December 2003 - cypherpunks-legacy

Privacy book list
by SINCLAIR DOUGLAS N 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

I got a letter in the mail today from Plenum Publishing Corp in NY, advertising a book called _Mind Your Own Business: The Battle for Personal Privacy_ by Gini Graham Scott. It seems I am on a mailing list for privacy freaks. Oh the irony! They must have gotten my name from somewhere. The only two sources that I can think of are the lists for CFP '94 and '95, and a revolver club that I used to be a member of. Has anyone else on the list gotten this ad?

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Commercial Speech over Internet product
by baldwin 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Here's an article about a commercial company that is doing speech over the Internet. Maybe someone would like to help them add encryption. --Bob Baldwin, speaking for myself only. ------------------------ TrueSpeech Player enables real-time audio over Internet SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1995 SEP 1 (NB) -- DSP Group Inc. (NASDAQ:DSPG) announced a new Windows product, TrueSpeech Player, that is freely available on the Internet. The TrueSpeech Player enables TrueSpeech- encoded speech to be played in real-time over the Internet. Kurt Magdanz, director of business development at DSP, told Newsbytes, "The TrueSpeech Player utilizes the TrueSpeech compression technology bundled in Microsoft's Windows 95 and Windows NT. True Speech is a very high quality algorithm which compresses speech. TrueSpeech Player allows users to decompress TrueSpeech in real time." With the TrueSpeech compression algorithm, speech is communicated in real- time over standard telephone lines to computers capable of communicating at data rates of 14.4kbps (kilobits per second) or above, Newsbytes was told. Because the TrueSpeech Player converts compressed speech data in real-time, World Wide Web site visitors have access to high-quality speech over the Internet in real time, said Magdanz. "The TrueSpeech Player is our first step in enabling high-quality speech communication in real-time over the Internet," said Yuval Cohen, vice president of business development with the DSP Group. "World Wide Web site and content developers can immediately begin developing TrueSpeech Player- compatible content without paying fees." "Content developers who wish to create TrueSpeech Player-compatible speech content should visit our World Wide Web site for detailed instructions on how to use this new product," said Cohen. DSP Group is currently developing an advanced TrueSpeech Server software package which will offer content developers tools, interaction with the TrueSpeech Player to enable advanced features, live broadcasting capability and enhanced server control with diagnostics, said Magdanz. The TrueSpeech Player can be downloaded freely from DSP Group's World Wide Web site, http://www.dspg.com . DSP is headquartered in Santa Clara, California. (Richard Bowers/19950831/Press Contact: Kurt Magdanz, DSP, 408- 986-4300)

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Correction about who opposes crypto regulations....
by tcmay＠got.net 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

At 2:16 AM 9/8/95, hallam(a)w3.org wrote: >>Nope. but the patriots & the cyPHerpunks share a common goal, and belief >>that it is none of the government's business what we think or want to >>share with our computers. > >Poor you, the only major political party to come out with a pro crypto >statement >is a socialist party. On the contrary, the Libertarian Party has come out strongly in favor of cryptography and privacy, and they are consistently either #3 or #4 in popularity. (I believe Peace and Freedom is usually #4 and LP is usually #3.) Their home page (http://www.access.digex.net/~lphq/lphq.html) says: "The LPHQ is the center of activities of the Libertarian Party, the third largest political party in the U.S. We stand for individual liberty, both in terms of personal and financial freedom." It is impossible to argue that the Libertarian Party is opposed in any way to the right to encrypt, and their 1994 platform makes this clear: "We oppose all proposed regulations of civilian research on encryption methods. We also oppose government classification of such research or requirements that deciphering methods be disclosed to the government." I point this out not to argue in favor of the LP here, but to correct a seriously incorrect statement. --Tim May ---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---- Timothy C. May | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money, tcmay(a)got.net 408-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero Corralitos, CA | knowledge, reputations, information markets, Higher Power: 2^756839 | black markets, collapse of governments. "National borders are just speed bumps on the information superhighway."

