April 2003 - cypherpunks-legacy

"Lone terrorist" bill
by Eric Murray 09 Apr '03

09 Apr '03

WTF is a "lone terrorist"? http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/ny-ussena093214085apr09,0,38… "A bill to expand the ability of the government to conduct wiretaps and other surveillance on suspected lone terrorists has attracted controversial amendments that have stalled its advance to the full Senate. Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) has circulated one amendment that would eliminate the sunset provision in the anti-terror Patriot Act that passed in the aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and greatly expanded the government's law enforcement powers. " Reading down it looks like a "lone terrorist" is someone that the government can't even prove is a "terrorist" to the secret FISA rubberstamp court. So this is presumeably an attempt to bypass FISA entirely.

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Re: Song Air - Delta Launches 'Low Cost' Privacy Invading Carrier
by Bill Stewart 09 Apr '03

09 Apr '03

So is their corporate mascot a Stool Pigeon? Usual Suspect Bill Scannell wrote: -------------------------------------- Delta Air Lines is launching a new 'low cost' carrier called 'Song'. Song (http://www.flysong.com) will use the same reservation system as Delta, earning it the disdain of all Americans who believe in the US Constitution. Song (and Delta) is collaborating in a test of the CAPPS II system, an invasive and un-American program that forces citizens to undergo a background investigation that includes personal banking information and a credit check simply to travel in his or her own country. http://www.donotflysong.com has been launched to punish Song for its participation. The site is affiliated with http://www.boycottdelta.org . The CAPPS II system goes far beyond what any thinking citizen of this country should consider reasonable. Boycott Delta. Boycott Song. The democracy you save may be your own. Boycott Delta Press/Analyst Contact: Bill Scannell (tel: 1-650-787-8708)

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Re: 'Peking' vs 'Beijing'
by Major Variola (ret) 09 Apr '03

09 Apr '03

At 06:01 PM 4/9/03 +0100, Jim Dixon wrote: >I don't think that anyone who has learned to read and write one of the >languages based on Chinese characters would agree that they are >"atrocious". If your native language is written using a western alphabet, >characters are hard to learn. But once learned, they are conveniently >concise. Yes, one's first operating system is always the best. Orientals were self-handicapped by not having a smaller alphabet. Horrible typewriters, and forget putting the glyphs into a mid-80's character ROM. Yes, they're concise, but they require very high resolution to render. And, at least some symbol sets are not phonetic.

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one's first [ OS | language ] is always the best
by Major Variola (ret) 09 Apr '03

09 Apr '03

At 06:36 PM 4/9/03 -0700, Tim May wrote: >On Wednesday, April 9, 2003, at 02:00 PM, Major Variola (ret) wrote: > >> At 06:01 PM 4/9/03 +0100, Jim Dixon wrote: If your native language is written using a western >> alphabet, >> >characters are hard to learn. But once learned, they are conveniently >> >concise. >> >> Yes, one's first operating system is always the best. >> > >If there is any insinuation that this implies to _computer_ OSes, I >disagree completely. I was making a tacit reference to the oft-claimed resolution to the OS, proglanguage, etc. religious wars. Ie, a lot of folks' biasses are due to their personal history. That you have not succumbed may have to do with the horribleness of OSes in your past, or mere rationality. ... When I hear someone say there are limits to freedom of speech, I want to pick up a gun. -Anon, Cpunks 29.3.03

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Intel planning to use Wave TCPA.
by Bill Stewart 09 Apr '03

09 Apr '03

There's also another article on TCPA at http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=8760 http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=8769 Intel confirms future PC products to use Wave TCPA The bouncer at the Trusted Computing ball turns up again By Mike Magee: Monday 07 April 2003, 14:44 THE COMPANY that showed off its Trust Suite products at the Intel Developer Forum in February now indeed has the backing of the chip giant. Wave said it will demo its Embassy Trust Suite apps across different "trusted" computer types at the RSA Security 2003 trade show, which starts mid April. Intel is giving the imprimature to Wave using its Trusted Platform Module (TPM), which we've dealt with at some length in another article today. TPM claims Intel is a "root of trust" semiconductor device, otherwise known as Fritz. Wave and Intel will show the Document Manager app on three systems, with a digitally signed document "signed" and then archived by each of the "trusted" platforms. An Intel representative said that it was important "that OEMs and the industry in general... deliver these TPM services.. that will be deployed over the next few years". Nancy Sumrall, who is the "safer computing initiative manager" of the desktop division at Intel "bring a whole new level of value to the PC platform". Meanwhile, Wave claimed it will be the first company to deliver interoperable and secure PC services on the industry's "leading trusted platforms". The TCPA compliant solution and the suite will also be shown at the RSA conference, Wave said. 5 See Also -------------

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Re: Crypto in Baghdad--Jaguar and Saddam's Bunker
by Steve Schear 09 Apr '03

09 Apr '03

At 12:05 PM 4/9/2003 -0700, you wrote: >The AG Crypto story has been repeated way too often to >be relied upon as a guide. Best to treat these myths as >yokel bait. Perhaps, but I worked at Cylink, a AG Crypto competitor, during those years and my second-hand information (I wasn't the product manager of any of these boxes) was that NSA did approach us to compromise certain boxes to be supplied to narco terrorists, etc. independent sales agent to Cylink (I think operating out of Miami). The compromises, from what I understand, were to made to the random number generator. As some on the list understand, with subsequent whitening compromised random number generators can be very difficult to directly detect even by experts. Other methods, such as intentional leaks which are a part of every good counter-surveillance operation, would need to be used to out bogus boxes. steve we do not win the terrorism battle / with exclusion of liberties / an un-elected president / with a brand new atrocity / make way for war time opportunists / corporate interests and their proxies / exploitation of a tragedy / to serve their ideologies / corporate military complex / continues to abuse the world / death weapons for despots / sold by the red, white and blue -- Moral Crux, Stocks and Bombs

