Cypherzens, Andrew Hall writes:
Perry doesn't need my defense, but I will add that this mostly-lurking cypherpunk doesn't think he is an asshole. He is brutally honest and declares his opinion. I respect that. While he is often a bit wired, I have yet to see any hostility to those who didn't deserve it. ( cf recent extropians/pagans love-in or alt.binaries.pictures.erotica.children)
Well, Perry didn't give the same response *I* would have given, but then I didn't give a response at all, so I can hardly complain. (Reading lists have been sent out before, and some basic materials are contained in the pub/cypherpunks archives at soda.berkeley.edu, including a glossary of terms, the various PGP files (including the nice docs that Perry mentioned), and various "rants" by several of us. This is a good place for newcomers to browse to get a feel for what Cypherpunks is all about.) It turns out that I was smack in the middle of both events Andrew just referred to, and I can tell you first-hand that folks on the Net are getting too freaked out over the views of others. I posted the fake PGP-GIF in a.b.p.e.c., which provoked huge outcries of "Thoughtcrime!!" And on the "Extropians" mailing list I was challenged by Eric Raymond, the fellow who volunteered to write the Cypherpunks FAQ on his first day on this list, to study various writings on Paganism, Druidism, Shamanism, and Witchcraft and then judge it "rational" or not (I won't bore you with the details). When I judged it "not rational" and "inconsistent" with the technophilic emphasis of the Extropians list, all hell broke loose (figuratively, and perhaps literally if Eric's witchly connections are as he advertises!). In fact, that List (Extropians) is so contentious and polarized that I have temporarily unsubscribed for the rest of the summer (and perhaps longer, depending on how I feel in the fall). The advantage of smaller groups like Cypherpunks and Extropians, as mailing lists, is that people can come to know each other and thus better avoid flaming. Even better are in-person meetings, even if this contradicts the "jacked-in," "wired" image of cyberpunks and console cowboys! The Cypherpunks physical meetings in Mountain View are friendly, helpful, and not at all rancorous. Likewise, the Extropians events I've attended in the Bay Area (Thursday lunches, a couple of lectures, and some parties) have been friendly and free of divisiveness and flaming. This aspect of the in-person contacts has not been adequately duplicated on the Net. But small groups like ours, where reputations matter and where flamers can and should be simply expelled, are one major hope. I, for one, don't want David Sternlight on our List. (However, this could happen, as we have no membership screening process. Still, we can hope that the flame wars that rage unchecked on the Net as a whole can be limited to just small brush fires on our List.) I'd hate to see our List degenerate into the kind of flaming so common throughout the Net world. We've had a few minor flame wars, but have pulled back from the abyss each time. We ought to try to keep it that way. Cheers! -Tim -- .......................................................................... Timothy C. May | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money, tcmay@netcom.com | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero 408-688-5409 | knowledge, reputations, information markets, W.A.S.T.E.: Aptos, CA | black markets, collapse of governments. Higher Power: 2^756839 | Public Key: PGP and MailSafe available. Note: I put time and money into writing this posting. I hope you enjoy it.