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ON OFF-TOPIC
by gjeffers＠socketis.net 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

ON OFF-TOPIC THE UNITED STATES "FEDERAL" GOVERNMENT HAS NO LEGITIMACY! CRYPTO CODERS SUPPLY THE MEANS! CONSPIRACY THEORISTS SUPPLY THE MOTIVATION! conspiracy theorist = alternative political theorist NOT= AP/ABC/CBS/NBC/CIA/FBI/U.S GOV'N./New York Times/Washington Post opinion moulders syndicate "extremist right-wing kook" = old fashioned American patriot Left term used often by left-wing extremist liberal statist kooks. The United States "Federal" Government - we'll be even more American without it. PUSH EM BACK! PUSH EM BACK! WWWAAAYYYY BBBAAACCCK! BBBEEEAAATTTT STATE!

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cryptography eliminates lawyers?
by Cortland D. Starrett 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

As a follow-up to the article reference I posted, I pose the following question: Will cryptographic technology and information (communication) technology reduce the need for legal services in the future? (especially regarding contracts, buying/selling, patent law, etc.) Will legal services just look different? Will they be more efficient (cheaper)? Put bluntly, will cryptography put lawyers out of business? Any comments would be appreciated. Cort.

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Looking for IETF old-timers (and others)
by Michael Froomkin 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

I've put up on a web page some parts of a paper I am writing on Internet jurisprudence. I'd welcome comments from anyone (this is a very early draft), but especially from any IETF old-timers, as the paper has a lot about the early days of internet standardmaking. The URL is http://www.law.miami.edu/~mfroomki/ils/ils.htm A. Michael Froomkin | +1 (305) 284-4285; +1 (305) 284-6506 (fax) Associate Professor of Law | mfroomki(a)umiami.ir.miami.edu U. Miami School of Law | P.O. Box 248087 | It's hot here. And humid. Coral Gables, FL 33124 USA | See (soon to move to its real home): http://www.law.miami.edu/~mfroomki

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Patel decision page 12 handled
by landon_dyer＠wayfarer.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

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Cato Study Release: National ID Card Ineffective and Intrusive
by Thomas Grant Edwards 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

CATO STUDY RELEASE September 7, 1995 National ID card ineffective and intrusive, study says Congressional Republican proposals to create a national computerized registry and an ID card for all American workers would establish "a dangerous, invasive, and unworkable new expansion of federal police-state powers," according to a new Cato Institute study. In "A National ID System: Big Brother's Solution to Illegal Immigration" (Policy Analysis no. 237), John J. Miller and Stephen Moore say Sen. Alan Simpson (R-Wyo.) and Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Tex.) are taking the "critical first step" toward implementing a potentially invasive national worker authorization system. Moore is director of fiscal policy studies at the Cato Institute, and Miller is vice president of the Center for Equal Opportunity. An Orwellian system The authors say that Smith and Simpson want to require an ID card and computerized worker registry for the 150 million Americans and legal immigrants in the U.S. labor force. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) wants that national ID card to include such information as a photograph, fingerprint, and retina scan. The study says such a system would, in effect, "require employers to submit all of their hiring decisions for approval to a federal bureaucrat." The authors call the proposed registry and national ID card "Big Brother's solution to illegal immigration." They say the national ID card would constitute a massive invasion of privacy and violation of basic civil liberties; cost the government $3 billion to $6 billion to implement; subject workers to the effects of potentially huge error rates, with perhaps millions of legal aliens denied jobs because of faulty government databases (even a 2 percent error rate would lead to 1.3 million Americans being wrongfully denied jobs); increase discrimination against Latin and Asian Americans; and, ultimately, fail to affect illegal immigration. Moore and Miller say that, once established, the computer registry could be easily expanded and applied to other areas, vastly increasing the size and scope of government. Some of the potential uses of the system include implementing a Clinton-style health care plan and security card; ensuring employer compliance with affirmative action requirements; tracking child support payments; verifying that parents are getting their children vaccinated; and conducting background checks on would-be gun purchasers, among others. Better approaches available After spending a year defeating the Clinton administration's health security card, Moore and Miller say, the new GOP Congress now wants every American to carry a "work authorization card" that would create similar potential for intrusion and abuse. The authors claim there are ways to address the problem of illegal immigration that would expand, rather than curtail, Americans' basic freedoms. We could, for example, expand legal immigration quotas, eliminate employer sanctions law, establish greater economic integration between the United States and Mexico, restrict welfare eligibility of legal and illegal immigrants, facilitate the deportation of criminal aliens, tighten visa control, and improve border enforcement. Why it matters It is an iron rule of politics that whenever there is a perceived "crisis" in Washington, Congress responds by passing bad laws that expand the powers of government. Moore and Miller say the immigration issue is fertile ground for such laws. The implications of a national ID system would range far beyond today's debate over illegal immigration. The study says the proposed worker registry system has no redeeming feature. It will not curtail illegal immigration, and it will create opportunities for abuse. At a time when Americans are loudly demanding more freedom and smaller government, Moore and Miller say a computer registry is a giant step in the wrong direction.

