Re: Bombings, Surveillance, and Free Societies

["Phillip M. Hallam-Baker" <hallam@w3.org>]

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Timothy C. May wrote:

>The Red Brigade in Italy sought a fascist crackdown, and
> the "strategy of tension" is common. (And even revolutionists of crypto
> anarchist persuasion often think laws like the CDA are good in the long
> run, by undermining respect for authority and triggering more extreme
> reactions....)

It is important to note in this regard that the worst bombing in Italy was
the Bologna station bombing, now decisively linked to right wing facist
groups the involvment in which of ex-prime minister Adreotti is shortly to
be examined in a criminal trial. The point being that the extreemists play
into each others hands.


> -- expect increased support for a "New World Order" to restrict
> non-governmental access to strong crypto (via key escrow measures)

This is pretty much a diversion. Terrorist groups have been using encryption
since long before PGP arrived.

> -- expect the various laws about "talking about explosives on the Net" to
> be used to clamp down on various fringe groups

Hang on here, some of those groups are actively conspiring to commit
terrorist acts. If someone sends a message saying "lets plant a bomb
under a federal building, that will show them" I'm not worried if the
govt. decides to arrest a few people. There is a border between free
speech and conspiracy to murder which some people have crossed.

> -- expect "national security" to become a bigger part of the political debate

Possibly.

> -- expect more and bigger bombings, as the groups thinking about bombings
> see how productive they are in accomplishing policy goals (such as ending
> peace talks, triggering police state actions, etc.)

The IRA has not got very far after 25 years or terrorism. The civil rights 
movement which the IRA usurped achieved much more in the five years before
the IRA started killing people. Had it not been for the IRA there would 
probably have been a settlement by now. The same goes for Israel where 
the PLO only gained a partial settlement after giving up the terrorism.

> I predict that it will take about 5 more major bombings in European and
> American cities to trigger substantive changes in laws.

Generally it takes two. The legislation is written after the first and
then staled until being passed on the second.

There is a usefull procedure in the UK parliament which causes bills to
expire at the end of each session.

Note that on the CDA there was the behaviour of certain people deliberately
seeking to create an issue. The CDA was to a large extent the work of one
Marty Rimm and his fellow conspirators.

> Personally, while I feel sorry for the dead in Israel, I think anyone who
> moves to a small desert state surrounded on all sides by Arabs who want
> their land back is asking for trouble.

A point to consider is that there are many Isralis born in Israel who have no 
other home. These people did not ask to be born in the middle of a desert
state. As with the Irish problem it is easy to solve if one could change
the past. The fundamental problem being that the wrong side won at Hastings.

	Phill
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