For a time, it seemed, Bill Gates actually understood the importance of public image. Then yesterday Reuters reported that the Microsoft chairman, at a speech in Washington, "mocked a $100 laptop computer for developing countries" that has been the focus of a highly publicized MIT project.
Now there are plenty of reasons that a $100 might not be feasible on the general consumer market, but those issues can be discussed rationally and without sarcasm. Is it possible that the reporters covering this speech mischaracterized Gates' remarks? Of course. But given his reputation for arrogance, one would think that Gates would take pains at least to feign the appearance of diplomacy--especially when the subject is a non-profit program for children of developing nations, undertaken by an academic institution.
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