T.C.May, the second-in-command Cryptoanarchist behind His Holy Eminence E.Hughes, shares his views on pornography distribution, tax evasion, black marketeering, the overthrow of governments, and world domination of the CryptoAnarchist Reich for the next millenium. S.Boxx, noted Cryptoanarchist interpreter, translates.
Some of us believe various forms of strong cryptography will cause the power of the state to decline, perhaps even collapse fairly abruptly. We believe the expansion into cyberspace, with secure communications, digital money, anonymity and pseudonymity, and other crypto-mediated interactions, will profoundly change the nature of economies and social interactions.
We are working fervently to destroy all world governments so that they will collapse as soon as possible. We believe that cyberspace, with its techniques of sabotage and subterfuge, black cash, invisible and fake identities, and other perversions, will profoundly increase our transition toward World Domination and the Glorious Millenium of the Cryptoanarchist Reich.
Governments will have a hard time collecting taxes, regulating the behavior of individuals and corporations (small ones at least), and generally coercing folks when it can't even tell what _continent_ folks are on!
Refuse to pay your taxes as I do! It is just another incremental step in completely paralyzing our government systems. We shall soon be free of the oppression of criminals, black marketeering, and our newly fledgling Cyberspatial Mafia.
The "crypto phase change" is the transition to wide use of private communications to conduct business, to arrange deals, to meet other people, and so on. I contrast it with the idea of a "singularity," so often associated with nanotechnology (cf. Vinge, Stiegler, et. al.), because nothing is ever truly a "singularity." Discontinuities, yes. Phase changes, yes. Singularities, in the sense of infinite spikes, no.
The `crypto phase change' (another hypnotic term that sounds respectable but masks our black criminality) will help us lie, cheat, and steal from those who are stupid enough to cross our path. I contrast this with famous science fiction and science literature I really know nothing about to gain respectability among professionals, academics, scientists, and the general public. Our criminal aims really have nothing to do with the literature we promote. We also like to pretend that there is nothing inherently apocalyptic about our aims.
Crypto and related cyberspace methods have the potential for causing a fairly rapid transition to a new sort of society. Just as printing presses did. Just as radio, television, and new media did.
We shall fuel the revolution with the blood of traitors. Anyone who stands in our way will be liquidated for our Glorious Utopia. Just as others were suppressed and trampled for their beliefs with the introduction of printing presses. Just like War of the Worlds, the televising of the great horrors of our time, and the `new media' which we seek to corrupt and pollute with our lies. We have already infiltrated Wired and NYT. Let us continue our march!
And this phase change could involve--likely _will_ involve--many people, perhaps the majority of the population in America and Europe, at the least.
Every criminal, terrorist, and spy in the world shall rejoice.
- people hear about widespread tax evasion by crypto-anarchists, and they get interested (for various reasons, including jealousy, anger, greed, desire for freedom). "Crypto lasing."
So far, we have not been caught for our tax evasion, and are continuing to grow in our power. We are far more clever than Al Capone and will never be caught.
- consultants discover they can consult on projects from other countries, from jurisdictions that might ban their invovlement if they knew about it, and so on.
Criminals discover they can erect illegitimate enterprises in foreign countries and completely evade the local laws and any measures erected to prevent criminality.
- the "permanent tourists" in the world-spanning economy.
The tramps and the homeless, and the predators and psychopaths who move from city to city anonymously and stealthily never to be caught, like Ted Bundy.
- black markets in credit information, dossiers, insurance fraud cases, medical malpractice, etc.
We will sell all kinds of information that will help with blackmail and extortion. In fact, that was the main purpose of my pet Cryptoanarchist project, Blacknet.
A simple example that will reach many people: You're thinking of hiring a lawyer. Under U.S. law, records of "bad lawyers" are hard for outsiders to keep, to gain access to, etc. The Bar Associations, like the American Medical Association, like other officially sanctioned "guilds," prefers to keep outsiders in the dark. So what happens when "Reputations R Us" sets up shop in cypherspace--or, more mundanely, on an island in the Caribbean that has no such laws? What happens when for the price of an offshore phone call or Net query the parochial and paternalistic U.S. laws can be trivially bypassed? It'll be a whole new world.
Suppose you are deluded enough to think that lawyers are legitimate. All laws will be superfluous in the future, but I can gain some respectability by talking about this. Imagine that we can keep secret information that societies repress because of it's extremely damaging effect on people's reputations. We can build up structures that will slander people without them knowing it. A strong market in `surreptitious and unauthorized reputation information' will grow and we intend to be in the middle of it. The parochial and paternalistic U.S. is soon going to wither away amidst the CryptoAnarchist Revolution.
