December 2003 - cypherpunks-legacy

ATTENTION: OPERATION `WOODCOCK BLUDGEON' WILL COMMENCE SHORTLY
by catalyst-remailer＠netcom.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

To Whom It May Concern: We will shortly be commencing operation Woodcock Bludgeon. During this period you will experience some confusion and chaos due to secondary effects of our meme carrier launchings in cyberspace. This is a warmup `proof of principle' test for our more important, larger scale meme construction, fabrication, and penetration projects. We assure you that these operations will help advance cyberspatial development past the current major blockages in the Matrix and combat future insidious perversions in the continuum (many of which you may be personally familiar with). Emphasis and urgency will be focused on the most drained and threatened meme areas. Please exercise the utmost discretion in your personal meme possession and conveyance during this period of transition. We apologize in advance for any inconvenience this may cause. \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ _________ _________ _________ / / \ \ / / \ \ / / \ \ / / / / / / / / ______ / / / / / / ~~~~ / / / / / __ \ / / / / / / / ~~~ __/ ~~~_/ / / ~~~ / / / ____ / /~\ \ /~~~~_ / / /~~~~~~~ \ \ / / / / \ \ \ ~~~ _ \ / / ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~ ~~~~ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ C y b e r a n a r c h i s t R e p r e s s i o n a n d P o i s o n

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intelligent networks
by jim＠bilbo.suite.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

There's an interesting article in the July 11'th edition of Communications Week on page 8 of the Network Monitoring & Testing insert. Here are some selected paragraphs: "The convergence of technologies for multimedia promises a new age of "super-smart networks" to give users the ultimate weapon in monitoring and testing." "These new multimedia networks...offer sophisticated self monitoring from a central signal distribution point, or head end, to the customer's doorstep." "..hybrid fiber coax networks are, "a bit of a paradigm shift from previous networks in the sense that a large part of testing is eliminated and replaced by proactive maintenance in surveillance fashion." "The hybrid network has monitoring everywhere, and that surveillance allows us to do proactive maintenance and isolation of problems." "You can ask the network about itself, and discover things such as whether its healthy of not, whether it's got a phone call up, how a phone call is connected through the network or whether or not video is enabled at a particular home." "...the network can test the NIU (Network Interface Unit) on the side of every home to determine whether a problem lies between the central office and the home or resides in a wiring flaw in the customer's home." "...the set-top boxes in the network will belong to the service providers. But for test and monitoring purposes, US West will be able to tap all the information flowing back from that set-top box into the network, Emmot says." With networks like that, who needs a Digital Telephony Bill? Jim_Miller(a)suite.com

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Re: ATTENTION: OPERATION `WOODCOCK BLUDGEON' WILL COMMENCE SHORTLY
by jamiel＠sybase.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

At 11:23 AM 07/15/94 -0700, catalyst-remailer(a)netcom.com wrote: > \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ > _________ _________ _________ > / / \ \ / / \ \ / / \ \ > / / / / / / / / ______ / / / / > / / ~~~~ / / / / / __ \ / / / / > / / / ~~~ __/ ~~~_/ / / ~~~ / > / / ____ / /~\ \ /~~~~_ / / /~~~~~~~ > \ \ / / / / \ \ \ ~~~ _ \ / / > ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~ ~~~~ > \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ Well, at least it came with a good .sig. -j -- "Blah Blah Blah" ___________________________________________________________________ Jamie Lawrence <jamiel(a)sybase.com>

