From: Tim May <tcmay@got.net>
Date: Fri, 1 Aug 1997 02:20:55 +0800
To: "William H. Geiger III" <declan@pathfinder.com>
Subject: Re: Denning backs away from GAK
In-Reply-To: <v03007803b0067a1a1c9e@[168.161.105.191]>
Message-ID: <v03102807b00685fc9dd5@[207.167.93.63]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



At 9:54 AM -0700 7/31/97, William H. Geiger III wrote:
>-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
>
>In <v03007803b0067a1a1c9e@[168.161.105.191]>, on 07/31/97
>   at 01:22 PM, Declan McCullagh <declan@pathfinder.com> said:
>
>>BTW, Will R did a piece a month or so ago on Denning's shifting stance.
>>Maybe I should call her up and press her for details.
>
>Well after that piece was done I recall he making statments supporting
>some of the more Daconian bills floating around DC.
>
>I serriously doubt that she has changed here stance on any of the current
>Inet issuse mearly putting a different spin on them.

And her "second thoughts" on GAK were not based on a principled repudiation
of the concept of "escrowing" keys, or on Constitutional grounds,  but only
on the grounds that her study did not show that many criminal cases were
much affected by the lack of key escrow.

So what if they had?

(Insert usual arguments here about how many consitutionally-protected
rights affect criminal investigations, but that this is no reason to ban
window shades, locks on doors, whispering, etc.)

Denning and her allies can always support GAK in the future, when "new
studies indicate that law enforcement is being severely hampered by the
growing menace of unbreakable cryptography."

I never trust utilitarian arguments on things of this importance.

--Tim May

There's something wrong when I'm a felon under an increasing number of laws.
Only one response to the key grabbers is warranted: "Death to Tyrants!"
---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:----
Timothy C. May              | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money,
tcmay@got.net  408-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero
W.A.S.T.E.: Corralitos, CA  | knowledge, reputations, information markets,
Higher Power: 2^1398269     | black markets, collapse of governments.
"National borders aren't even speed bumps on the information superhighway."