A ban on cryptography?

[tcmay@got.net (Timothy C. May)]

Anyone know anything about the status of this bill?

--begin bill excerpt--

                                           S.1666

Department of Commerce Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1997 (Passed by the
Senate)

SEC. 1042. PROHIBITION ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF INFORMATION
RELATING TO USE OF CRYPTOGRAPHY FOR A CRIMINAL PURPOSE.

       (a) UNLAWFUL CONDUCT- Section 875 of title 18, United States Code,
is amended by adding at the end the
       following new subsection:

       `(l) It shall be unlawful for any person to teach or demonstrate the
use of cryptographic systems, or to distribute by any means information
pertaining to, in whole or in part, the construction of digital ciphers,
if the person intends or knows, that such cryptographic materials or
information will be used for, or in furtherance of, an activity that
constitutes a Federal criminal offense or a criminal purpose affecting
interstate commerce.'.


--end bill excerpt--

--Tim May

(P.S. it may not be real, but it _could_ be real.)

HOW TO MAKE A PIPE BOMB:
"Buy a section of metal water pipe 1/2 by 6 inches long, threaded on both
ends.  Buy two metal caps to fit.  These are standard items in hardware
stores.  Drill a 1/16th hole in the center of the pipe. This is easy with a
good drill bit. Hanson is a good brand to use.  Screw a metal cap tightly
on one end. Fill the pipe to within 1/2 inch of the top with black powder.
Do not pack the powder. Don't even tap the bottom of the pipe to make it
settle.  You want the powder loose.  For maximum explosive effect, you need
dry, fine powder sitting loose in a very rigid container." (more
information at http://sdcc13.ucsd.edu/~m1lopez/pipe.html, or by using
search engines)