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Re: ID card from hell
by frissell＠panix.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Three messages from Tim May concatenated: >Many of Duncan's refutations boil down to "What about tourists?" >The answer for the Feds is simple: temporary ID cards for tourists. >3. The card acts essentially like the one citizen-units would receive, >perhaps not fully authorizing certain things. > >4. Employers, even for casual work, would be required to check these >cards, > >Electronic "point of sale" terminals, similar to cash machines, could >make this "painless." Even if cash is not outlawed--a different, and >even more controversial topic--such "work permits" could be enforced >in various way. >I basically agree with Duncan's noble sentiments. I just don't think >it likely that the "What about the tourists?" argument will stop the >national ID juggernaut once it begins to move. >Perry makes my point well. That some people will be able to skirt the >system, or that the system will ultimately be unenforceable, does not >lessen my concerns. >Anyway, I see the imposition of internal passports--with a name chosen >for easiest acceptance, probably something like "Social Benefits >Card"--as very likely and not easily avoided. Just the tying of such >cards to driving would be devastatingly effective. As a reader of utopian & dystopian literature since the 1950's (remember, the Land of Oz was a utopian Socialist State), I was always hung up on control technology and the possibilities of the State getting carried away. Since I have been involved with computers and Cypherpunks my outlook has reversed. Let's assume for purposes of argument that the Feds have both the will and the money to impose tight financial and regulatory controls on American society. I will even assume that *we* don't exist and there is no high-tech opposition. Let's further assume that they rope in their NAFTA and G-7 (Gang of 7 Major Industrialized Countries - US, Canada, Japan, England, France, Germany, and Italy) partners in some sort of control regime to accomplish God knows what. I guess their psychology is something along the lines of Houseman: But no they will not, They must still Bend their neighbor to their Will And make me dance as *they* desire With jail and gallows and Hellfire. The "Coercive Metaphor" as I like to call it fits in well with Klinton's Bismarckian orientation. Note his lovefest with Helmut a few days ago. He likes the German model of labor markets (where *all* jobs require a certificate, where working during your holiday is a federal crime) and medical care. Where everything is either mandatory or prohibited. Opposed to this model is the Anglo Saxon model of individual rights. (X.25 vs TCP/IP to you networking types.) Here's the problem for Control Freaks: even if they get everything they want it does them no good. So they get their systems in place and they start spitting out data. What do they do with the data? You run checks on something the size of the G-7 economy, and you get tons of hits showing anomalies. You can't deal with all of them so you tighten your parameters until you cover the (small) part of the deviate population that you have the resources to do anything about. Oh, you can employ all sorts of AI programs to "catch" deviates and you can automate the punishment systems to deprive the deviants of "benefits" and permissions. We see this today with the automatic driver's license suspensions for a host of offenses." But cutting people off from "benefits" just gives them the incentive to *work* for a living and they come out of it stronger than ever with no ties to the government. Until you deploy killer robots to snuff deviates you can't make inroads into deviance purely by the application of force. The Commies tried. Slick Willie only has the balls to snuff a few Branch Davidians and Retail Pharmaceutical Salesmen. "Wet Work" is expensive. Our prisons are likewise. In New York City these days the big crusade is against unlicensed drivers running over kids. (Apparently, New Yorkers prefer their families to be decimated by *licensed* drivers.) The State automatically issues suspensions and people keep driving. The record is several hundred suspensions. Note if you look around that even though there are more control attempts by the State, things are less and less under control. Compliance is *not* increasing. Because direct application of force is difficult and expensive, it is rare. What Control Freaks need is *voluntary* obedience. But that is based on respect for powerful institutions (which is falling). We are primates and try to get along with our "tribe." In the past our "tribe" was village, then local area, then nation state. Today, technology has broken things up so that we can form many different sorts of "tribes." If we obey the mores of our "tribe" it is increasingly unlikely that that "tribe will correspond to the geographical nation state. I obey the mores of my *tribe* -- libertarian net dwellers. Others are members of other "tribes." We will collectively tend not to obey our nation states and their power will therefore decline. It is perfectly possible to have a rich full life even though you disobey your nation state. You need not even be an outcast any longer. There are *other* communities in which you can find full acceptance and support *without* having to move. I'm sure there will be much more to say later but I've run down... >And everyone go out and read or reread Brunner's "The Shockwave >Rider." Also Harry Harrison's "Stainless Steel Rat" series. Not for the technology but for the philosophy. DCF "Nineteen Eighty-Four Knocking at your door Will you let it come Will you let it run Your life." --- Awaiting proper definition of Mime sound file standards.

