At 08:22 PM 8/1/97 -0700, Tim May wrote:
I disagree. A likely scenaria, I fear, is this: * Denning's new study gets publicity * Denning is "redeemed" and gains new influence * GAK is delayed for this year * Denning continues her study * Next year's report finds solid evidence that crypto is being used to hinder investigations, and has indeed had an effect. ... * Denning's new conclusions, and her redemption, will generate support for GAK.
Tim, being more cynical than I am, is probably correct :-) But still, we should take advantage of it when we can; never miss a chance to use government statistics in ways that annoy their originators.... Denning's previous big-publicity study was the interim report on Clipper security (saying Skipjack was apparently quite strong), which achieved its propaganda goals; the final report, which was supposed to address the whole Clipper system, including the on-chip parts and the key escrow process in the NSA/Mykotronix vault, was never released, which I consider to be a substantial piece of intellectual dishonesty. # Thanks; Bill # Bill Stewart, +1-415-442-2215 stewarts@ix.netcom.com # You can get PGP outside the US at ftp.ox.ac.uk/pub/crypto/pgp # (If this is a mailing list or news, please Cc: me on replies. Thanks.)