December 2001 - cypherpunks-legacy

Slashdot | Emergence (Book review about complexity theory)
by Jim Choate 13 Dec '01

13 Dec '01

http://slashdot.org/books/01/12/13/1619253.shtml -- -- ____________________________________________________________________ Day by day the Penguins are making me lose my mind. Bumper Sticker The Armadillo Group ,::////;::-. James Choate Austin, Tx /:'///// ``::>/|/ ravage(a)ssz.com www.ssz.com .', |||| `/( e\ 512-451-7087 -====~~mm-'`-```-mm --'- --------------------------------------------------------------------

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Re: Jewish Terror Attack on US Foiled
by Michael Motyka 13 Dec '01

13 Dec '01

"Jon Beets" <Jon.Beets(a)pacer.com> wrote : > >I still do not understand how we can support Israel as we do..From: > >"Eric Cordian" <emc(a)artifact.psychedelic.net> >> Gosh - doesn't anyone like the United States anymore? Give the fuckers >> $3 billion a year in aid, and they elect a war criminal as their Prime >> Minister and pull shit like this. >> ----- >> LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The chairman of the militant Jewish Defense League and >> a follower have been arrested on suspicion of plotting to blow up a Los >> Angeles mosque and the office of an Arab-American congressman, federal >> authorities said today. Irv Rubin, 56, and a member of the group, Earl >> Krugel, 59, both of Los Angeles, were arrested last night after the last >> component of the bomb -- explosive powder -- was delivered to Krugel's >> home, U.S. Attorney John S. Gordon said. Authorities said the two planned >> to bomb the King Fahd Mosque in Culver City and the office of freshman >> Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif. >> >> -- >> Eric Michael Cordian 0+ > I'm not seeing enough suspicion from you cypherpunks - the man who delivered the "explosive powder" was the federal informant. Golly gee whiz, sound like a familiar scenario? Appeasement anyone? Mike

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13 Dec '01

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Re: [linux-elitists] Phil Zimmermann on key exchange
by AARG! Anonymous 13 Dec '01

13 Dec '01

>non-robot CA master key handling). Use this key to sign a number of This has been repeated ad nauseam, but obviously not frequently enough. No one has been using CAs for anything serious and no one ever will. Outside of circles of fashionable crypto, commercial scams like verisign and greedy non-profits that want to help freedom fighters/armed thugs (definition changes with proximity), no one whose life and well-being depends on it has ever used CA. The simple fact is that it is impossible to have shared secrets of utmost importance with someone that you do not have a secure physical channel with (which automagically obsoletes CA). If your life depends on it you will not risk it by sending such information to a person you have no means of directly authenticating. Strangers do not have secrets, by definition. Why is this so hard to understand ? The beauty of public key schemes created many seemingly plausible PHantasies pursued by quite a few technically savvy folks. But that does not change the basic problem. USG operatives, including Osama bin Laden, do not use public computer-based web of trust to authenticate. These guys KNOW each other. Even in non-government business environments, PGP keys between People Who Matter are exchanged manually. MIS department goons never get to see those. Automated CAs are fine for ad-hoc crypto that prevents casual data harvesting*. But lying to the public about limits of CA schemes will not do crypto any good. * provided, of course, that one does not use popular OS, all of which will soon make all storage available to casual harvesting. Keep those DOS boxes around.

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Re: Axed Intel Man Loses E-Mail Case
by Gil Hamilton 13 Dec '01

13 Dec '01

From: Ralph Wallis [mailto:mischief@optushome.com.au] > > Choates not a poster,he's a spamming menace.How longs he been here? > >Choate >first post: >http://www.inet-one.com/cypherpunks/dir.1996.03.28-1996.04.03/ >msg00034.html Naw, he's been around longer than that. This is the earliest message I can find: http://cypherpunks.venona.com/date/1993/11/msg00633.html It's interesting to note how much more pleasant Choate was in his early days on the list. In those days, he was not so intent on showing everyone that he was an authority on all possible subjects. - GH _________________________________________________________________ MSN Photos is the easiest way to share and print your photos: http://photos.msn.com/support/worldwide.aspx

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Re: AP Al Qaeda
by Nomen Nescio 13 Dec '01

