From: frissell@panix.com (Duncan Frissell)
Date: Fri, 9 Sep 94 14:03:45 PDT
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Re: Black Cryptoanarchy (KKK, monopolies, contract killing)
Message-ID: <199409092102.AA06974@panix.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


At 12:36 PM 9/9/94 -0700, Doug Cutrell wrote:

>I am trying to understand the arguments for these points of view... I
>consider myself to be extremely "liberal" in my political philosophy, and I
>have a lot of respect for the arguments of libertarians.  But I am
>continually pulled back to the "test case" issue of racist employment
>practices.  This is the case where the argument is most difficult for me to
>buy.  

Cypherpunks is becoming "horrors" libernet.

The only legitimate hook for this issue is the fact that many would oppose
crypto anarchy (if they knew it existed) because it makes things like
anti-discrimination laws possible.

To avoid too much damage to the list, I will try and restrain myself to two
observations on the subject of laws against racial discrimination (which
libertarians do oppose):

1)  Laws are enforced by threat of (or by actual) violence.  Supporters of
outlawing racial discrimination are in the position of arguing that
non-violent social disagreements (the decision by someone not to deal with
someone else on *bad* grounds) should be "solved" by sending armed men out
to punish the person deciding to refuse to hire -- say -- whites.  And of
course to kill him  if he resists his punishment.  I would rather see deadly
force limited to situations in which there has at least been a breach of the
peace of some kind.    

2)  I have never met a person (and don't believe that there ever has been a
person) who has not discriminated on all of the "prohibited" bases
frequently.  Has there ever been anyone who selected -- say -- their friends
and lovers *purely* using random selection.  Never discriminating on the
basis of race, creed, color, sex, age, alienage, previous condition of
servitude, marital status, sexual or affectional preference, handicap, etc.
It would be hard to imagine someone who didn't use these prohibited
classifications in their personal sexual lives.

I observe little use of RNGs (see -- a cypherpunks technical reference after
all) in social intercourse.

Since it is legal (and indeed considered OK) to discriminate on all these
grounds in our personal lives, libertarians believe that discrimination
should at least be legal.  Freedom of Choice in *everything*.

DCF
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