From: Martin Minow <minow@apple.com>
Date: Sat, 27 Sep 1997 02:15:25 +0800
To: cypherpunks@cyberpass.net
Subject: re: Chutzpah!  FBI Calls Privacy Extremists Elitist
In-Reply-To: <v03102801b05110c4e302@[17.219.103.63]>
Message-ID: <v03010d03b0519eb19ed9@[17.202.40.158]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



At 12:18 AM -0700 9/26/97, I wrote:
>> ... Extreme privacy
>>positions were ultimately elitist and nondemocratic in that they
>>presumed the views of a knowing privacy cognoscenti should pre-empt
>>the views of the nation's elected officials and the Supreme Court,
>>McDonald said.
>
>This reminds me of the state legislature that tried to change the
>value of pi to something simpler in order to help students
>struggling with their homework.

Before we go too far down the "stupid politicians" path, I would
like to clarify what I was attempting to say.

Cryptography is mathematics; it exists in the real world. Legislating
against cryptography will, ultimately, be as effective as changing
the value of pi by legislation or passing a Papal edict that the
the earth is the center of the universe. Pass whatever edict you please:
"and, yet it moves."

Martin Minow
minow@apple.com