At 06:51 AM 12/8/95 -0500, you wrote:
Excerpts from mail.limbo: 7-Dec-95 More FUD from First Virtual Douglas Barnes@communiti (1157*)
I *am* skeptical about the extent to which anonymous cash *can* succeed,
What can stop it? What should stop it?
but in point of fact I'd like to help. I think society will be better off if one of the payment options is truly anonymous. I think that level of privacy will inevitably carry a high surcharge, however, for reasons that I keep pointing out and you keep ignoring.
Well, maybe I haven't been following those reasons, but I see little or no reason privacy should "inevitably carry a high surcharge." If the relevant encryptions had to be carried out with a pencil and a piece of paper, that claim would make sense, but remember, we've got MICROPROCESSORS on our side! I agree, I suppose, that there are definitely entities (read: governments) which would WANT to prevent the use of anonymous cash, but I view them more of an obstacle to be removed than a permanent bar.