Lee incorrectly assumes that there was a broad consensus among educated people 20 years ago that Y2K would be a problem. If that were the case, why would multi-billion dollar corporations as diverse as software companies, financial services and oil giants--all of which are generally pretty good at looking after their own interests--have continued to invest in technology that was plagued, in Lee's words, by "programming ineptitude?" "For those of use who like to keep count" writes Lee, "that's $600 billion" spent on Y2K. I do like to keep count. And so does the U.S. government. The Y2K White House official told me that the correct number was $200 billion.
It seems that Lee has a Y2K bug of his own: gullibility to ultra right-wing propaganda.
Guy L. Smith '01
Feb. 12, 2000
Construction Unnecessary, May Harm Dumbarton Oaks
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Construction May Endanger Dumbarton Oaks GardensHarvard's Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection in Washington, D.C., the site of the World War II conference that resulted
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DartboardThe Secret Garden I was in Washington, D.C. last month with some European relatives who were sightseeing. Lo and behold,
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Blighted Tree Saves Dumbarton GardenIt wasn't so much the persistent protest, though that may have played a role. A rotten tree--and its removal--have persuaded
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William R. Tyler To Direct Center Of Byzantine ArtWilliam R. Tyler, currently Ambassador to the Netherlands, has been named director of the Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection
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Wolff Appointed To History Seat For Balkan WorkRobert L. Wolff, '36, authority on relations between eastern and western Europe, has been appointed Coolidge Professor of History at
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Lib. Acquires New PropertyHarvard has expanded the resources for the Dumbarton Oaks research library with the purchase of a property in Washington, D.C., that will eventually house the institute’s research fellows.
