(An interesting essay from an Australian was sent to me via an anonymous remailer...at least he or she claimed to be Australian. As I can only respond to him or her via the list, here's my reply.) At 6:42 PM -0700 11/11/97, Anonymous wrote:

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"T" == Tim May <tcmay@got.net>

T> As for Australia, your countrymen acted like sheep in giving up T> their guns. If they try that kind of shit here in this country, T> a *lot* of cops are going to get killed.

T> (Not necessarily by me, though I'll defend my property and my T> constitutional rights as best I can. But the militia and patriot T> and anti-New World Order movements are preparing for war.)

As an Australian I couldn't agree more with your conclusion Tim. Australians showed a shameful and cowardly disregard for individual liberty and freedom on the gun issue and a time will come I'm sure ...

And let me assure you that I am not insulting all Australians. I call them as I see them, whether it's Americans (the most common target of my analyses), Germans, French, Swedes, etc. ...

sources. We have in doing this showed just how sheep like we are for instead of taking some responsibility for our own future defence needs we have placed ourselves at the feet of the USA for our continued freedom to pass even more restrictive laws on ourselves. We will all rue the day America loses interest in us and no doubt some of our ernest friends to our north will at that point suddenly show a very great interest in this land. Anyone who seriously believes otherwise

"Pax Americana" is the name for this trend. America sits astride the world, as the only remaining military superpower, and an economic superpower as well. I say this not to be jingoistic, but as an expression of reality. The former Soviet Union is in disarray, and its submarines and ICBMs are apparently rusting away and will soon be inoperable. This is, in a sense, good news. The United States almost bankrupted itself in the 40-year Cold War. And now, instead of turning swords into plowshares, cutting taxes, and getting on with life, American sends its aircraft carriers to far-off places, acts as the world's policeman, draws lines in the sand and dares Saddam to cross them, threatens trade wars, and browbeats other nations. (I'd gladly settle for a broken up USA, with five or six economic/political regions, each too small to run around the world butting into the affairs of distant nations. The coming chaos may succeed in doing this.)

is a fool. Personally I have laid down a weapons cache that would, at the hands of our media, make me look like an invading army myself. Some of my friends have done likewise. I believe it is my right, indeed my duty to provide for my own defence. In doing so I am now run the risk of 20 years imprisonment. Of course since I run this risk (and self defence is no longer a justification for holding a weapon in this country) I have not limited myself to semi-auto weapons as they are now as illegal as automatic weapons, grenades, mines etc. In for a penny in for a pound.

One of the first things the invading U.S. forces did in Somalia was to disarm the civilian population. (I am not making this up.) The farmers protested that they would be left defenseless against the nomadic guerillas and looters. Ah, but the benevolent U.S. decided, via consultations with the U.N., that the key to peace lay in disarming those they could disarm. As the U.S. found, those they were unable to disarm kicked their asses all around Mogadishu. Dragging a chopper pilot around town was just the most visible sign. So the U.S. retreated. Is this portrayed as a defeat? Nope. The warmongers talk about how America has "bounced back" from its loss in Viet Nam and has not lost a war since. More reason to invade other nations. Anyway, disarming the civilians is now U.S. policy. Not too surpising that Clinton looks with favor on the recent disarmings in the U.K. and Australia (and with newer restrictions in Canada, too).

regardless. It is our right and duty, as free men and women to be able to defend ourselves and god help anyone who comes to disarm us. The ban, if anything has forced true patriots to decide just which side of the line they stand on and fostered a more extremist attitude towards those who would stand aside while the people are murdered. We realise that constitutional protections such as enshrined in your great Constitution are won only with blood and not with the talk of the corrupt. Some of us are awaiting the coming tide with relish.

Good luck and good hunting,

Amen. And Australia should not be completely surprised if the U.S. offers to send "peacekeeping troops" to your country to help with the disarmament. The conspiracy theorists who talk about the New World Order and U.N. "Blue Helmets" roaming U.S. streets have it only half right: the other side of the New World Order is having U.S. troops, possibly under U.N. flags (barf), patrolling conquered, er, liberated territories. I don't want to see my fellow countrymen die in foreign wars, but it wouldn't break my heart to see some Aussie sharpshooters taking out foreign invaders. Should this event happen. (Many of us are fighting the New World Order, and I don't personally think there will be Americans sent in large numbers to quell large populations. America likes picking on countries much smaller than itself.) Good luck. --Tim May The Feds have shown their hand: they want a ban on domestic cryptography ---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---- Timothy C. May | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money, ComSec 3DES: 408-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero W.A.S.T.E.: Corralitos, CA | knowledge, reputations, information markets, Higher Power: 2^2,976,221 | black markets, collapse of governments. "National borders aren't even speed bumps on the information superhighway."