December 2003 - cypherpunks-legacy

Filing FOIA Requests
by ozymandias G desiderata 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

A large group of my friends and I are interested in finding out exactly what the cheeseballs over in Intelligence, Inc. have on file about us. Does anyone have handy the details necessary to file a Freedom of Information Act request for your own file? Do y'all have some hints so that we can expect the best possible yield? On the same note, do any of you have any humorous / chilling stories about what you found out when you got your file? Thanks in advance for the info, ozymandias G desiderata

2 1

DTI Pointers?
by ozymandias G desiderata 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

I'm taking public speaking so that I can finally get out of college and into the big wide world, and have decided to educate my class on the controversy surrounding the Digital Telephony Initiative. I need hardcopy to make my TA happy, and after an (admittedly quick) browsing of the archives, I wasn't able to find much in the way of hard information. Are there any good pointers, especially to the recent Lehman version of the bill and the controversy that now surrounds the EFF? Thanks in advance for your help, ozymandias G desiderata

1 0

Puzzle Palace
by fhalper＠pilot.njin.net 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

I just finished reading the Puzzle Palace and I thought it was quite interesting Does anyone know where I could find some more info on the NRO and DIA, or even info on what the NSA has been up to for the last ten or so years, besides the obvious. Thanks to whoever recommended the book to me, I don't remember who it was. Reuben -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reuben Halper "I'm not growing up, I'm just burnin' out." Montclair High - Green Day - Montclair, NJ E-mail: fhalper(a)pilot.njin.net or PGP 2.6ui Public Key Reuben8878(a)aol.com available upon request --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4 5

RE: Chomsky quote (thread from hell)
by Blanc Weber 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

From: James A. Donald The intended effect is to make us feel that such "extreme" freedom of speech is a bit excessive and not really necessary or desirable. . . . Thus he is actually making a misleading and spurious argument *against* freedom of speech at the same time as he is piously declaring himself to be in favor of freedom of speech. ............................................................... James, couldn't he simply be taken at his word - his explicit expression, rather than the implied "catty nastiness". If it was not what he really meant, he would eventually be irritated enough by the full acceptance of his apparent support for liberty to come out and say more precisely what he really wants people to think, so they don't go on allowing freedoms which he is really trying to prevent. Blanc

1 0

Re: HTTP authentication efforts
by rah＠shipwright.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

At 10:05 PM 9/20/94 -0500, Paul Ferguson wrote: >Howdy guys 'n gals. > >As much as I'd love to rant about Detweiler getting an account on Colorado >Supernet, I must put aside my insidious remarks for the time being. > >Does anyone know, on the off-chance, who is currently working on >HTTP authentication processes for web browsing and Mosiac? > >Pointers appreciated. One pointer, coming up! >Date: Sun, 28 Aug 94 04:30:02 EDT >From: www-buyinfo-request(a)allegra.att.com >To: www-buyinfo(a)allegra.att.com >Subject: weekly www-buyinfo reminder >X-UIDL: 778077798.009 > >Weekly reminder for the www-buyinfo mailing list. > >Please note that the mailing address for subscribe/unsubscribe is > www-buyinfo-request > ******* >To subscribe: > Send mail to www-buyinfo-request(a)allegra.att.com > Body of message (NOT Subject:) subscribe www-buyinfo >To unsubscribe: > Send mail to www-buyinfo-request(a)allegra.att.com > Body of message (NOT Subject:) unsubscribe www-buyinfo >To contribute to the mailing list: > Send mail to www-buyinfo(a)allegra.att.com > >Mail archives will be located in: > ftp.research.att.com:/dist/www-buyinfo-archive/ >Hypermail archives are located at: > http://www.research.att.com/www-buyinfo/archive/ > ----------------- Robert Hettinga (rah(a)shipwright.com) "There is no difference between someone Shipwright Development Corporation who eats too little and sees Heaven and 44 Farquhar Street someone who drinks too much and sees Boston, MA 02331 USA snakes." -- Bertrand Russell (617) 323-7923

1 0

Humorous / Chilling FOIA Requests
by John Young 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Responding to msg by ogd(a)selway.umt.edu (ozymandias G desiderata) on Mon, 03 Oct 11:49 AM > On the same note, do any of you have any humorous / >chilling stories about what you found out when you got >your file? The best I heard is that of a fairly noteworthy 60s radical who asked for his FBI file and was completely demoralized to learn that his FOIA request was the first and only item in his brand new file. No one there cared about him until then -- or so he was told. Since then I have heard that this was a technique used by the LEAs to blow people away and discourage them from getting their real files. Quite illegal, to be sure, but well within approved procedures of the time. Probably still done. John

1 0

Bomb information ban
by SINCLAIR DOUGLAS N 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Caught from the radio this morning: Toronto (Canada) city council is debating a by-law to ban information on bomb construction. This after one of the council members was mailed a faulty (or fake) pipe-bomb. Rough quote: ~This is different than the gun control issue because there is no valid use for bombs.~ I wonder how much of the libraries' engineering books section they'll have to burn because of this.

