December 2021 - cypherpunks - lists.cpunks.org

New Digital Money, New Digital Crimes
by jim bell 27 Dec '21

27 Dec '21

New Digital Money, New Digital Crimes | | | | | | | | | | | New Digital Money, New Digital Crimes David G.W. Birch Unconditionally anonymous electronic money is a really, really bad idea. Prove me wrong. | | | The crypto opportunities for the gangsters are as big as the crypto opportunities for the GAFAs I wrote last week that governments will never allow anonymous digital currencies and my comments attracted a certain amount of controversy. And I understand why. But to those who say that uncensorable, untraceable digital cash would be a shield against dictators, a force for the oppressed and a boon to free men everywhere… well, I think it’s more complicated than that. The issue of anonymity in payments is complex and crucial and it deserves informed, calm, strategic thinking because the transition to digital currency touches so many aspects of society. One obvious and important aspect is crime. Would digital currency change crime? If I hire thugs to lure a cryptobaron to a hotel room and then beat him up to get $1m in bitcoins from him (as actually happened in Japan), is that a crypto-crime or just boring old extortion? If I use Craigslist to lure a HODLer to a street corner and then pull a gun on him and force him to transfer his bitcoins to me (as actually happened in New York), is that a crypto-crime or just boring old mugging? If I get hold of someone’s login details and transfer their bitcoins to myself (as has just happened in Springfield), is that a crypto-crime or just boring old fraud? If I kidnap the CEO of a cryptocurrency exchange and then release him after the payment of a $1 million bitcoin ransom is that, as the Ukrainian interior minister said at the time, "bitcoin kidnapping” or just boring old extortion?

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Leaks: James Webb Space Telescope Finally Launched!
by grarpamp 27 Dec '21

27 Dec '21

Seems a bit unusual that apparently no one has published or leaked the control plane docs for any [spy]sat, ever. Same for the NSA's crypto jewels. NASA's $10 Billion Webb Telescope Begins Million Mile Journey Update (1040ET): The $10 billion James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) was launched into space at 0720 ET without a hitch from the Guiana Space Center near Kourou, French Guiana. We have LIFTOFF of the @NASAWebb Space Telescope! At 7:20am ET (12:20 UTC), the beginning of a new, exciting decade of science climbed to the sky. Webb’s mission to #UnfoldTheUniverse will change our understanding of space as we know it. pic.twitter.com/Al8Wi5c0K6 — NASA (@NASA) December 25, 2021 About 15 minutes into the flight, the JWST separated from the main stage of the Ariane 5 rocket, where it was preparing for its million-mile journey to the Earth-sun Lagrange Point 2 (L2). Here it is: humanity’s final look at @NASAWebb as it heads into deep space to answer our biggest questions. Alone in the vastness of space, Webb will soon begin an approximately two-week process to deploy its antennas, mirrors, and sunshield. #UnfoldTheUniverse pic.twitter.com/DErMXJhNQd — NASA (@NASA) December 25, 2021 Shortly after arriving into orbit, JWST deployed its solar array to begin its 29-day journey to L2. #NASAWebb is safely in space with its solar array drawing power from the Sun! Its reaction wheels will keep the spacecraft pointed in the right direction so that its sunshield can protect the telescope from radiation and heat: https://t.co/NZJ7sSJ8fX#UnfoldTheUniverse pic.twitter.com/s4nfqvKJZD — NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) December 25, 2021 Webb is the successor to Hubble Space Telescope, which will use its high-tech sensors to look more than 13 billion years into the past. Once JWST arrives at L2, the scientific community may never look at the universe the same. * * * Astronomers are getting the best Christmas gift in a very long time – the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is headed to the launchpad on Christmas morning, set to be the successor to the Hubble Space Telescope. "With JWST and its rocket securely on the pad, the team will run electrical diagnostics to ensure all lights are green for launch," according to NASA. "Teams will power on the observatory while at the launch pad to run one final aliveness test to ensure all systems have power and are working before liftoff." Santa and his reindeer will be headed to the North Pole when the Ariane 5 rocket launches the JWST between 0720 ET to 0750 ET from the Guiana Space Center near Kourou, French Guiana. JWST will be catapulted to a gravitationally stable spot of about 930,000 miles from Earth, known as the Earth-sun Lagrange Point 2 (L2). From there, the complex space observatory will look deep into the universe for signs of life. It will take 30 days to reach L2, and the first images of deep space won't be collected until next year. Astronomers have been waiting years for JWST's launch -- this could be the best Christmas present ever for the scientific community if all goes well during launch. Watch the launch live right here on the NASA live stream:

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MORE on Alex Jones
by professor rat 26 Dec '21

26 Dec '21

https://www.palmerreport.com/politics/the-reason-alex-jones-just-became-suc… You don't have to subscribe to the rotten politics of this site to enjoy some of its running commentary.