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True Lies and other wiretaps
by Ray 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

There's some pretty good bits of government abuse of wiretaps in Arnold's newest mega-blockbuster, _True Lies_. (big abuses of wiretaps really) Apparently the terrorists in this movie must use clipper because the "Omega Sector" (the government superspy agency in the movie) decrypts some of the terrorist's files in a matter of minutes. Probably just another bit of Cameron's humor, because the movie is loaded with unlikely events which are hilarious. -Ray

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Re: National ID cards are just the driver's licenses...
by frissell＠panix.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

At 06:41 PM 7/15/94 +0100, Graham Toal wrote: >I'd love to take part in a list for discussing practical ways of >assuring privacy. I've been doing it myself for years. How about >asking Robert Hayden to start up a specific mailing list for it? >(Some name like 'obfusc', for obfuscating database entries etc...?) >- description: 'discussions of practical real-life ways of improving >personal privacy.' How about "Hardcore Privacy" > >Also, you tend to mention things in dribs and drabs... in fact, didn't >you do a sort of mini privacy-101 some years ago by posting little >snippets of advice in your .sig file every post? Do you have >any collected files with _lots_ of this stuff in it already that we >could read? That was me. I'm kind of lazy about pulling everything together in one place. DCF "Give me a rule, I'll give you a work-around."

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Re: Leaving the Country
by frissell＠panix.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

At 10:50 AM 7/15/94 -0700, Timothy C. May wrote: >As a step short of leaving the U.S. (partly because I think that while >the U.S. gets the Net attention for its Gorewellian plans, other >countries are following suit or have already done so), I've been to >Nevada to scout out property (no state income tax, lower real estate >prices, fairly mild climate, little welfare) and plan to check out the >coastal regions of Florida (also no state income tax). FYI - the states with no (general) tax on wages are: New Hampshire* Florida Texas Tennesee South Dakota Wyoming Nevada Washington Alaska* *No (general) sales tax either. How do they do it -- Magic. DCF Privacy 101 - In 1944, my friend Byrt ran into this girl on the street that he knew from his old neighborhood. He told her where he was sleeping. That evening, the Geheime Staatspolizei visited Byrt and invited him to become a guest of the German government. One year later, elements of Patton's Third Army rescued Byrt from his mistake of telling someone where he slept.

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Re: Leaving the Country
by analyst＠Onramp.NET 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

>FYI - the states with no (general) tax on wages are: > >New Hampshire* >Florida >Texas >Tennesee >South Dakota >Wyoming >Nevada >Washington >Alaska* > >*No (general) sales tax either. How do they do it -- Magic. *New Hampshire--alcohol sales (state run liquor stores), anything else? *Alaska--lots of oil. -- Benjamin McLemore analyst(a)onramp.net

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Re: Leaving the Country
by smb＠research.att.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

FYI - the states with no (general) tax on wages are: New Hampshire* Florida Texas Tennesee South Dakota Wyoming Nevada Washington Alaska* *No (general) sales tax either. How do they do it -- Magic. Magic? TANSTAAFL. Alaska has oil money (or has had it), and New Hampshire provides (relatively speaking) fewer services to its citizens, according to folks I know who have lived there. Knowing the politics of much of this list, that's probably considered a Good Thing by many; I disagree, but I won't clutter the list with (even more) politics. But if you're thinking of moving anywhere, find out what you *aren't* getting for your money, and see if it's worth it.

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Re: ID card from hell
by Blanc Weber 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

>From Duncan Frissell: It is perfectly possible to have a rich full life even though you disobey your nation state. You need not even be an outcast any longer. There are *other* communities in which you can find full acceptance and support *without* having to move. ..................................................... But it isn't the acceptance of a small group which is the problem - it is the effects of the macrocosm upon the minor element ("tribe", group, or just individual): It is that you must live in their re-arrangements of reality more and more, and in the actual reality less and less; one's own area of authority is constantly reduced, replaced by their overriding decisions. First they nationalize your possessions, then your mind: but it can also be done the other way: while everyone is freely engaging in commercial transactions across national boundaries, in the background everyone is being corralled into a national identity scheme by which they can be made responsive to the "needs of the State" (legitimate law enforcement, etc.) It's not so much the fact that everyone is identifiable individually for every place they go and everything they purchase, etc. which is so much the issue (at least for me); it is that the connection to the Holy Leadership is always maintained, like a tether - you always know, psychologically, to whom you are attached and to whom therefore, you must surrender your money, your time, your identity card........ It's just continous war. I appreciate the tips which Duncan provides, even if they're inconvenient and don't work for everyone. There oughta be a FAQ for Hitchhikers on the Galaxy, on "How to Live Among Them". Blanc

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