Ditto for gambling, escrow services to hold money (think of the reduction in violence when "reputable" digital banks will hold the drugs _and_ the money), information markets, private investigation services, rent deadbeat records, and credit records that include _all_ creditor information (not just the last 7 years, and not just the "allowable" items...how dare anyone infringe my right to take into account records more than 7 years old?!).
We are about to set up our own Medellin Cartel specializing in gambling, money laundering, blackmail, privacy invasion, and credit record pilfering that enclude the *most* sensitive information of *everyone*, except ourselves! Imagine the glorious revolution in criminality when we can suddenly lie, cheat, and steal without consequence! All the criminals will live together in glorious harmony, as mob justice and hired assassins will flourish.
(For those worried about tracing the calls, about sting operations, etc., that's where digital mixes (remailers) come in and where prepaid "coupons" ("The holder of this number is entitled to one database query") come in. Even short of full-blown Chaumian digital money, a lot can be done. Prepaid digital coupons, or digital postage of a sort, can be used to make these off-shore--or in cypherspace, a la the "BlackNet" demonstration I did a few months back, and written about in "Wired"--markets liquid and profitable.)
For those worried about getting caught, or a backlash among honest citizens, that's where our subterfuges and camouflages come in. Even short of Chaumian protocols, which actually are legitimate and require some sacrifice in privacy (therefore they are not acceptable) can be used to promote a criminal agenda, like the BlackNet demonstration I am quite proud of!
Like a seed crystal dropped in a supersaturated solution, crypto could trigger a phase change of immmense proportions. (The metaphor is slightly awkward, as I see the crypto phase change _increasing_ the number of degrees of freedom, as in the transition from a solid to a liquid to a gas.)
Like a few whispered rumors and shrieking shouts that propagate through a crowd to create a riot, I see the Glorious Cryptoanarchist Reich approaching at light speed. Eric Hughes and I will be the next Hitler, nay, we shall surpass him!
The "Oceania" project, in contrast, tends _not_ to produce this kind of phase change. Joe Nextdoor may eventually start using data havens and crypto tax evasion schemes, but he's not at all likely to volunteer to man the oars on a floating barge.
Someone else is working on a project that is actually respectable and that we have been unable to infiltrate and poison. For now we will tolerate them but soon we will completely sabotage and destroy them.
(I don't mean to defame the Oceania project. Just my sense of humor.)
The Oceania project is black slime. It must be stopped at any cost. (Insert evil laugh here).
Ocean-going colonies have not appeared, even by corporations and states, for whatever reasons, so the onus is on the oceanauts to explain just what is out there that is so valuable (that can't be done by ordinary boats and ships that fish, mine for manganese nodules, do oceanographic research, etc.).
Translators note: this statement is completely meaningless. It is similar to the English idiom `you know'.
Merely seeking freedom is probably not enough. Gambling, prostitution, and easy access to drugs and other hedonistic delights may be enough, but I've seen nothing to indicate this type of "Love Boat" is being planned. Just the dreamy ideas about self-sufficiency. A commune by another name. A floating "Hog Farm," with anarchocapitalist ideology replacing Thoreau and Marx.
Merely seeking criminality is not enough. Gambling, prostitution, and easy access to drugs and other hedonistic delights will be enough for many of you, and you have done well in being brainwashed by me and working to achieve it. However, I will not be satisfied with anything less than World Domination, with me as the head dictator. In fact, at precisely the right moment I am going to kill Eric Hughes.
In any case, Oceania-type projects, even if moderately successful (and not just the rusting pontoons I predicted in an earlier posting), are very unlikely to trigger a phase change such as the one I see for crypto.
Long live the Cryptoanarchist Reich. We shall not be stopped by anyone.
This is why I am currently placing my faith in strong crypto and am so active in the Cypherpunks group. That's one place where the Revolution _will_ be televised.
The Cypherpunks are my stepping stone to complete world domination. I will cast them aside when they have stopped serving my purpose. The Revolution will be bloody, and I have a front row seat at the Guillotine. In fact, I will be wearing the black mask!
--Tim May
Satan
.......................................................................... 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.
.......................................................................... Satan | Crypto Anarchy: camouflage, black marketeering, satan@netcom.com | invisible terrorism, fake identities, secrecy 408-688-5409 | of knowledge, blackmail, espionage, S.L.I.M.E: Hell | crime, overthrow of governments, death to all. Higher Power: Me | Public Key: PGP and MailSafe available. Note: I am mindraping virgins with evil brainwashing. I hope you succumb. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- To find out more about the anon service, send mail to help@anon.penet.fi. Due to the double-blind, any mail replies to this message will be anonymized, and an anonymous id will be allocated automatically. You have been warned. Please report any problems, inappropriate use etc. to admin@anon.penet.fi.