|  Bill
Frezza is venture capitalist, the past president of a technology consulting
company, and a longtime columnist who trumpeted his libertarian beliefs
with blunt, no-nonsense prose.
During his six-year stint as a weekly columnist for InternetWeek,
Frezza pulled no punches. Can you name one other writer who called Washington
politicians "a sorry, unproductive, shameful, irrelevant bunch
of windbags"? Or who described the Republicans and Democrats as
"feuding parasites"? Or who wrote about campaign contributions:
"You can buy as many politicians as you want, but they don't stay
bought"?
In his columns, Frezza made it clear what he supports: "Free market
capitalism." He made it clear what he opposes: A government that
"pushes to undermine, subvert, and neutralize our hard-won freedoms."
From his InternetWeek column, here are some examples of Frezza's
unflinching libertarian views:
* On the Microsoft antitrust lawsuit: "How is
Microsoft responding? By giving money to politicians. Bill Gates opened
his wallet, showering contributions on his tormentors thinking they
might leave him alone. Bill, don't be an imbecile. Stop writing checks.
That's exactly what your assailants want. The money you are funneling
into the political system is no different than the protection money
the Mafia demands from shopkeepers in return for not breaking their
windows." (December 20, 1999)
* On federal civil rights legislation: "While
correcting a grievous moral wrong, racial discrimination, the remedy
sowed the seeds for the destruction of the freedom of association and
the right of private contract." (February 1, 1999)
* On taxes: "The past century surpasses all others
in history in both the depth and breadth of taxing powers assumed by
governments." (September 19, 2000)
* On the Carnivore e-mail spying system: "A program
whose goal is nothing short of the installation of a permanently embedded,
comprehensive, and systemwide surveillance capability into the fabric
of the Internet." (August 7, 2000)
*
On the future: "The age of liberty has begun. Unlike the
Roaring Twenties, when the central government was powerful enough to
turn a recession into a protracted depression, today's government is
so palpably broken, careening headlong toward a chronically dysfunctional
state, that it can be safely discounted. Washington will remain a bleeding
tax on progress, but as a tapeworm rather than a cancer." (December
7, 2000)
* On voting: "Fewer than half the eligible voters
in this country participated in the last presidential election. This
is not a sign of apathy; it is a triumph of reason. It is far better
to focus on building a better future with your own two hands than to
squander your moral sanction by bestowing mandates on leeches."
(December 20, 1999)
Frezza stepped down as an InternetWeek columnist in December
2000, saying he was "afraid [of] becoming a bore." From now
on, he wrote, "My harangues will have to be reserved for my poor
dinner companions."
Frezza is the past president of Wireless Computing Associates, Inc.
(a strategy consulting service for the telecommunications industry)
and a former director of the Materials Research Society (MRS). Since
1997, he has been a general partner in Adams Capital Management, Inc.,
which manages telecommunications and information technology venture
funds. In addition, Frezza serves on the board of directors of AmberWave
Systems Corporation, Connex Technology, and VBrick Systems, Inc. He
holds seven patents.
-- Bill Winter |
