-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- The current line of argument in supporting crypto seems to fall into the "software as speech" (ala First Amendment) or Crypto as munition (and invoking the Second Amendment). I think of Crypto as "Freedom of Language". Imagine the uproar that would be caused if Jesse Helms (or one of his ilk) tried to pass a law that all conversations over the net or phone lines had to be in English. (Or at least in a language understood by the cops.) The amount of uproar would be incredible. The courts have already ruled against this form of "language escrow". Such rulings should apply to encrypted communications as well. Software is just the mechanism for the language of cryptography, it is not the language itself. Just as in spoken languages, special knowledge is needed to understand the "ideas" being communicated. The algorithm is (in part) that language. (But in this case, you are able to speak to only those you intend, not to the world at large.) Of course, the question is whether this line of reasoning will work under the current regime. Maybe, maybe not. It seems a better argument than the ones I have seen so far... Depends on how far the deck has been stacked against us. -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 4.5 iQEVAwUBM266uOQCP3v30CeZAQHU4wf9GePLzvloFC/zpM+uAmdzq+wCzASUt/vH 0GP4v9DwLTYtWDp4O/o/ietk1tej4G/d1h2owpdHsGT1qkUXWIG8XUjWsTPblPsa 0uS097K+fB7fP7+LUyrGWkaCwNMfqQ3gErhVfoRsQ6lJRhWE+6JiIcdgxC1OY7lg kknM3//51Avbk+7CcVH+flyvL7uKWFHJdKpthiSSfKSg9nKJrLUQJxOQaK7xkpXH 4oFEKF1EApa2gFIPyTEM7Nd1Dp2PzcdNZrVHn2BmMP7eXeN4Jfkwoc31r95DPwpI L2uWEeRpNEs61qNtM8/gkKMXk5fP/vLl8ujDHaYXDOP6dA3CnSbGOA== =aN2p -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- --- | "Mi Tio es infermo, pero la carretera es verde!" | |"The moral PGP Diffie taught Zimmermann unites all| Disclaimer: | | mankind free in one-key-steganography-privacy!" | Ignore the man | |`finger -l alano@teleport.com` for PGP 2.6.2 key | behind the keyboard.| | http://www.ctrl-alt-del.com/~alan/ |alan@ctrl-alt-del.com|