October 2000 - cypherpunks-legacy

CDR: Why Bill Joy is elitist, myopic, and wrong
by Declan McCullagh 31 Oct '00

31 Oct '00

http://www.cluebot.com/article.pl?sid=00/10/30/2058257&mode=nested Why Bill Joy is Elitist, Myopic, and Wrong By Lizard October 30, 2000 The smallpox vaccine will cause people to turn into cows. Trains cannot be permitted to travel more than 20 miles per hour, or else the passengers will asphyxiate. The atomic bomb will detonate the entire atmosphere of Earth. The history of science is filled with dire predictions of the consequences of technology, few of which ever come true. (Granted, many of the more lofty hopes for technology likewise fail to appear. Where's my personal helicopter and laser gun, dammit?) But fear sells papers, which explains why Bill Joy is given far more column-inches than he deserves. (Joy, the cofounder of Sun Microsystems, spoke at a Camden Technology conference over the weekend.) The most distressing thing about his Luddite stand is the undercurrent of elitism which flows by without criticism. The common man must not be permitted access to the glorious fruits of science, he says, because out there among the teeming masses might be murderers and madmen. Well, we'd probably better make sure they don't get their hands on fire and the wheel, too -- who knows what might happen? Joy is wrong on a wide range of levels, but his most egregious error is that he has precisely the wrong solution to the alleged problem. If he fears the misuse of biotech or nanotech, the last thing that should be done is to turn these technologies into state secrets, because that puts the knowledge right into the hands of those with a history of using it for evil, namely, politicians. If something can be done, it will be done, and all that suppressing information will achieve is ensuring there is not ready access to counter-measures to whatever devious plots Joy's hypothetical supercriminals may devise. "Open sourcing" technology will all but guarantee that for every uber-anthrax, there's an uber-vaccine; for every bit of world-devouring grey-goo, there's something that will eat it even faster. Locking technology away is no solution. If the public knowledge base of the world has reached the point where one scientist can make the next breakthrough, then there are dozens of other scientists who can do likewise. And, of course, who will watch the watchers? We've already seen that secrets aren't: There are more leaks in the U.S. national security apparatus than in a Russian space station. Better to simply open it up and be done with it. There is nothing dehumanizing about the probable merger of flesh and silicon. It simply continues the path man began when the first barely-erect hairy ape realized a fist holding a rock got you more than a fist alone. From that moment on, we became defined by our tools. There is no point and no purpose in trying to stop now. Joy is fond of saying "the future doesn't need us." He is almost completely wrong. The future needs most of us. It's just that the future -- and the present -- doesn't need him. To post your response or contact the author, visit: http://www.cluebot.com/article.pl?sid=00/10/30/2058257&mode=nested

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CDR: NZ: Sweeping powers for spy agencies
by An Metet 31 Oct '00

31 Oct '00

http://www.stuff.co.nz/inl/print/0,1103,460236a10,FF.html 29 OCTOBER 2000 Police and government spy agencies are pushing for major new surveillance powers - including the ability to intercept e-mails. In a move the Council for Civil Liberties labels a "major and disturbing intrusion" new surveillance laws are being planned which will allow police and intelligence agencies to hack covertly into home computers and intercept email and other electronic communication. Researcher and author Nicky Hager, says the proposed legislation strongly resembles the British Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act passed amid huge controversy three months ago. But he says unlike the British experience, the New Zealand legislation is being slipped through in stages, as extensions of present laws. The first is to be tabled in parliament in about 10 days. The laws were devised under the National government and can be traced back to a push by the FBI in the United States for standardised spy systems to intercept mobile phones and emails. The changes are now being promoted by Associate Justice Minister Paul Swain, and would also impose "requirements" on Internet service providers and phone companies to co-operate with intelligence agencies and police and install systems to assist spying on their customers. Hager, whose 1996 book on the global Echelon surveillance network prompted a year-long investigation by the European parliament, said the public had a right to demand proof that the new intrusive powers were so crucial that individuals had to give up privacy and freedoms. He said the way the changes were being introduced, piecemeal and in secret, was "a model of bad government". The first legislation expands the interception powers of the police and the Government Communications Security Bureau to cover all forms of electronic communications (including email, faxes and text messaging) and, for the Security Intelligence Service as well, to cover hacking into computer systems to view and copy people's files. This would be achieved by amending the Crimes Act to make it illegal to intercept emails or hack into computers - and then exempting all the intelligence and law enforcement agencies from the new law. The legislation will also increase the status of the GCSB, moving its existing powers into the Crimes Act. The other half of the plan is changes to the Telecommunications Act, requiring telephone companies to make systems "interceptable". Hager says New Zealand officials secretly agreed to implement the surveillance changes after attending a meeting at the FBI headquarters in Quantico, south of Washington DC, in 1993. Swain says the driving force of the law changes is the wish to protect privacy because there is no legislation to say "wandering into someone's internal communications system is illegal". The exemptions for the government agencies came later, he said.

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CDR: Info on Sun key compromise?
by Lucky Green 31 Oct '00

31 Oct '00

Does anybody on this list have details about the key compromise Sun experienced? See http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/1851 AFIK, this is the first published private key compromise of a major vendor. How did it happen? Thanks, -- Lucky Green <shamrock(a)cypherpunks.to> PGP encrypted email preferred.

