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Why GNU GPL is bad for crypto deployment
by Adam Back 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Someone asked me in email why I said on coderpunks & cypherpunks: > > If one is interested to encourage people to include crypto in their > > applications, GNU style licenses are a step in the wrong direction. And as I wrote a longish explanation, I thought I'd share it: Here is problem: say that our goal is to maximise deployment of software with crypto built in, especially commercial software. So people write libraries, and software say like Eric Young's SSLeay, or Werner Koch's GNUGP (OpenPGP implementation). Some of these people then use GNU license because that is the friendly net ethos of the way to do it. (And in general I agree, but there is a conflict here...) So now the license on the libraries or software that they've written (specifically to encourage commercial companies to add crypto) are evaluated by the prospective companies lawyers. The lawyer observes that, GNU license says: 1) thou shalt adopt the GNU license for your whole source tree, if there is one line of GNU derived code in it. (or words to effect). And he goes ... hmmm ... so what else does GNU license say if we put our source under GNU license. It also says: 2) source shall be available for shipping and handling fee only (or words to effect) and he grumbles, and maybe causes the project to be scrapped, if the company has ideas on keeping source code secret (though we all know this is not a good idea especially for crypto code, such companies exist, these the parameters we are mostly working within). so if the project is still ok by the lawyer, he examines the license some more, and it says: 3) it shall be allowed for anyone to take and re-distribute any GNU software charging what they like. (or words to effect) And he goes (floating point exception... core dumped!) Because it means that his companies software can be legally copied and re-sold with no financial benefit to his company. Which is why companies won't touch GNU license stuff with a barge pole. Note that there are two licenses promoted by FSF: the GPL (GNU General Public License) and the GNU LGPL (GNU Library General Public License). The GNU LGPL is as I commented in an earlier post just about usable for commercial purposes, because it does not infect the source tree using the code with the LGPL (or GPL) because it allows specifically for providing only the code for the library and not the rest of the code, and does not demand that the rest of the code use the same license. However Werner is using GPL for G10 aka GNUPG (at least as of g10-0.0.0 which is the version I have). So the plea is, if you are going to use GNU, at least use GLPL and NOT GPL. Well, it's your code, and you wrote it, so it's your choice: my comments are based on the assumption that the author is more interested in crypto deployment than in the GNU license virus as a means of promoting the availability of source code. Adam

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IP: The virtual president
by Vladimir Z. Nuri 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

