evil.com

When Google was just another scrappy startup, its slogan, Don't Be Evil, seemed like a mere spoof: a nerdy, whimsical swipe at giant Microsoft, whose bloated software and predatory business practices are indeed disquieting (whether they are the devil's bidding is between Bill Gates and his god).

Now that Google is itself a giant, though, with a market capitalization of $86 billion, the slogan isn't so amusing. Instead, what I take from it is that the company is setting a extremely low standard of behavior for itself. If the only practices Google rules out are the ones that are truly evil, doesn't that leave all kinds of room for business strategies that are questionable, objectionable, downright reprehensible? Even predatory?

Wait, doesn't Google own this blog? Uh oh...