From: "Perry E. Metzger" <perry@piermont.com>
Date: Thu, 21 Mar 1996 14:35:34 +0800
To: IPG Sales <ipgsales@cyberstation.net>
Subject: snake oil refining
Message-ID: <199603200745.CAA01136@jekyll.piermont.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



IPG Salesdroid says:
> In view of the willful violation of our confidential release, without 
> knowing everything involved, and putting it out on the Internet, please 
> be advised that other than those who have heretofore been evaluating the 
> system, we will make no further releases except on a highly 
> selective basis.

Why? After all, the first lot of information proved to be worthless
(in the literal sense of having no economic value, it being a hunk of
junk). I can hardly see how you can complain about the result -- I
mean, it isn't like your encryption system was worth anything in the
first place, so it was hardly lowered in value.

I find it amusing how slippery the snake oil you peddle is,
however. This morning you claimed that several "cypherpunks" had been
sent information on your system and claimed it was "unbreakable". As
soon as a couple of cypherpunks note that what they were sent was
garbage, you claim, and I quote:

> In view of the anonymous remailer's calim to have broken the simple 
> system, which as you and others who have had the system for a period
> time know, we have had some reservations about. 

Ah, yes. This morning, unbreakable. Tonight "we had some reservations
about".

Why don't you stop wasting everyone's time? You can probably have a
fine career selling penny stocks or something.

Perry