From: Jean Staffen <jstaffen(a)flash.net> Subject: IP: The virtual president Date: Fri, 25 Sep 1998 22:22:11 -0500 (CDT) To: ignition-point(a)majordomo.pobox.com This is the most INCREDIBLE article. I never thought I'd read something like this in the mainstream media!!! -Jean The virtual president=20 =20 By Missy Kelly=20 Copyright 1998, WorldNetDaily.com=20 "You know, by the time you become the leader of a country, someone else makes all the decisions." -- Bill Clinton September 4, 1998=20 Well, shut my mouth. The president of the United States admits publicly that he is the puppet of larger powers -- that "someone else," in fact, "makes all the decisions."=20 Of course, those who understand how power really works in this nation recognize the veracity of his statement immediately. But for Bill to state it so openly is truly remarkable -- not just for its honesty, but for its recklessness.=20 In a glib and Freudian moment, it just slipped out.=20 It appears Bill is "getting it."=20 Clinton was reminded the week of Aug. 25 that The Agenda Transcended the Man. He was given a heads-up that his removal from office would have to happen. The New York Times intoned, "But if there is no hope for the agenda, what need is there for the man?" Garry Wills also called for his resignation, writing, "[Clinton] would be saying that the goals he fought for are more important than personal pride or prerogatives." Other former sycophants in the press piped up using minor variations of the same phraseology: Clinton should resign because the "agenda" transcends the man. The Agenda is paramount.=20 Yet, Bill still didn't "get it" -- that in his pact with the devil, the devil held the upper hand. In typical Bill psycho-fashion, he thought he could once again charm his way out of removal; and make a "show of force" to prove to his masters that he still had the right stuff to salvage his career and continue with the Agenda. To that end, his White House staff -- a separate operation from the power brokers -- was told by Bill to pull out all stops to save his presidency.=20 But suddenly there were leaks to the Washington Post that there were more bimbos than just Monica in Bill's White House closets. "I never had an affair with the President, but all the others who have get to stay," Monica allegedly whined to Clinton aide Marsha Scott while pleading to be returned to a White House position.=20 More forcefully, the power brokers served Bill notice that their demands for removal were to be taken seriously when the Department of Justice, out of the blue, announced that the President himself -- Bill Clinton -- was the subject of a NEW 90-day investigation into campaign donation illegalities. On three -- count 'em -- three separate prior occasions, Attorney General Janet Reno had formally investigated such charges and declared there was "nothing there." Publicly, no new information had come to light, but suddenly there was the alarming notion that there was a "there, there" and it involved Bill Clinton himself.=20 The message: Bill, you will do what we tell you. We can do this the easy way or the hard way. Start packing your bags. Bill is "getting it," now.=20 Bill is resigning himself to his resignation.=20 The President has not yet identified for us who this "someone else" is who really puppets the highest office of our land. So for purposes of discussion, let's just give them an identifier. Borrowing from John LeCarre's "The Night Manager," let's call them "Flagship."=20 Flagship, of course, knows not only where all the bodies are buried -- literally and figuratively -- but= has the wherewithal to pick through them all, choosing one misdeed after another, exposing them one by one until Bill relents. It's blackmail. And blackmail works unless you handle it in the manner Rep. Dan Burton has in the past couple of days. Bill Clinton is incapable -- truly incapable -- of doing what Burton did. Truly.=20 "You may find you can get away with virtual presidents, virtual prime ministers, virtual everything." -- Bill Clinton, September 4, 1998=20 This is another Freudian lament, verbalized by a Bill Clinton who finally "gets it." He was and is the VIRTUAL PRESIDENT. By his own admission, he was a front, with no power to make decisions. By his own admission, they were made for him, by "someone else." They were made by those whom Flagship had placed in lower level, under-the-radar positions within the cabinet. They didn't even have to ask Bill's permission. They got their orders, and implemented them.=20 Bill's job was to pretend -- pretend he was the leader, pretend he was in charge -- maintain the fa=E7ade of a "virtual" president in a "virtual" democracy where a "virtual" rule of law exists. In fact, the levers of= power were already controlled -- controlled so precisely, in fact, as to make the president irrelevant, controlled by people who have never been elected to office, and whose names we do not even know.=20 Flagship cannot afford impeachment hearings. There is an Agenda, and a timeline that must be maintained. It is of utmost importance that the new leader be installed immediately. Therefore, I would not be surprised if Bill is gone within two weeks or less.=20 If you consider Bill's virtual presidency, you know the words he spoke are true. He was so much a puppet that he even dispensed with the appearance of business. He cut off daily briefings, which every other president attended. He lengthened the time between other regularly scheduled meetings. He hardly ever meets -- or even talks -- to his cabinet members. Recall Warren Christopher, the first Secretary of State, and William Perry, the Secretary of Defense, expressing extreme frustration that they could not get a meeting with the president, even in times of crisis.=20 Instead, poor, useless Bill was busy playing golf, jogging, or on one of his many, many vacations. Having his weekly dinners with his Arkie crowd, screening new movies, attending fundraisers at the pace of 30 a month, playing host to a legion of Lincoln bedroom guests, and having coffee with drug smugglers, arms dealers, terrorists, communists and crony capitalists. In between, he was juggling his many women, coordinating their liaisons and cover stories. Plus all that time he devoted to considering how he could provide answers that were "legally correct" but "misleading" in all of his many scandals. Phew, I am exhausted just thinking about it.=20 How many times have we said during this presidency -- who is really running this country when we have a president who is missing in action? Time and again, it was apparent that Bill Clinton was not on task doing presidential duties. But for him to admit it, openly -- whoa! Surely he doesn't think his scorched earth policy extends to his masters, does he? Is he truly so arrogant that he thinks he can take them down, too, in a child-like temper tantrum? If so, he is truly playing with fire. But I suspect, no. Bill may have harbored those thoughts last week, but is seeing the light, now. His unguarded comments were purely Freudian meanderings of the mind.=20 Clinton made the reckless error of speaking his thoughts out loud. As stupid as this was, it is not so surprising. It is intimately a part of this man's sick psychology that he would want to provide excuses for his problems outside of himself -- to explain that it really isn't his fault. After all, I don't really have= any power -- I am a virtual president. I am not to blame. I am a victim -- I was just doing what I was told.=20 Bill has always been a victim of someone else, and never responsible for his own actions. As we pull our love away from him, it becomes ever so much more important to his psyche that he win us over. He can't help himself. He must explain, and win us back. Biographers have often noted that Clinton would be in a room full of adoring fans, and one person who wasn't enthralled. Clinton would devote all his energy to charming that one person. There is pathology to this man that is ingrained. Without reflected adoration, there is no Bill Clinton. He ceases to exist.=20 But if he doesn't contain himself, and stop trying to make public excuses that touch this close to the heart of power in this nation, he's putting himself in extreme jeopardy. Flagship must be assured that Clinton will never expose his masters and the Agenda. And this is a real fear -- they, too, understand the psyche of Bill Clinton.=20 When Bill resigns, he will have to go deeply off the radar screen -- I mean no mention of him. Disappear. There can be no distractions as the Agenda barges forward. But Bill's psyche cannot tolerate this -- his must have sycophants and lovers -- he is no one without the human mirror of his success. I remind you of what happened to him after he lost the governor's race in Arkansas 20 years ago. Study that period. This was a pathetic man, deep in depression, who approached perfect strangers and asked them why they hadn't voted for him. It conjures up visions of a former President calling up Larry King Live and blathering on that he's lonely and misunderstood, ala O.J. Simpson.=20 Flagship cannot afford a Bill Clinton behaving this way, and possibly exposing their Agenda. Therefore, I suspect that not only will Bill Clinton be removed from office -- i.e. forced to resign -- before the end of September, but I also strongly fear that Bill will commit Arkancide within the year.=20 Bill was always in "the game" for Bill. Hillary was always in this for the Agenda. She has always believed that the Agenda transcended the man, which is why she has always put up with -- beyond rational endurance -- Bill's shenanigans. She knew from the get-go that they were the chosen ones, part of a select stable from whom the anointed, the "someone else" Bill referred to, would choose to lead us into convergence, the Third Way. This Third Way is part of a long-term strategy that was developed 40 years ago.=20 Knowing this, Hillary stuck with Bill because her allegiance -- above all else -- has always been to the Agenda. And because this is still true, she cannot possibly stay with Bill now that he has become a liability. To cheers and salutations, she will divorce= Bill Clinton shortly after he resigns, and no one will blink an eye. She will divorce him not because he's "done her wrong" but because he is no longer useful. Then Hillary, in all her glory, will be unleashed on this= world. She will have her own, not reflected, power most likely as Queen of the World through her new U.N. position. Maybe things aren't looking so bad for Hillary, after all.=20 Rahm Emanuel, in continuing his attacks against Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr last week invoked the ghost of military strategist Karl Von Clausewitz.=20 "Clausewitz [sic] said war is an extension of politics, by other means." Odd. A former ballet dancer a student of Von Clausewitz?=20 Would you agree that the Clintons and their supporters resort to all sorts of stratagems, maneuvers, illegal methods, evasions and subterfuge to achieve their objectives?=20 Would you?=20 Does the record of their actions comport with that statement?=20 Hmmm?=20 Those are the exact words of Lenin, when he laid out his plans for global communism.=20 Missy Kelly is a writer-researcher and political analyst.=20 ********************************************** To subscribe or unsubscribe, email: majordomo(a)majordomo.pobox.com with the message: (un)subscribe ignition-point email@address ********************************************** www.telepath.com/believer **********************************************

