From: wcs@anchor.ho.att.com (Bill Stewart +1-908-949-0705 wcs@anchor.ho.att.com)
Date: Mon, 20 Sep 93 11:39:58 PDT
To: mnemonic@eff.org
Subject: Re: Restrictions on crypto exports
Message-ID: <9309201723.AA21359@anchor.ho.att.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text


Mike - you write that an FTP archive is a library open to the public.
While it looks like one to me, the important thing is convincing a grand jury
or jury that it's true, or heading off a prosecutor who'll try to paint
ftp archives as 'subversive hacker BBSs' or nonsense like that.
(Which won't stop them from treating them as libraries if it's useful
for other things they're doing.)  Until there are some court cases setting
precedent one way or the other, they can try to construe it narrowly when 
they want narrow and broadly when they want broad.  It would seem that some
cheap insurance in cases like this is to make sure that most of the interesting
material finds its way into paper libraries, and start documenting it.

Do you know if anyone's doing this in an organized fashion?
(I'm in the process of moving west, so I can't start doing this with my
friendly town librarian, but I may try once I'm resettled.)

				Bill Stewart