Google Snubs Memorial Day--Again

Google Snubs Memorial Day--Again
WND

No holiday logo modification for 9th year in a row.

For the ninth year in a row, the Internet search giant Google declined to mark Memorial Day with its trademarked holiday logo modification – something the company has done for the Chinese New Year, Valentine's Day, Halloween and other observances that have nothing to do with American patriotism or commemorations of military service or war dead.

Google has, in the past, highlight special honors for Percival Lowell, Edvard Munch and Louis Braille. Lowell was an astronomer, Munch an artist, and Braille developed Braille writing for the blind. But while the rest of the nation marked Memorial Day today, Google did not.

Other days that have been honored have included National Teachers Day, Women's Day, Ray Charles' birthday, World Water Day and St. George's Day.

Last year, the company came under fire when, for the eighth year in a row, it made no effort to commemorate any holiday honoring U.S. veterans or war dead on either Veterans Day or Memorial Day. It claimed the holiday was too solemn, though its Canadian homepage did feature a tribute to fallen soldiers.

Besides overlooking Veterans Day and Memorial Day since the company's inception in 1999, it also has ignored Christmas.

Google has been criticized for its one-sided political contributions and content policies:

--Rejecting an ad for a book critical of Bill and Hillary Clinton while continuing to accept anti-Bush themes

--Rejecting ads critical of Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., while continuing to run attack ads against former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas

--Allowing the communist Chinese government to have the search engine block "objectionable" search terms such as "democracy"

In addition, the company came under fire for an editorial decision giving preferential placement to large, elite media outlets such as CNN and the BBC over independent news sources, such as WND, even if they are more recent, pertinent and exhaustive in their coverage.

As WND reported, 98 percent of all political donations by Google employees went to support Democrats, and as a matter of fact, Al Gore is now a senior adviser to Google.

Google CEO Eric Schmidt gave the maximum legal limit of donations to Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry and to primary candidate Howard Dean.

Schmidt also contributed the maximum amount to Sen. Clinton.

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