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Bill Gates - Satan or Saint?
Giving it all away...?

16 October 2006

by Huw Collingbourne

Interesting article on the BBC web site charting the transformation of Bill Gates. No longer the demon geek from Hell. Now more of a zillionaire Mother Teresa...



In time, Microsoft went from a cool local software company that made it very big, to a sort of global menace, in the eyes of some. It was said to be a ruthless predator, a monopolist, a force of evil. There were numerous web sites devoted to comparisons between Bill Gates and Satan.

[...]

But starting about five years ago, Bill Gates went through an extraordinary transformation, and so did his home town. Married, with three children, he and his wife started the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. They promised to give away most of their wealth, and do so at a relatively young age.

[...]

In short order, the Gates Foundation became the world’s largest philanthropy, with more than $25 billion in assets. They’ve gone out and hired the best and brightest in select fields, and made it their mission to try to eliminate poverty, disease and illiteracy in some of the world’s most forgotten corners.

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