The Enemies List

[Nomen Nescio]

Chefren - On behalf of the civilized readers of the cypherpunks list,
please accept our apology for the implied threats of violence against you
by Tim May.  He is by no means representative of the larger readership.
He is alone in calling for the death of those who hold views different
from his own.

You and other critics have every right to speak your mind and make your
position known.  Indeed, the cypherpunks were founded on the principle
of advancing freedom of speech.  It is a sad and tragic irony that one
of the founders of that group has descended into a despicable allegiance
to violence.  Long-term subscribers have seen it happen gradually over the
years.

It seemed to many that the Y2K non-disaster was the last straw.  Tim May
was one of the worst of the Y2K paranoids, spewing hostility at anyone
who dared to suggest that the event might not be a catastrophe, that the
government was not engaging in a cover-up or planning to install itself as
a dictatorship.  The original purpose of the cypherpunks mailing list was
forgotten as Tim May turned it into a forum for discussing gun ownership,
preparations for disaster, and mechanisms for revenge.

Many of us have been forced to use the shield of anonymity so that
our voices may be heard without fear of the violent retribution that
Tim May so often threatens.  His frequent boasts of carrying weapons,
his talk of a large arsenal, his calls for bloody revenge, all instill
a genuine fear in those who would disagree with him.

Very few list members have ever dared to speak up in opposition to even
the most outrageous statements made by Tim May.  When he said that he was
becoming convinced that Tim McVeigh had done the right thing in killing
hundreds of innocents, only an anonymous poster was willing to take him
sharply to task.  When he wrote that what he calls "the colored race"
was heading for "the trash heap of history", adding "fuck 'em", only
an anonymous poster spoke out against this outrageous demonstration
of racism.

Why?  Is it because all list subscribers agree with terrorist actions
like McVeigh's?  (Tim May has even hinted that he welcomes the recent
WTC attack!)  Is it because all list subscribers are racists who wish to
see their own race rise to dominance?  Surely not.  Rather, most readers
are intimidated into silence.  They don't speak up because they fear
the consequences.  Tim May has shown all too many times how sensitive
he is to even the slightest criticism.  He has a furious temper, as you,
Chefren, have discovered.  And he does not hesitate to threaten death.

So please, don't imagine that because Tim May has added you to his
enemies list, you are in any danger from the thousands of cypherpunks who
subscribe to the mailing list.  The vast majority abhor intimidation and
threats.  Indeed, most readers came to the cypherpunks out of a desire
to build a society where speech would always be free, where violence
would be impotent.  This is why we have worked on the technologies of
cryptography and anonymity.

It is sad and ironic that we are forced to resort to these methods, which
were intended as a shield against a hostile outside world, here on our
own list.  It is the only way that many of us can speak openly and freely
and without fear.  This is the injury which Tim May has inflicted upon the
group.  Fortunately the tools are available, and even his violent threats,
his rants and his rage cannot silence those who would speak their minds.

Again, on behalf of those of us who do not believe in violent revenge,
who believe in freedom of speech for all, please accept this apology.