alt Hacker News> they are the only ones that can actually DO something real.
Do you mean to say only monopolies can do 'real' things? I agree that some have, some did them and then became monopolies. And it sure seems like most things done in the world are by non-monopolies. Just look at the IT world.
And who lays the cables for the IT world to even work?
Google does some, but the world's largest carrier is a Swedish company (their former ATT basically)