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From today's New York Times:

"- - - General Aidid was brazenly speaking out on his own clandestine radio station this week, assailing United Nations colonialism. Today, Pentagon officials said they believed the Somali clan-leader had foiled their efforts to locate him in part by communicating with his forces on simple walkie-talkies difficult to monitor with high-technology American listening gear".

Now, is the time for Dorothy D. to suggest, as she did with Clipper, that all dissident Somalis be required by law to use high-tech comm gear. Let's hope that the criminal element against which the escrowed key crap is oriented doesn't hear about the Somali answer to communications intercept. In the off chance that they might, I'm going to buy stock in oatmeal boxes and wax string.

String is, indeed, an critical privacy-protecting technology, but alas, a threat to national security as well. Perhaps someone will have to start a fiberpunks movement. ................................................................... Daniel J. Weitzner, Senior Staff Counsel <djw@eff.org> Electronic Frontier Foundation 1001 G St, NW Suite 950 East Washington, DC 20001 202-347-5400 (v) 202-393-5509 (f)