The Privacy/Untraceability Sweet Spot

[mmotyka at lsil.com]

"Aimee Farr" <aimee.farr at pobox.com> wrote :
> GH wrote:
> 
> > Nomen Nescio wrote:
> > [snip]
> > >The answers it gives depends on the questions you ask.  If your questions
> > >are simple enough (untraceability good?) then your chart will answer
> > >them.  If your questions are more interesting (what technologies can
> > >be practically implemented and make a positive difference in the world)
> > >then you need a better chart.
> >
> > You (and Aimee) make the mistake of assuming that all of us believe that
> > we are living in the best of all possible worlds.
> 
> *sigh*
>
Am I wrong or is there a latent idea here that the list members are in a
position to choose whether or not these ( yes, Virginia, they're
morality neutral ) privacy enhancing technolgies come to be? While the
participants here may represent a large portion of those interested and
capable of producing PETs they aren't the whole club. If there is a
privacy and untraceability sweet spot why suppose that it is not already
exploited by those with large financial gains to be made from it? 

Were a major drug cartel ( or a large corporation ) to decide that
developing communications systems was a key factor in their continuing
success it seems to me that the resources to do so would be easy to come
by. Hell, they were making a pretty decent sized submarine not so long
ago. I think a SW/HW product effort would be far easier to hide. There's
probably a shop full of busy Russian engineers somehwere in SA right
now. I don't believe that a whole battalion of  Gordons could ever stop
them.

All that you can choose is whether you participate in creating PETs or
not.

<chop>

> So, now, it's...
> 
> "BlackNet; Case History of a Practically Untraceable System for Buying and
> Selling Corporate and National Secrets.... to foreign adversaries, and to
> spur the collapse of governments."
> 
> Just out of curiosity, how many of you would sign on to a project like that?
> Would you please post a statement of interest, and detail how you would
> contribute to such a project?
> 
> ~Aimee
>
Have the GRU list-watchers ( your handlers! ) demonstrated their power
adequately by shtomping a few punk heads?

Has speech here been sufficiently chilled that nobody will answer?

Or is it just a dumb question? 

Create a real project with real rewards ( both financial and idealogical
but mostly financial ) and see what kind of response you get. Why should
anyone answer a dishonest question for free?

Mike