From: Bryce <wilcoxb@nagina.cs.colorado.edu>
Date: Fri, 16 Feb 1996 22:51:37 +0800
To: cypherpunks@toad.com, e$@thumper.vmeng.com
Subject: China -- the fragile glimmer of freedom
Message-ID: <199602160010.RAA03646@nagina.cs.colorado.edu>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



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I have seen two articles-- one each from two prominent
cypherpunks who shall remain unnamed-- which said something
to the effect that China's censorship of the Chinese part of
the Internet will only "hurt themselves".  The apparent
degree of unconcern, or at least the callous way that it was
presented, saddened me.


One of the messages even ended with a sardonic "Oh well.".


For people who spewed forth hundreds of articles of rants
when the toothless CDA outlawed lewdity and advice about 
abortion, and for people who bravely and promptly took
action to protect the free speech of a <contempt>Holocaust
denier</contempt>, the cpunks have been noticeably silent 
about this much more cruel and widespread repression.


Perhaps you think that the compliant Chinese person is
satisfied with his or her role as lackey of his government? 
Or is it that we and the Asians inhabit such different 
worlds that we will have to make do without each other's 
help?



I think the cpunks are better than that, and I think that as
information technology permeates China, that the cpunks will
also be there, creating tools, smuggling them to the
Chinese people, and teaching them how to use these tools to
assert sovereign control over their own words and thoughts.


And pausing, on occasion, to engage in the cyberspace
equivalent of displaying a certain Western obscene gesture
towards the totalitarian government.



ObCrypto:  The RSA signature on this message can be used by
the Chinese police if they would like to verify its
authorship.  I might come to regret this someday...

ObE$:  Probably the most powerful of said tools is currency.


Bryce




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