Government Denial of Service Attacks

[Duncan Frissell <frissell@panix.com>]

Those who read this list or watch the news of the "Wired Curtain" that is
attempting to be drawn across the Net know that there is a theory out there
that government Denial of Service Attacks (GDOS) are a real threat.  The
GDOS theory holds that if government legislates or even threatens
litigation against the provision of a particular service, the providers of
the service will fold and the public will be unable to obtain the banned
service.

In the case of the net this is the "Do Not <--'Enter" theory.  The
governments claim that by threat, deception, or nuclear weapons, they can
keep millions of us from hitting the <--'Enter key and thus transmitting
banned material.  That is a very fine control regime indeed.  (Original
meaning of 'fine' of course.)

If the governments had this GDOS power; this Do Not <--'Enter power, then
the article on the front page of today's New York Times could not have been
written.

"Behind a Suburban Facade in Queens, A Teeming, Angry Urban Arithmetic" is
the annual NYT article on the spread of illegal apartments throughout the
Region.  From the humblest urban ghetto to the swankiest suburbs, denizens
of the TriState area are converting one- and two-family dwellings into two-
three- or four-family (and denser) dwellings.  These illegal apartments are
commonplace and illegal.  This has been true (and written about) for years.
 Here we have a physical service (apartment rental), difficult to hide, and
illegal which is offered by hundreds of thousands of property owners in
this area.

The GDOS theory holds that this can't happen.  "All they have to do is pass
a law."  Note that the GDOS theories that involve our activities say that
once the government passes a law, no one (or hardly anyone) will offer an
anonymous Net account, or an uncensored ISP connection, or an un IDed
financial account, or an uncensored news server, etc.  That all government
has to do is pass a law and all transactions will be carried out in rigid
conformity to its dictates.  

I say nonsense.  If the government can't keep thousands of property owners
(with their physical property at risk) from offering it for rent illegally,
in an "open, notorious, and continuous" manner; then they aren't going to
be able to keep very many of us from hitting <--'Enter.

DCF

"During Fiscal 1996, the Government of the United States collected more
taxes from the American people than any government had ever collected
before in the history of mankind.  During Fiscal 1997, the Government of
the United States plans to collect more taxes from the American people than
any government has ever collected before in the history of mankind.  And
still it's not enough."