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CDR: Copyright Office Backs Digital Law
by An Metet 30 Oct '00

30 Oct '00

http://www.nytimes.com/2000/10/30/technology/30LIBE.html By AMY HARMON In a decision giving copyright holders greater control over the way people use books, movies and music that are distributed in digital form, the United States Copyright Office on Friday endorsed a new federal law making it illegal to break the technological safeguards for such works. The statute goes into effect immediately. The ruling was a defeat for several constituencies Ñ including universities, libraries and computer programmers Ñ that had argued that the law should preserve traditional rights to archive and lend out copyrighted material or to use so-called reverse-engineering to understand how a piece of technology works. The provision endorsed by the copyright office is part of the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Congress passed the act to update the copyright law for the digital era, when copying on a mass scale is far easier than it has ever been. Under the act, it is illegal to create or distribute a device like a computer program that can crack the copy- protection security code on an electronic book or a DVD movie disc. This year, a federal judge found that the Web site of 2600 magazine, whose publisher is Eric Corley, had violated the law by distributing a program designed to break the security code on DVD's so that they could be played on computers running the Linux software operating system. But when the judge issued the ruling, the law did not prohibit the actual use of such a device by individuals because of the pending review by the copyright office. Congress had asked the copyright office to determine whether any exemptions were necessary to ensure that the rights of the users of copyrighted works were balanced with those of copyright holders. Media companies including Sony and Time Warner had argued that the statute was necessary to protect their digital material, like computer games and movies, from widespread unauthorized use. But groups like the Association of American Universities, the American Library Association and the Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration maintained that broad exemptions were necessary to preserve the "fair use" rights of individuals. After holding several hearings and receiving comments for almost two years, the copyright office said repeatedly in its ruling that the proponents of various kinds of exemptions had not demonstrated evidence that there would be "substantial harm" if an exemption was not granted. The ruling, issued by the Library of Congress, which oversees the copyright office, will be in effect for three years, during which the copyright office will continue to examine its effect. In a statement, the Library of Congress said that it intended to ask Congress to reconsider that time frame, noting the "potential damage to scholarship may well ensue in the course of a three-year period." Under the law, civil statutory damages for gaining access to a piece of copyrighted material secured by computer code range from $200 to $2,500. Criminal penalties includes fines of as much as $1 million or 10 years in jail for repeat offenses.

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CDR: Important Text - ebay4sex gets laid
by Mary＠toad.com 30 Oct '00

30 Oct '00

We're not weird......we're sexy!!!!!!!! http://www.ebay4sex.com http://www.net4inc.com eBay4Sex goes LIVE! Toronto, Ontario, October 26, 2000 SPE Group introduces leader in Adult entertainment auctions. This past weekend at Torontos Everything to do with Sex show, an online auction catering to the truly authentic amateur and fetish market announced its arrival! Developed by partnering company Rakil.com and served by leading Canadian portal provider Net4Inc.com eBay4Sex is nothing short of a techie-miracle, and Adult wonderland of the rare, used and amateur. The original launch will see the first 10,000 registering visitors to the auction, be given FULL access to one of the nets leading Adult Entertainment web portals, http://www.modeltraders.com. As a result of many partnerships from Russia, Iran, Canada and USA, eBay4Sex offers leading edge functionality and certified security for all online transactions. The ability for users to pay each other for products has almost been completed and we look forward to this attraction. Original product line will be offered from leading manufactures such as the BenWa - Sex toy and paraphernalia products as well as TotallyAmatuer.com Videos. Stay tuned as eBay4Sex sure to become the online auction for the adult entertainment industry.

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CDR: the wild ones
by billp＠nmol.com 30 Oct '00

30 Oct '00

http://members.tripod.com/bill_3_2/load2.htm Us wild ones are having FUN

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CDR: Your 60 day Free offer!
by camping＠quickleads.com 30 Oct '00

30 Oct '00

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CDR: Your 60 day Free offer!
by camping＠quickleads.com 30 Oct '00

30 Oct '00

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CDR: RE: Parties
by Declan McCullagh 30 Oct '00

30 Oct '00

At 09:04 10/30/2000 -0600, Carskadden, Rush wrote: >where he actually says this himself). Under no circumstances do I consider >it wise to fly in the face of checks and balances when your cause is >"right" but you do not have the majority power. There is a reason that >Congress makes laws, just as there is a reason that the Presidents can >veto, as there is a reason that the Judicial system interprets the law. >It's designed to create a balance that protects us from a loose cannon >government going off and acting recklessly. Ah, but they already have. Your beloved "checks and balances" don't work. -Declan

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CDR: Libertarians and political parties
by Declan McCullagh 30 Oct '00

30 Oct '00

Speaking of such, here are some actual facts. I wrote about Rasmussen in a recent Wired article. Here's what their polls say: http://www.portraitofamerica.com/html/poll-1468.html Earlier this year, Rasmussen Research conducted a survey measuring the electorate along a scale favored by many libertarians. This survey found 16% of American voters are functionally libertarian. However, only 2% of voters claim the title of libertarian to describe their own views. -Declan

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