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Re: Cypherpunks defeat? (fwd)
by Jim Choate 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Forwarded message: > From: Eric Murray <ericm(a)lne.com> > Subject: Re: Cypherpunks defeat? > Date: Mon, 28 Sep 1998 19:56:16 -0700 (PDT) > using plastic. But it's ok for the merchant to offer 'discounts' for > buyers who use cash instead of credit cards. That 'discount' > is the real price of the goods with the credit-card surcharge > subtracted. Often that's 3-4%, sometimes as low as 1.2%. I haven't seen that in 10 years or more. I doubt that anyone will find this approach very widely. > Visa and MasterCard don't have massive staffs and huge office > buildings because they're dumb. You don't know big corporations very well do you. ____________________________________________________________________ The seeker is a finder. Ancient Persian Proverb The Armadillo Group ,::////;::-. James Choate Austin, Tx /:'///// ``::>/|/ ravage(a)ssz.com www.ssz.com .', |||| `/( e\ 512-451-7087 -====~~mm-'`-```-mm --'- --------------------------------------------------------------------

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Toto -- mimic function or the real thing (Re: no subject)
by Anonymous 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Adam Back writes: >Who knows, if it is Toto, he has been rather careful not to sign >anything recently :-). > >(If he were to sign things it might be helpful for Carl >Johnson... Toto?) He could have been one of the guys sending the insults to the spammers (which I applaud, mind you) and who got into that argument with Paul Meril, but the wording isn't anywhere near what we've come to expect from Toto. The two gay sex responses to one of the Six Degrees of Spam users sounds just like something he might do. If Toto has been here all along, I think this is one of the most clever hoaxes which has hit the list in a long time.

