Re: Electronic Revolution and Guerilla Warfare?

[Adam Shostack <adam@bwh.harvard.edu>]

David K. Merriman wrote:

| > national identity medium (card, wristband, etc) in place and mandatory.
| > travel, currency, and information transfer restrictions (ie, no more "How
| to build a Backpack Nuke" or "How to hack the Tax Gestapo central
| computers" books :-)

	Under these conditions, all that can be done is sustain heavy
casualties while waging guerrilla warfare.  Hope that truth, justice &
the american way will prevail, but don't expect to live to see it
happen.  If the government really is monitoring everything, using van
eck etc, fighting is very difficult.  The US army has learned to bring
massive force on a relatively precise point.  The US army is not good
at dealing with small bands of highly mobile snipers, guerrillas, etc.
Witness Bosnia, where we won't even venture, v. Iraq.  The Iraqis had
a large tank force, were fighting in the open, and got their butts
kicked.

	The Bosnians make good use of cover, use small, 'easily'
transportable weapons (topping out at 120mm mortars, which are barely
carryable by one person in good shape.  80 is better).  Most of the
Northeast would be good terrain, as would the Rockies.  The midwest,
which is where the facists in Gov't are probably from, is too flat &
open for unconventional warfare.

| What problems would those willing to fight such government oppression be
| likely to face?  How to deal with those problems?  How to organize and
| exchange personnel/information?  How to not get caught?  How to avoid
| detection? What means/methods of, um, dissonance against such a government
| would be more/less effective? Under what various permutations of
| electronic/physical bushwhacking would the process be successful or not?
| Duration?  Other than the obvious crypto/cyber/military disciplines, what
| other professions or specialized knowledge would be useful under what
| conditions? What blatantly obvious thing(s) have I left out?

	Exchange of information would have to be limited; read up on
direction finding hardware.  You would want small groups working to
disrupt & demoralize those who are being oppressive.

	You would want to use HFREF guns, EMPT bombs, cable cutting,
jamming, and lots of other EW that most people know very little about.
Check out Winn Schwartau's Information Warfare for a primer.

	The main skill you have left out is oration/propaganda.  Its
the Patrick Henrys and Sam Adams who made the revolution happen.
Without them, Washington wouldn't have had volunteers for his army.
Note that this is a tough area to work in today.  There are so many
people trying skillfully to manipulate opinion that its tough to come
across well.

	Cypherpunks write memes!


Adam