From: "Peter Nicol - VRL / BroomStick Productions" <nicol@highway1.com.au>
Date: Fri, 13 Jun 1997 04:06:24 +0800
To: Kent Crispin <kent@songbird.com>
Subject: Re: Access to Storage and Communication Keys et al
In-Reply-To: <19970612121314.48508@bywater.songbird.com>
Message-ID: <199706121952.DAA29669@hedgehog.highway1.com.au>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain




> 
> Secrecy is a tool, period.  Who is TruthMonger?  There are *no* 
> tools (at this abstract level) that are used exclusively by the 
> state.  Also, the raw material of politics is human nature, and politics 
> permeates all human activity, whether connected to the state or not. 
> 
> > > > Two daughters of a silk merchant live in Kyoto,
> > > > The elder is twenty, the younger, eighteen.
> > > > A soldier may kill with his sword,
> > > > But these girls slay men with their eyes.
> > > 
> > > Basho?
> > Ummm . . . My copy of "Zen Flesh, Zen Bones" only attributes this to 
> > "A well known Japanese poet".  Do you know anythang?
> 
> I no nothing.
> 
> Many years ago I was heavily into zen -- I have a well-worn copy of
> Zen Flesh, Zen Bones at home.  Further exploration lead me to
> Chuang-tzu:
> 
> 	http://songbird.com/gc/river/chuangtzu.html
> 

danke

> Perhaps I saw that poem in ZFZB.  But I have a couple of collections
> of Japanese poetry at home, as well as a very nice edition of Basho's
> "Journey to the North", or whatever it's called (it gets translated
> different ways, and I am confused...)
> 
> > current project: www.iinet.net.au/~ratty/legends
> 
> This has moved...

Not only that, but the site and the client SUCK.  Oh how I hate 
capitalism.  Even when I try to be one of the "winners" and involve 
myself in it, I still hate it.  etc etc rant on 


> -- 
> Kent Crispin				"No reason to get excited",
> kent@songbird.com			the thief he kindly spoke...
> PGP fingerprint:   B1 8B 72 ED 55 21 5E 44  61 F4 58 0F 72 10 65 55
> http://songbird.com/kent/pgp_key.html
> 

Thankyou for your posts.  It pleases me to see that a bunch of crypto 
intellectuals will take my posts seriously.  I have been interested 
in this topic for a while and only recently got my shit together 
enough to understand how to subscribe to a mailing list.  The last 
time I used PGP was when it was in DOS and I found it a hassle.  Does 
that make me a clueless newbie?

Ummm . . . my training was in Non Violent Action (NVA).  This is 
being used by ppl at the moment to protect Gibblett Forest from being 
clear fell logged by a (IMNSHO) corrupt "Conservation and Land 
Management" (CALM) authority in Western Australia.

As a way of countering destructive paranoia, we have developed a 
doctrine of "secrecy is a tool of the state".  (I am well aware of 
the limitations of Doctrine as a logical formal system godelwise).
To this end, we have NO SECRETS.  Everything we do is "public 
domain", ie, everyone, including our "enemies" gets to know it.  In 
practice, this is simple, ie Civil Disobedience.  You wanna log the 
trees, we gonna stop you, aint no big secret. We even go to the 
lengths of notifying the authourites, ie CALM/police of our 
strategies and telling them who will be doing an arrestable action 
on a particular day.  At the moment we have 3 ppl up Karri trees on 
platforms.

I find it very empowering.  I see no need for secrets.

Sure, secrecy is a tool.  I ask these questions:

1. Does it work.
2. Is it useful.  (also known as the Doctrine of Utility)
3. Does it make me happy.

I usually use these to analyse behaviour patterns, but hey . . .

1. Hmmmm . . . It kinda works, but it is a big hassle.  Then you 
gotta worry about looking like you are trying to hide somethang and 
thereby attracting attention.  Also, you get to worry about IF it 
does actually work and is uncrackable/contains no back door etc.

2. If you are paranoid or cannot organize yourself so that secrecy is 
unneccessary.

3. I am not sure WHAT makes me happy, but secure communications and 
commerce are not high on my list of priorities.  Perhaps an end to 
paranoia and capitalism that REQUIRE secure comms would make me 
happy.

Anyway . . .

Thanx for the pointer

Neter Picol
Violence is the last refuge of the Incompetent - Assimov (?)
A week is long time in crypto politics






Pete Nicol
Global Media Magnet
nicol@iap.net.au



BroomStick Productions
VRL - the Virtual Record Label
(+61 9) 335 9490   fax (+61 9) 335 9508
nicol@iap.net.au
broomstick@occtech.com.au

Current Project: www.iinet.com.au/~ratty/legends