Pondering Clipper

[Adam Lake <lake@evansville.edu>]

Heard enough about Clipper?  

I have been receiving cypherpunk material for about a week now.  I am new
to cryptography, and new to security(feel free to laugh).  I hope this
posting is appropriate.. Well enough excuses for what I am about to say
but I might like Clipper. 

1.) From what I am hearing (largely propaganda from both sides) Clipper
will be OPTIONAL.  If I am businessman X and I don�t know squat about
security (but realize it is a good thing) wouldn�t I want something I
could feel secure with?  For me, wouldn�t Clipper be a good thig?

2) If, for some reason, I wanted to keep something even more secure so
the government couldn�t see what I was doing, couldn�t I just encrypt a
message before or after it goes through the Clipper Chip?  I would think
this would prevent the government as well as anyone else from reading my
message �en route�

3) Right now I can pick up cellular phone conversations and intercept data
through any network lines with a datascope. For anyone who doesn�t wan
this to occur wouldn�t it be nice if they couldat least be reasonably 
certain that no one could understand what they are hearing or seeing? 

4) Also, would it be unreasonable to have an on/off switch on the Clipper
chip? 

	Please don�t assume me to be a pro-clipper individual.  I am
merely trying to form a logical, educated opinion on the issue.  I will
always feel skeptical when the FBI say �we just need this to maintain our
current state of survellience capability (or is that survellience state
;-) And I am also aware that if anybody thinks these keys will be kept
confidential �unless the government has a warrant blah blah blah� well I
better stop there.......... 

lake@uenics.evansville.edu
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