:50
oiaohmSourceWatch does not track funders.May 05 13:50
schestowitzI'll post this bit of of the log separatelyMay 05 13:50
oiaohmOnly the PR doers.May 05 13:50
schestowitzI don't have much time today to organise the factsMay 05 13:50
schestowitzoiaohm: yesMay 05 13:50
*schestowitz processes the logMay 05 13:52
oiaohmSourceWatch was more created by press people who did not want to be tricked by PR with no interest in finding the source of the fake PR.May 05 13:52


There is some more in yesterday's IRC log. This is where the subject, like many others that we cover, originally came up.

"[Microsoft's] Mr. Emerson and I discussed a variety of investment structures wherein Microsoft would 'backstop,' or guarantee in some way, BayStar's investment.... Microsoft assured me that it would in some way guarantee BayStar's investment in SCO."

--Larry Goldfarb, Baystar, key investor in SCO

Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts

GNU/Linux in Kyrgyzstan: From 0.5% to 5% in Eight Years
the country is almost the size of the UK
Microsoft-Connected Sites Trying to Shift Attention Away From Microsoft's Megabreach Only Days Before Important If Not Unprecedented Grilling by the US Government?
Why does the mainstream media not entertain the possibility a lot of these talking points are directed out of Redmond?
[Video] 'Late Stage Capitalism': Microsoft as an Elaborate Ponzi Scheme (Faking 'Demand' While Portraying the Fraud as an Act of Generosity and Demanding Bailouts)
Being able to express or explain the facts isn't easy because of the buzzwords
 
Firefox Has Fallen to 2% in New Zealand
At around 2%, at least in the US (2% or below this threshold), there's no longer an obligation to test sites for any Gecko-based browser
Winning Streak
Free software prevalence
Links 19/05/2024: Conflicts, The Press, and Spotify Lawsuit
Links for the day
GNU/Linux+ChromeOS at Over 7% in New Zealand
It's also the home of several prominent GNU/Linux advocates
libera.chat (Libera Chat) Turns 3 Today
Freenode in the meantime continues to disintegrate
[Teaser] Freenode NDA Expires in a Few Weeks (What Really Happened 3 Years Ago)
get ready
GNU/Linux is Already Mainstream, But Microsoft is Still Trying to Sabotage That With Illegal Activities and Malicious Campaigns of Lies
To help GNU/Linux grow we'll need to tackle tough issues and recognise Microsoft is a vicious obstacle
Slovenia's Adoption of GNU/Linux in 2024
Whatever the factor/s may be, if these figures are true, then it's something to keep an eye on in the future
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, May 18, 2024
IRC logs for Saturday, May 18, 2024
Links 19/05/2024: Profectus Beta 1.2
Links for the day
Site Archives (Not WordPress)
We've finally finished the work
[Meme] The EPO Delusion
on New Ways of Working
EPO Representatives Outline Latest Attacks on Staff
Not much has happened recently in terms of industrial action
Links 18/05/2024: Revisiting the Harms of Patent Trolls, Google Tries to Bypass (or Plagiarise) Sites Under the Guise of "AI"
Links for the day
Links 18/05/2024: BASIC Story, Site Feeds, and New in Geminispace
Links for the day
Justice for Victims of Online Abuse
The claims asserted or pushed forth by the harasser are categorically denied
[Meme] Senior Software Engineer for Windows
This is becoming like another Novell
Links 18/05/2024: Deterioration of the Net, North Korean IT Workers in the US
Links for the day
Windows in Lebanon: Down to 12%?
latest from statCounter
Links 18/05/2024: Caledonia Emergency Powers, "UK Prosecutor's Office Went Too Far in the Assange Case"
Links for the day
Microsoft ("a Dying Megacorporation that Does Not Create") and IBM: An Era of Dying Giants With Leadership Deficits and Corporate Bailouts (Subsidies From Taxpayers)
Microsoft seems to be resorting to lots of bribes and chasing of bailouts (i.e. money from taxpayers worldwide)
US Patent and Trademark Office Sends Out a Warning to People Who Do Not Use Microsoft's Proprietary Formats
They're punishing people who wish to use open formats
Links 18/05/2024: Fury in Microsoft Over Studio Shutdowns, More Gaming Layoffs
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, May 17, 2024
IRC logs for Friday, May 17, 2024
Links 18/05/2024: KOReader, Benben v0.5.0 Progress Update, and More
Links for the day
[Meme] UEFI 'Secure' Boot Boiling Frog
UEFI 'Secure' Boot: You can just ignore it. You can just turn it off. You can hack on it as a workaround. Just use Windows dammit!
The Market Wants to Delete Windows and Install GNU/Linux, UEFI 'Secure' Boot Must Go!
To be very clear, this has nothing to do with security and those who insist that it is have absolutely no credentials
In the United States Of America the Estimated Share of Google Search Grew After Microsoft's Chatbot Hype (Which Coincided With Mass Layoffs at Bing)
Microsoft's chatbot hype started in late 2022
Techrights Will Categorically Object to Any Attempts to Deny Its Right to Publish Informative, Factual Material
we'll continue to publish about 20 pages per day while challenging censorship attempts
Links 17/05/2024: Microsoft Masks Layoffs With Return-to-office (RTO) Mandates, More YouTube Censorship
Links for the day
YouTube Progresses to the Next Level
YouTube is a ticking time bomb
Journalists and Human Rights Groups Back Julian Assange Ahead of Monday's Likely Very Final Decision
From the past 24 hours...
[Meme] George Washington and the Bill of Rights
Centuries have passed since the days of George Washington, but the principles are still the same
Daniel Pocock: "I've Gone to Some Lengths to Demonstrate How Corporate Bad Actors Have Used Amateur-hour Codes of Conduct to Push Volunteers Into Modern Slavery"
"As David explains, the Codes of Conduct should work the other way around to regulate the poor behavior of corporations who have been far too close to the Debian Suicide Cluster."
Video of Richard Stallman's Talk From Four Weeks Ago
2-hour video of Richard Stallman speaking less than a month ago
statCounter Says Twitter/X Share in Russia Fell From 23% to 2.3% in 3 Years
it seems like YouTube gained a lot
Journalist Who Won Awards for His Coverage of the Julian Assange Ordeals Excluded and Denied Access to Final Hearing
One can speculate about the true reason/s
Richard Stallman's Talk, Scheduled for Two Days Ago, Was Not Canceled But Really Delayed
American in Paris
3 More Weeks for Daniel Pocock's Campaign to Win a Seat in European Parliament Elections
Friday 3 weeks from now is polling day
Microsoft Should Have Been Fined and Sanctioned Over UEFI 'Lockout' (Locking GNU/Linux Out of New PCs)
Why did that not happen?
Gemini Links 16/05/2024: Microsoft Masks Layoffs With Return-to-office (RTO) Mandates, Cash Issues
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, May 16, 2024
IRC logs for Thursday, May 16, 2024
Ex-Red Hat CEO Paul Cormier Did Not Retire, He Just Left IBM/Red Hat a Month Ago (Ahead of Layoff Speculations)
Rather than retire he took a similar position at another company
Linux.com Made Its First 'Article' in Over and Month, It Was 10 Words in Total, and It's Not About Linux
play some 'webapp' and maybe get some digital 'certificate' for a meme like 'clown computing'