Dominating public debate (Was: Cypherpunks as lobbying/propaga

[Robert Michael Hoff <rhoff@blue.weeg.uiowa.edu>]

While I agree that the cypherpunk list is too fragmented and informal to
pass off as a coherent lobbying group, there remains a very deep need to get
information out to the "general public" (read as, "people who might have
heard about something the NSA is doing, but don't quite remember what....")

Lets face it.  For all the successful lobbying EFF and CSPR and individuals
have done, upwards of 75% of the population won't recognize the word Clipper.
This needs to change, since the NSA depends on the masses to be uninformed
for Clipper to become reality.  Press kits and making the cypherpunk label
known are steps in the right direction, but we need to go more directly to
the people.  And sadly, probably the most successful way to stimulate debate
and educate in the United States is best demonstrated by...

"Harry and Louise"

You know, that annoying commercial the insurance industry ran?  That Bill
was concerned enough about to parody?  It's time the Clipper debate got
one too.  Mind you, we'd keep ours factual and non-sensational, but interesting
enough to catch the eye of Joe and Mary Blow at the dinner table.

An interesting concept: it would be (to my knowledge) the first time a grass
roots campaign went prime-time.  Problem is, getting airtime over the hours
our target audience is likely to be watching isn't cheap.  But hey, the
software industry hates this as much as cypherpunks do.  Pass the hat.  And
for that matter, if you think you're concerned enough to read this list,
chip in $20 bucks to the currently non-existant (EFF?  CSPR?  Cypherpunk
Nonproft Foundation for Truth?) Fund for Commercials.  You want to get
attention?  THAT'S the way you do it in the US.  It's unfortunate, but if you
want to stop Big Brother, you're going to have to play with the big boys by
their rules: who dominates public debate wins, not who's right.  And the
anti-Clipper movement needs to quit the discussion-group mode and move into
action.  Very, very soon.

Comments encouraged.

Robert Hoff.

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