From: Anonymous <anon@anon.efga.org>
Date: Tue, 18 Nov 1997 15:24:02 +0800
To: cypherpunks@cyberpass.net
Subject: Overcoming War with Information
Message-ID: <191ec603c49425d3e3971da9d01f0f1f@anon.efga.org>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



Monty Cantsin writes:

>One of the things that appeals to me about the tools the cypherpunks
>are developing is the likelihood that they will end war.  What
>percentage of wars are instigated and organized by governments?  That
>is, how many wars can we think of in which a war originated in the
>population of country and dragged its unwilling government into the
>fray?  I cannot think of any.

That's a good point.  Cypherpunk technologies should actually _reduce_
the scope of violence, killing, death.  These technologies will
make it easier to bypass regulations and reduce government control.
Free access to communications will make it harder for governments
to use propaganda to direct popular opinion as they have in the past.
People communicating anonymously will be able to express unpopular views
without fear of retribution.

It's ironic that some of the greatest supporters of crypto privacy are
also the ones who call for more killing, who support terrorist actions
like the Oklahoma bombing or a nuclear massacre.  They don't seem to
understand what this technology is all about.