13 Dec '01

John Young writes, regarding Assassination Politics: > AP is a touchy topic for Cypherpunks, whoever they may > be. It is likely the USA is attempting to link AP to Cypherpunks > for prosecution, so not many will want to talk about the > topic. Cypherpunks pioneered the use of encryption and anonymity for many purposes, but one of them was precisely this: to allow discussion of forbidden subjects. > So my opinion is that AP is a lure set out by the authorities > to entrap the unwary, Cypherpunks among them. I believe > that Bell and Johnson have been, and are continuing to be, > a part of that lure, whether witting or unwitting. That's bullshit. Surely you can't deny that AP was conceived by Bell exactly as what it was claimed to be, a tool to be used against government agents who overstep their authority and violate the rights of American citizens. (And as an important consequence it would therefore encourage governments to behave legally and respectfully towards their citizens, as they should.) Bell certainly did not conceive of AP as a way of entrapping cypherpunks. He didn't even know about cypherpunks when he came up with the idea. > AP is highy suspect, and becoming more so as it gets > additional promotion, not by whatever adherents it may > have but by its opponents. I expect AP to be used to > advance the anti-terrorism industry now booming. > > Just keep in mind that AP is a joke among knowledgeable > technologists for its unworkability, but a wonderful joke > on those who believe it's anything more than a taunt. Total bullshit again. Sure, AP requires anonymous digital cash, but so do most other elements of the cypherpunk vision. Would you say that crypto anarchy, information black markets, and commerce among pseudonyms are "a joke"? These are just as hypothetical as AP at present. It's entirely possible that some form of anonymous cash will be developed in the next few years, and once that happens AP will be trivial to implement. It's far from a joke, it is a very real possibility. AP is part of the dark side of the cypherpunk dream and it must be faced rather than evaded. The real problem with AP is not that it would be illegal, because much of what cypherpunks call for is presently illegal. Rather, the problem with AP is that it is mob rule at its worst. There are no checks and balances. It is the height of folly to suppose that AP would be used only against those whom cypherpunks themselves oppose, like corrupt government agents. AP could be used against anyone who has a high profile. If AP were implemented, there is no question but that Jim Bell would be one of the first targets! All those people who found himself on his list, along with their heirs and successors, would want revenge. Everyone involved with the assassinations would be anonymous except Bell himself, making him the most prominent target of their wrath. Other notable supporters of crypto anarchy would follow soon, such as cypherpunk founders May and Hughes. The people involved with the digital cash would be targets as well, and so on. Despite these unpleasant facts, once digital cash exists, AP will be inevitable, along with many other forms of anonymous murder-for-hire. Cypherpunks have discussed these possibilities from the very beginning. To pretend that AP is somehow outside of the scope of cypherpunk thinking, a hoax or joke perpetrated by outsiders as a lure, is just absurd. With crypto anarchy you have to take the bad with the good. What, then, is the solution to survival in a world of assassins at large? It is simple, and it is in fact the same as the solution to the problem of how to discuss AP in a world in which even mentioning it could get you arrested, the problem which led to John Young's dissembling above. Perhaps the alert reader will be able to conceive of the solution for himself.

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Area 51 Guards On Strike
by Matthew Gaylor 13 Dec '01

13 Dec '01

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Re: Steganography, My Ass: The Dangers of Private and Self-Censorship
by Nomen Nescio 13 Dec '01

13 Dec '01

Declan McCullagh writes: > I always enjoy Jonathan's essays, and this one is no exception. He > properly points out the disturbing analogy that Attorney General > Ashcroft seems to make (http://www.politechbot.com/p-02900.html) > between criticism and treason. What Ashcroft actually said, from the URL above, was: > We need honest, reasoned debate; not fearmongering. To those who > pit Americans against immigrants, and citizens against non-citizens; > to those who scare peace-loving people with phantoms of lost liberty; > my message is this: Your tactics only aid terrorists - for they erode > our national unity and diminish our resolve. They give ammunition to > America's enemies, and pause to America's friends. They encourage people > of good will to remain silent in the face of evil. The simple fact is that Ashcroft spoke the truth. Such criticisms do erode national unity and diminish resolve. In fact, most critics would fully agree with these goals. Unity and resolve on a national level scare civil libertarians. A unified nation is a rash nation. Democracies should be thoughtful, their actions carefully considered and taken only after due deliberation. Having a thousand voices urging different courses is far safer than a single voice which all obey. Some claim that behind the truth of Ashcroft's words is a veiled threat. Aiding national enemies is indeed one of the definitions of treason. Yet in the larger sense such a reading is plainly absurd. No Attorney General would ever attempt to make the case that criticising government policy is treasonous and should be forbidden. Hard as it may be for the present audience, blinded by their ideology, to see the real world for what it is, any such attempt would be political suicide. Given this reality, there is clearly no real threat in Ashcroft's statement. Instead the critics are intentionally misreading him in order to accomplish exactly those goals he mentions: to sow disunity and weaken resolve. It is nothing more than a rhetorical trick. Let us hold to the truth. Ashcroft is right in his characterization of his critics' goals, and his critics are right to try to achieve those goals. It is misguided to attack Ashcroft by making the false claim that he views criticism as treason. Instead, critics should attack his position that national unity and resolve must be preserved. This would be a substantive debate which would enlighten the American public and raise awareness of important issues. Unfortunately the critics have descended into politically motivated mud-slinging and have deprived Americans of a valuable opportunity.