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He will eat your ass
by professor rat 26 Dec '21

26 Dec '21

https://www.palmerreport.com/analysis/alex-jones-goes-for-donald-trumps-leg…

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When cannibals attack
by professor rat 26 Dec '21

26 Dec '21

RonFilipkowski · 13h Alex Jones: “This is an emergency Christmas Day warning to Pres Trump. You are either completely ignorant .. or you are one of the most evil men who ever lived .. What you told Candace Owens is nothing but a raft of dirty lies.” Show this thread

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Inside Baseball
by professor rat 26 Dec '21

26 Dec '21

octal · 7h This is interesting: https://opensea.io/collection/cipher-punks… (I vaguely want to buy all the Tim May, Hal Finney, Len Sassaman NFTs to archive somewhere, but actually spending the money building tools is a better tribute I think. Still. interesting idea!)

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Happy Holidays 2021
by grarpamp 26 Dec '21

26 Dec '21

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZEFH8-XJd0 12 Days of Xmas - Censored LGB Version

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Proposal - memorizing simple passwords which are hard to crack
by Stefan Claas 26 Dec '21

26 Dec '21

Hi all, https://groups.google.com/g/alt.privacy.anon-server/c/IrBgFHsLu0w Hope you like it and wish all ML members a happy Holidays season. Regards Stefan

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DOJ and FBI have combined to destroy project veritas
by jim bell 26 Dec '21

26 Dec '21

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2021/11/the_doj_and_fbi_have_combined_… November 13, 2021 The DOJ and FBI have combined to destroy Project Veritas By Andrea Widburg Project Veritas uses hidden camera techniques to expose corruption, dishonesty, anarchy, and totalitarian impulses in American institutions. Given the times in which we live, that means Project Veritas is usually exposing leftists and their organizations. It's almost certainly not a coincidence, then, that the FBI engaged in a series of early-morning raids against Project Veritas employees and its founder, James O'Keefe, ostensibly because, a year ago, they possessed, but refused to use (and gave to law enforcement), a diary that we now know belonged to Joe Biden's pathetic, drug-addicted daughter, Ashley. It's even less of a coincidence that the New York Times immediately knew about the raids and later published Project Veritas's confidential correspondence with its attorneys. What we're witnessing is a political hit job that would be completely at home in any penny-ante, third-world, tin pot tyranny — in other words, welcome to Biden's America. The story starts with Ashley Biden, a Biden child almost as pathetic as Hunter. Like her brother, she has had drug problems, including an arrest for marijuana possession (although, big surprise, the charges were dropped) and a video purportedly showing her using cocaine at a party. Over a year ago, the louche Ashley ended up in a drug rehabilitation center and reported that her diary was stolen while she was there. Tipsters approached Project Veritas, claiming to have a copy of the diary, which, they said, Ashley had abandoned or forgotten when she left the clinic. Unable to determine whether the diary was even real, Project Veritas tried to give it to Ashley's attorney, who refused it. Project Veritas then gave it to law enforcement. It never published the diary. Eventually, the National File released the document. It made a bit of a splash because the diary refers to Ashley's belief that she was sexually abused as a child; talks about inappropriate showers with Daddy Joe; and discusses drug abuse, marital affairs, and more. It's the pathetic document of a damaged person raised by a sleazy parent. All that was a year ago. And then, last week, the FBI engaged in pre-dawn, knock-the-door-down raids on Project Veritas reporters: Think about that: we're talking about a common theft, something that belongs under the jurisdiction of the local cops, but the DOJ and FBI come together to engage in aggressive raids on a journalism outfit that has a habit of exposing problems in the administration's allies. (End of partial quote)

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Ars Technica: Intel apologizes for banning use of components from Xinjiang
by jim bell 26 Dec '21

26 Dec '21

Ars Technica: Intel apologizes for banning use of components from Xinjiang. https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2021/12/intel-apologizes-for-banning-use-of… Intel has apologized for a ban on using components from Xinjiang in response to attacks from Chinese nationalist media over the policy, becoming the latest multinational to become embroiled in China’s battle with the US over human rights issues. The episode quickly became one of the most talked-about topics online in China with netizens on Twitter-like Weibo calling for the government to hit Intel with fines and other punishments. The controversy erupted after Intel sent a year-end letter to suppliers noting that components made in the north-western Chinese region of Xinjiang should not be used in its chips. The message attracted the attention of nationalist media outlet Guancha. In a Chinese language social media post, Intel said it wanted to “clarify” that the ban was only for compliance with US law and not its “own intention or position.” “We apologize for the trouble caused to our respected Chinese customers, partners and the public,” Intel added

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