Re: cypherpunks and guns

[Jonathan Wienke <JonWienk@ix.netcom.com>]

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At 12:51 AM 1/6/98 -0800, Wei Dai wrote:
>I don't understand why there is so much talk about guns here lately.
>Unless someone comes up with a weapon that has some very unusual economic
>properties, individuals cannot hope to compete with governments in the
>domain of deadly force. If we have to resort to physical violence, we've
>already lost!
>
>Think about it: if we can defend ourselves with guns, why would we need
>crypto?

InfoWar has always been a critical component of MeatWar.  Knowing who your
enemy is and where he is at makes it much easier to do something about him.
 Intelligence (in the military sense) and the tools to deny it to your
enemy (strong crypto) are of equal importance to weapons.  If you know that
a homicidal Postal Service employee is standing outside your front door and
is preparing to blast it off its hinges and then kill you, this
intelligence will do nothing but raise your blood pressure if you have no
weapons with which to deal with the situation.  (Calling 911 isn't going to
help you much.)  If you own several "assault weapons", but are asleep in
the living room when the door comes crashing down, the lack of intel will
greatly reduce the effectiveness of said weapons.

I have an equation for this:  Effectiveness = Intelligence * Force * Will. 
I define force as the theoretical ability to inflict damage on an opponent,
whether via bad PR, propaganda, lethal or nonlethal weapons, or any other
means.  Force has 2 components:  Materiel and Skill.  Thus, Force =
Materiel * Skill.  (Example:  If I own a riot shotgun and appropriate
ammunition, and have taken it to the range and familiarized myself with its
use, I have the theoretical ability to shoot the aforementioned Homicidal
Postal Employee, but mere ownership of the weapon and skill in its use does
not guarantee that outcome.)  Will is simply the will to fight if
necessary.

Although government will always have a higher Force factor than an
individual or "the cypherpunks" or a militia, it can be possible to achieve
a higher Effectiveness score via higher Intelligence and/or Will factors. 
This is how we lost the war in Vietnam.  We had a much higher Force level
than the VC, comparable Intelligence levels, but a much lower Will ratio
(at least at the upper decision-making levels).  Because of this, our Force
assets were bound under all sorts of bizarre restrictions which hampered
their usefulness, and we ultimately left in defeat.

By disseminating a mechanism for increasing the Cypherpunks Force level
(the Assassination Politics essay) and annoying some IRS agents with a
stinkbomb, Jim Bell increased the government's Will to capture and
incarcerate him.  This is the problem with with terrorism in general (the
OKC bombing is a prime example).

If either Intelligence (the domain of crypto) or Force (the domain of
weapons) is zero, Effectiveness (the real-world ability to inflict damage
or defend yourself from damage) is also zero.  Ignoring either can be
costly.

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Jonathan Wienke

PGP Key Fingerprints:
7484 2FB7 7588 ACD1  3A8F 778A 7407 2928
3312 6597 8258 9A9E D9FA  4878 C245 D245 EAA7 0DCC

"If ye love wealth greater than liberty, the tranquility of servitude
greater than the animating contest for freedom, go home from us in peace.
We seek not your counsel, nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that
feeds you. May your chains set lightly upon you; and may posterity forget
that ye were our countrymen."
-- Samuel Adams

"Stupidity is the one arena of of human achievement where most people
fulfill their potential."
-- Jonathan Wienke

Never sign a contract that contains the phrase "first-born child."

When the government fears the people there is liberty.
When the people fear the government there is tyranny.

RSA export-o-matic:
print pack"C*",split/\D+/,`echo "16iII*o\U@{$/=$z;[(pop,pop,unpack"H*",<>
)]}\EsMsKsN0[lN*1lK[d2%Sa2/d0<X+d*lMLa^*lN%0]dsXx++lMlN/dsM0<J]dsJxp"|dc`