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Scientology tries to break PGP - and fails?
by modemac＠netcom.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

News Flash! According to an informed source, the so-called "church" of Scientology is trying to force Larry Wollersheim to give them his de-encryption code for PGP. Larry Wollersheim is the director of FACTNet, a Colorado BBS that specializes in distributing information about religious cults - especially the Church of Scientology. Scientologists raided FACTNet recently and seized its hardware and records recently, in a case that has spread news of the Scientology wars all over the Internet. Scientology has been in possession of Larry Wollersheim's computer records for quite a while now - at least three weeks, I believe. They have been scanning it for what they claim to be "copyright violations." Yet, their list of scanning criteria also includes a list of 34 names of their critics and enemies, including a famous Netizen named "Rogue Agent." Yet it seems that despite all their efforts to get what they want, they can't break PGP - so they have to force Wollersheim to reveal the key. Mr. Wollersheim has stated that he will go to jail before he reveals his encryption key. Please forward this note to all interested parties. Call this one: BIG WIN FOR PGP! For more information on Scientology's war against the Internet, read the many Web pages set up to cover the story. My own page, an "Introduction to Scientology," is: http://www.tiac.net/users/modemac/cos.html It includes a link to the FACTNet Web page, as well as Ron Newman's famous Web page: "The Church of Scientology vs. the Net."

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Re: Car rentals, Driver's Licenses, Ecash, & Net Access
by tbyfield＠panix.com 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

At 1:21 PM 9/8/95, Duncan Frissell wrote a very interesting disquisition: <snip> >An attempted cartel of that sort --- one that tries to enlist the billion or >so people who will be easily and reliably switching funds within a few years >--- is doomed to failure. Too many potential 'cheaters.' Too much money to >be made by breaking with the cartel and offering financial services to >others who wish to use them. <snip> One question: Most of your remarks (and you're in no way alone in this regard) seem to assume that uniformity is a sine qua non of law enforcement (as opposed, say, to selective enforcement. Correct me if I'm wrong. I wonder, though, whether this is so; isn't it true that the impossibility of consistent enforcement may well encourage a systemically selective enforcement (maybe shaped by this or that, one's politics, for example)? Presumably, then, law enforcement would take on an increasingly "terroristic" character--"random," as IRS audits and the like can be. Some recent high-profile cases (Packwood, and Kenneth Starr's efforts to indict Gov. Tucker) might indicate the shape that enforcement could take, especially in light of some recent congressional legislative efforts: the gov't investigates you regarding X, in the process of the investigation turns up Y and Z, and thus finds reason maybe to look into A, B, and C as well--in effect, turning your life into a nightmare. But I digress: The main point, really, is that enforcement doesn't need to be nonselective to be "effective." I think this holds whether I understood your remarks correctly or not. Ted

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