xml-dev - RE: XML, MicroSoft, Torquemada and Comics (was RE: XML in .NET - moretha

["Bullard, Claude L (Len)" <clbullar@ingr.com>]

Knowing a barrage of "stop this" posts will follow:

Karellan hid behind a screen that would not 
let the negotiator see him until the negotiator 
obtained a device to pierce the screen.  Then 
he understood why Karellan's race would not 
move among the humans. Somewhere deep 
in their race memory or genetic code, this 
shape was the shape of the light bringer which 
they had learned to associate with the 
end of the world, the race of lucifer.  
When childhood's end came and they evolved 
into the next higher form, they 
did not fear Karellan who now moved among 
them openly as through many generations of 
careful guidance, they had learned to leave such 
superstitions behind.

Yet as the humans evolved into the next  
form, Karellan made note to himself some 
aspect of the humans that he wanted to 
report to his masters for use in the eternal 
task of understanding the hidden motives 
of the one whose purposes remained forever hidden 
to them yet whom they willingly served and 
bided their time for without that understanding, 
they could not evolve.

Prometheus, a Titan, did not think it wise 
to keep fire from the mortals.  The children 
of Zeus understood the mortals would evolve 
past a need for them and wanted to keep that 
from happening for as long as possible.  Being 
a Titan without a need for worship, Prometheus 
did not care.  He knew the mortals were the 
future and one brave act was left to his own 
race.

Brave Odysseus was a man who wanted more 
than any other thing to go home from the senseless 
war that had taken the lives of the best, the 
strongest, the most valiant of his land.
Along the way, both titan and god tried to 
stop him, but such was his desire and commitment, 
even the powers of immortals could not change his 
self-chosen destiny.

Fear of the future is the siren that begs one 
to yield to death.  Tie yourself to the mast 
and listen if you must, but do not abandon ship.

When Microsoft became one of the first and foremost 
of the titans to support markup, it may or may 
not have fully understood what such support 
would do its product lines.  It did know that 
such evolution was inevitable and irresistable 
and decided that it would be better to go 
forward than to simply stand on the sidelines 
and carp. Those that did know what it would 
do have patiently waited to see the next 
form.

Better bad XHTML than good RTF.  Patience.

len

http://fly.hiwaay.net/~cbullard/lensongs.ram

Ekam sat.h, Vipraah bahudhaa vadanti.
Daamyata. Datta. Dayadhvam.h

From: Joshua Allen [mailto:joshuaa@microsoft.com]

Don't trust the people with hooves.  Did you ever read "Childhood's End" by
Arthur C. Clarke?  Reminds me of another story, though.  Some guy named
Prometheus, who took the technology of the elite and gave it to the masses.
When he "bundled" fire, though, without requiring anything in return from
the humans, that was one step too far..