1 0

Re: Judge Rejects Delay on FBI Wiretap Data
by merriman＠metronet.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

>Subject: Judge Rejects Delay on FBI Wiretap Data >Date: 3 Oct 1994 16:49:03 GMT >============================================================= >PRESS RELEASE >For immediate release >October 3, 1994 >Contact: > Marc Rotenberg, EPIC Director > David Sobel, EPIC Legal Counsel > 202 544 9240 (tel) > JUDGE REJECTS DELAY ON FBI WIRETAP DATA; > "STUNNED" BY BUREAU'S REQUEST >WASHINGTON, D.C.- A federal judge today denied the FBI's request >for a five-year delay in processing documents concerning wiretap >legislation now pending in Congress. > Saying he was "stunned" by the Bureau's attempt to postpone >court proceedings for five years, U.S. District Judge Charles R. >Richey ordered the FBI to release the material or to explain its >reasons for withholding it by November 4. > The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), a public >interest research group based in Washington, DC, filed the Freedom >of Information Act lawsuit on August 9, the day legislation was >introduced in Congress to authorize the expenditure of $500 >million to make the nation's communications systems easier to >wiretap. The group is seeking the public release of two surveys >cited by FBI Director Louis Freeh in support of the pending >legislation. > The FBI had moved to stay proceedings in the case until June >1999, more than five years after the filing of the initial >request. The Bureau asserted it was confronted with "a backlog of >pending FOIA requests awaiting processing." The FBI revealed that >there are "an estimated 20 pages to be reviewed" but said that the >materials would not be reviewed until "sometime in March 1999." > Judge Richey rejected the FBI's claims in sharp language from >the bench. He told the government's attorney to "call Director >Freeh and tell him I said this matter can be taken care of in an >hour and a half." > In court papers filed late last week, EPIC charged that >the requested materials are far too important to be kept secret. >"The requested surveys were part of the FBI's long-standing >campaign to gain passage of unprecedented legislation requiring >the nation's telecommunications carriers to redesign their >telephone networks to more easily facilitate court-ordered >wiretapping," said the EPIC brief. > Earlier documents obtained through the FOIA in similar >litigation with the FBI revealed no technical obstacles to the >exercise of court-authorized wire surveillance. > The FBI is pushing for quick enactment of the wiretap >legislation in the closing days of the 103rd Congress. A >grassroots campaign to oppose the measure is being coordinated by >EPIC and Voters Telecomm Watch. > The Electronic Privacy Information Center is a project of >Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility, a membership >organization based in Palo Alto, California, and the Fund for >Constitutional Government, a Washington-based foundation dedicated >to the protection of Constitutional freedoms. 202 544 9240 (tel), >202 547 5482 (fax), info(a)epic.org (e-mail). >============================================================= - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Finger merriman(a)metronet.com for PGP/RIPEM public keys and fingerprints. Unencrypted Email may be ignored without notice to sender. PGP preferred. Remember: It is not enough to _obey_ Big Brother; you must also learn to *love* Big Brother.

1 0

Re: List of reliable remailers
by John A. Perry 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- On Mon, 3 Oct 1994, Istvan von Keszi wrote: > Thanks Raph. This is very helpful for those of us who are code > handicapped. This is very helpful as a general guide. > > Unfortunately, I've found that the information that it provides does not > help me with remailer reliability. I've seen a remailer that supposedly > has a latency of 8 or 9 hours, actually delay 24. > > This makes your script fairly ineffectual. > > You can't do diddly with bad data ... > > Istvan. If you think you can do a better job *gratis*, I'll be more than happy to send you a copy of the remailer code that I run on jpunix.com. Also, I'll bet Raph would send you a copy of the ping code so you can demonstrate the superior service you can provide. If you really don't think you can provide a superior service... well... people that live in glass houses... John Perry - perry(a)jpunix.com P.S. If you don't know what gratis means, drop me an email message and I'll try to explain it to you. - -- PGP 2.61 key for perry(a)jpunix.com is on the keyservers. PGP-encrypted e-mail welcome! -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6.1 iQCVAwUBLpCdW1OTpEThrthvAQF2bgP9FSuPvxUljINzhINA97VVRaxS/gps5Vw/ NSKub5o93yaGCJoBClYUplxh+Foe9Gqm/+hjJc+pMAaG7HYI2rMRgy7Ro9tyt3Dk QOakuJljmDEKVP2XEq051tH7y1TXI7+FLmnG5y4i2ukRXDVCK0kK5JtP4rY2l8Sa ty3hXYRVKoE= =qddV -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

1 0

Re: Bomb information ban
by merriman＠metronet.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

>Caught from the radio this morning: > > Toronto (Canada) city council is debating a by-law to ban information >on bomb construction. This after one of the council members was mailed >a faulty (or fake) pipe-bomb. Rough quote: ~This is different than the >gun control issue because there is no valid use for bombs.~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Bull. They're great for blowing something up..... > >I wonder how much of the libraries' engineering books section they'll >have to burn because of this. > > All. What part of Engineering doesn't have some impact or use in bombmaking/usage? Dave Merriman - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Finger merriman(a)metronet.com for PGP/RIPEM public keys and fingerprints. Unencrypted Email may be ignored without notice to sender. PGP preferred. Remember: It is not enough to _obey_ Big Brother; you must also learn to *love* Big Brother.

7 6