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Re: "Lone terrorist" bill
by Major Variola (ret) 09 Apr '03

09 Apr '03

At 12:05 PM 4/9/03 -0700, Eric Murray wrote: >WTF is a "lone terrorist"? What they're trying for is someone who hears an Osama tape and takes the initiative, without external connections. Sorta like the 101st Airborne dude who fragged the invaders, but domestically. In fact, they'll soon abuse this to monitor anyone, more so (or more "legally") than they do now. And antiabortion loonies, PETA, Earthfirst, folks who hang No War banners, folks without flags on their cars, anyone named Akbar or Mohammed, .. Terrorist is the new root password to the Constitution.

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Re: 'Peking' vs 'Beijing'
by Tyler Durden 09 Apr '03

09 Apr '03

I wrote... "For the knowledgeable, it might be argued that the pronunciation 'Peking' has Manchurian roots, because the Mings were Manchus." Oops. Meant to write "Qings". The Yuan were Mongol, the Ming Han Chinese, and the Qing Manchu. -TD >From: "Tyler Durden" <camera_lumina(a)hotmail.com> >To: frantz(a)pwpconsult.com, cypherpunks(a)minder.net >Subject: Re: 'Peking' vs 'Beijing' >Date: Wed, 09 Apr 2003 14:50:05 -0400 > >Bill Frantz wrote... > >"the third Ming emperor, however, restored it as the Imperial >seat of the dynasty and gave it a new name, Peking (Northern Capital)." > >Well, this simplifies things, as it should for an Encyclopedia entry, but >it doesn't explain the "Peking" 'transliteration'. As I said before, there >is no sound "king" in Mandarin. And indeed, "jing" means capital in >Mandarin. So what this paragraph refers to as "Peking" was always >pronounced by Chinese as "Beijing" to each other. The British, however, >introduced the pronunciation "Peking" for some reason. (I may have the >history in one of my books which I'll peruse tonight.) > >(For the knowledgeable, it might be argued that the pronunciation 'Peking' >has Manchurian roots, because the Mings were Manchus. But this is not the >case. For one, by the 20th century, the Beijing Court had completely >forgotton how to speak Manchu (only a few dozen people still speak it >today). For two, Manchu is not a Chinese dialect, but derived by one of the >trans-siberian groups. So it would not share the "Bei" sound indicating >"northern".) > >-TD > > > > >>From: Bill Frantz <frantz(a)pwpconsult.com> >>To: cypherpunks(a)lne.com >>Subject: Re: 'Peking' vs 'Beijing' >>Date: Wed, 9 Apr 2003 10:46:59 -0700 >> >>From the Encyclopaedia Britannica (1974 edition): >> >>"More than 2,000 years ago, a site near present-day Peking was already an >>important military and trading centre for the northeastern frontier of >>China. Not until the Mongol dynasty (AD 1279 to 1368) was a successor >>city >>-- called Ta-tu -- to become the administrative capital of China. During >>the reign of the first emperor of the Ming dynasty (1368 to 1644), Nanking >>became the capital, and the old Mongol capital was renamed Pei-p'ing >>(Peace >>in the North); the third Ming emperor, however, restored it as the >>Imperial >>seat of the dynasty and gave it a new name, Peking (Northern Capital). It >>remained the capital until the 20th century, when, after the successful >>campaign of the Chinese Nationalist troops against warlords in Peking in >>1927, Nanking was selected as the national capital, and Peking once again >>resumed its old name -- Pei-p'ing -- a name still used b the Nationalist >>government in Taiwan." >> >>Cheers - Bill >> >> >>------------------------------------------------------------------------- >>Bill Frantz | Due process for all | Periwinkle -- Consulting >>(408)356-8506 | used to be the | 16345 Englewood Ave. >>frantz(a)pwpconsult.com | American way. | Los Gatos, CA 95032, USA > > >_________________________________________________________________ >The new MSN 8: smart spam protection and 2 months FREE* >http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail _________________________________________________________________ Tired of spam? Get advanced junk mail protection with MSN 8. http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail

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Patriot Act to become permanant?
by Eric Murray 09 Apr '03

09 Apr '03

In a move that should not be a suprise to anyone here, Sen. Orrin Hatch has introduced a bill to repeal the sunset clause in the Patriot Act, making it permanant. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/04/0…

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Re: Swiss ISPs Required to Log and Store Email for Six Months
by Thomas Shaddack 09 Apr '03

09 Apr '03

> Or people like me who just runs their own email server on a dsl or cable > line. Doing the same, see lower. > Maybe that's why some of the ISP's are trying to force everyone to use > their SMTP servers. Ameritech seems to be moving in that direction, or > at least I can no longer email anyone with an ameritech address, as > the ameritech servers reject it with a "use your local smtp server" > message. Or they have your IP listed in a block of "Cable/DSL" and reject mail from there as suspected spam. (Not everything is done for surveillance, even if it is the side effect.) I had a brief correspondence on this topic with RoadRunner, who was refusing my mail for this reason. The workaround was adding a rule to the smtproutes file, routing the mails for *.rr.com through another server in my care, which is on different IP block.

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