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Re: Remailers, PGP, and a Project Suggestion
by Anonymous 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

> So, what you are saying is that you want crypto to protect yourself >from government intrusion, but are unwilling to actually WRITE the code for >fear that the government will lock you up. That's about right. I will write the code for myself. I will not release it since I'm in the U.S. and it gives the thugs one more reason to come after me. That job is better suited for somebody who is outside the U.S. or is actually willing to sit through a long grand jury investigation, possible indictment, trial, conviction, jail time, and life as a convicted felon.

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PipeNet 1.1 and b-money
by Wei Dai 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

I've discovered some attacks against the original PipeNet design. The new protocol, PipeNet 1.1, should fix the weaknesses. PipeNet 1.1 uses layered sequence numbers and MACs. This prevents a collusion between a receiver and a subset of switches from tracing the caller by modifying or swaping packets and then watching for garbage. A description of PipeNet 1.1 is available at http://www.eskimo.com/~weidai. Also available there is a description of b-money, a new protocol for monetary exchange and contract enforcement for pseudonyms. Please direct all follow-up discussion of these protocols to cypherpunks.

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(fwd) Echelon
by Mok-Kong Shen 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

The following article came from Duncan Campbell <duncan(a)gn.apc.org> through a mailing list: __________________________________ 21/9/98 The debate about ECHELON - last week in the European Parliament - has again highlighted the role of the NSA station at Menwith Hill, Yorkshire. The report prepared earlier this year for the STOA (Scientific and Technical Options Assessment) of the European Parliament resulted in widespread coverage in Europe and the US. We have recently made a new batch of copies of the 1993 Dispatches documentary on Menwith Hill - "The Hill" - based on revelations based on NSA documents obtained by women peace protesters at the Hill. It also covers ECHELON and other NSA activities in the UK. Tapes (45 mins) can be ordered from : Ian Hide IPTV Ltd 1 Meadowbank Edinburgh EH8 8JE At £10.95 including postage. I will e-mail trancripts of the programme free of charge to anyone requesting it. Duncan Campbell

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One Nation launch - the day the media snapped
by Scott Balson 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Dear One Nation supporter, Please take time to view this report with images of the One Nation launch yesterday. <A href="http://www.gwb.com.au/gwb/news/onenation/federal/launch/">http://www.gwb.com.au/gwb/news/onenation/federal/launch/ GWB Scott Balson

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No Subject
by Anonymous 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

At 08:21 AM 9/29/98 -0500, Jim Choate wrote: > >It's called milnet and it's been in existance ever since about '83. It >occured when ARPA became DARPA. I was working on a DoD project at UT Austin >at the time. Look up SIPRNET

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hoodwinking congress
by bill payne 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Wednesday 9/30/98 6:57 AM J Orlin Grabbe John Young I read Operating Systems Netscape & Intel Grab On to Red Hat Linux as Windows NT Alternative at http://www.aci.net/kalliste/ this morning. I have to get my green machine http://www.metriguard.com/HCLT.HTM assembler code ported to Visual Basic 6.0 using MASM 6.11. Yesterday I discovered that VB 6.0 uses the flat model. Thirty-two bit addresses. No segment registers. No longer will code be backward compatible on Intel processors. One of my next steps is to get the digital FX working, of course, then port the PC sides to NT. VB 6.0 is using Microsofts optimized C compiler to do the Visual Basic compilation! I learned yesterday evening that the PC Data System in Australia is grading lumber at 2,000 feet per second. I was in Grangeville, Id at Sherer planer mill in about January of 1996 testing out PC Data System. PC Data System - Pentium PC & Windows (R) software system for production-line lumber testing - CLT & HCLT http://www.metriguard.com/METPROD.HTM I was told last night that Sherer system was only running 800 per minute. 2 x 12 about 16 feet long planks were running continuously through the machine at Sherer. Wewear ear plugs the noise was deafening. Sure be fun to get this mess settled so that I could do more work with NT. We are in a lull in the GREAT FIGHT. http://jya.com/whpfiles.htm I thoroughly enjoyed http://www.jya.com/itl-news.htm government crypto propaganda attempt in view of Black and White. http://www.aci.net/kalliste/bw1.htm http://www.zolatimes.com/v2.29/bw1.html Lets hope some FINALLY figure out that NSA, NIST, and the FBI are hoodwinking congress on the crypto issue merely for business reasons. Lets all hope for settlement before this matter gets WORSE. Later bill

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