Re: cypherpunks press

[jrochkin@cs.oberlin.edu (Jonathan Rochkind)]

>Jonathan Rochkind writes:
>> The 29 January New Yorker has an article "Hackworm" that discusses the
>> Mitnick-Shimomura-Markoff echoing cypherpunks lack of sympathy for the
>> Markoff-Shimomura P.R. extravaganza.  Article ends mentioning cypherpunks
>> and John Gilmore specifically, discussion of crypto politics, while not
>> entirely toe-ing the cypherpunks party line, an enhearteningly informed and
>> rational treatement.
>
>Could someone please explain to me why Mitnick is a cypherpunk issue?
>Myself, I have neither sympathy nor lack of sympathy for the
>Markoff-Shimomura "pr extravaganza", see no "cypherpunk" opinion on
>the subject, and don't see any reason we should, as a group, discuss
>or care about the topic.
>
>Perry

The article mentions the cypherpunks, and spends a couple pages discusing
crypto politics and internet security issues.  Like I said, I found it an
unusually well-informed article for the conventional press.  I thought
other cypherpunks list members would be interested in a pointer to it, both
because it discusses the cypherpunks list and because it discusses crypto
politics in a fairly intelligent manner.  And, yes, because it was also
about Mitnick-Markoff-Shimomura, and despite your constant protests that it
isn't a cypherpunks issue, I know that many on the list disagree and are
interested in the issue (and have opinions about it, individually; of
course there is no group mind 'cypherpunks opinion'.)  And, also, because I
think media analysis and issues of what the media is doing and how it works
are 'cypherpunks issues'--that is, issues with a direct relationship to the
crypto issues often discussed here, and which a large proportion of list
members are interested in discussing and hearing about.

I don't see why you, Perry, are the arbiter of what is and is not a
'cypherpunk issue'--if there are lots of people interested in discussing a
certain issue or type of issue on the list, it's going to be discussed.
All you can do is increase the noise on the list even futher by constantly
complaining about it.   Which you seem to enjoy, so go ahead, I guess.