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Uzbekistan Eyewitnesses See Dozens of US Casualties
by !Dr. Joe Baptista 13 Dec '01

13 Dec '01

Notes to articles: Once again I am seeing eyewitness reports claiming more U.S. Casualties. Yet I don't see simular reports in the U.S. Press confirming or denying these claims. Time will tell. Dead bodies have a tendency of piling up in Afganistan and I have no doubt that if they do exist they will be eventually noticed. regards joe ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Source: Azzam Publications URL: http://www.azzam.com or http://www.qoqaz.net or http://www.qoqaz.org or http://www.azzam.co.uk Type: Web Pointer; Sample Date: 12 Dec 2001 Title: Uzbekistan Eyewitnesses See Dozens of US Casualties TEXT: 12 December 2001 : Uzbekistan Eyewitnesses See Dozens of US Casualties http://66.96.205.195/~azzam/afghan/news/news.php?id=33 http://www.azzam.com Daily news, articles and interviews on the Jihad in Afghanistan LONDON (IWPR): The London-based Institute for War and Peace Reporting has reported from Khanabad, Uzbekistan, that the US air base in this city is receiving daily flights carrying dead and injured US soldiers. Uzbek sources at Khanabad suggest that the real figures of US casualties are far higher than the Pentagon's official totals. Uzbek army personnel working at the air base said scores of US casualties have been arriving there. From November 25 to December 2, an Uzbek orderly working with American medical staff said he had witnessed the arrival of four to five US helicopters - carrying between them 10-15 American casualties - each day. The orderly said the US staff he was helping confirmed the casualties coming off the aircraft were Americans. A reporter who managed to enter the air base with a group of visiting Uzbek parents said that one whole floor of a building and four large canvas tents were full of injured US soldiers, who have suffered shrapnel and bullet wounds to the arms, leg and head. The airport sources could not confirm how many incoming casualties had died. One Uzbek soldier said that since October 15 he had helped US servicemen load 20 body bags onto American transport planes. But he could not confirm whether they were dead US soldiers. But there is other evidence of American fatalities. One Uzbek officer said US soldiers had told him that four of their comrades had died of their wounds on December 1 while being airlifted to Khanabad. An Uzbek pilot spoke of the death last week of an American soldier who he had become friendly with while he was on the base. The US serviceman, he said, had died in the attempt to end the prison riot on the outskirts of Mazar-e-Sharif two weeks ago. "A lot of American troops died there - it was a real battle, " the pilot said. Uzbek army personnel say the atmosphere on the base has changed distinctly in the last week or so. They say that in October when the Americans began deploying at the airport, they were gung-ho, telling their Uzbek counterparts that it would take no more than a month and a half to defeat the Taleban and al-Qaeda. While the Taleban appear to be on their last legs, al-Qaeda fighters continue to resist in mountain redoubts, with some US servicemen at Khanabad now resigned to a long haul. Uzbek military staff say frustration at this is noticeable. They say they have witnessed growing tensions among American troops, often overhearing arguments and shouting matches. ARAB MUJAHIDEEN WITNESSED AERIAL SUPPORT FROM ALLAAH(SWT) TORA BORA (Special Report): On Saturday afternoon after Asr Prayers, the Eastern Shura launched a concentrated offensive against Mujahideen positions in the Tora Bora mountains. According to news reports from the area, it was the most intense attack launched against them so far. Haji Qadeer's forces had close air and armour support. The US Air Force bombed the Mujahideen positions savegely and heavy armour was also pitted against them. The fighting was so intense that the Mujahideen initiated a tactical retreat to the mountains with light weapons. They had earlier resolved to die fighting instead of being taken prisoner. It was when they had moved back and the forces of the Eastern Shura, supported by a heavy detachment of US ground troops had moved forward, that bombs began to fall on the Coalition forces from the sky, killing 300 of the enemy comprising Americans and Haji Qadeer's militia. This was without doubt a miracle from Allah (SWT) who had blinded the American pilots so that they bombed their own people. The Mujahideen counter- attacked after this incident and killed another 300 US troops/ Alliance militia, capturing 100 prisoners. It has been reported that a joint force of 900 troops including US soldiers and Eastern Shura militia attacked the Mujahideen who numbered around 500 troops. This was a highly organised offensive against the Mujahideen, which was coordinated by high-ranking US military commanders, whose mutilated bodies littered the battlefield at the end of the battle. It has been reported that after this major victory for the Mujahideen, Haji Qadeer asked the Americans to deploy more ground troops as American air support has proved to be impotent against the Mujahideen and lethal instead to the Americans and their agents. The Mujahideen sources claimed that it was doubtlessly help from Allah (SWT) AL-JAZEERA CHANNEL: AMERICAN COMMANDERS KILLED BY MORTAR FIRE IN TORA BORA TORA BORA (Al-Jazeera): It was one day last week when a mortar round from the Arab Mujahideen positions in Tora Bora hit the command center of the Eastern Alliance, while a planning session was in progress. According to news reports, high level US military commanders as well as Haji Qadir's top commanders were present in the session. The command center was destroyed by the round and the Eastern Alliance militia used excessive force to keep the foreign journalists and TV crews from the scene of carnage. Al-Jazeera Network speculated that this harrassement was to cover up the heavy blow dealt to the command structure of the US forces in the area. -- Joe Baptista http://www.dot-god.com/ The dot.GOD Registry, Limited

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