Steve Bellovin wrote:
> Folks, this list has been getting rather noisy of late, mostly with
> discussions of political philosophy. Can we move those discussions
> somewhere else?
...
> Let's save the politics for debates over suitable quantities of ethanol, and
> use this list for technical material and the *occasional* factual announcement
> about the world around us, such as Reno's recent statement. And if you do
> feel the need for (another?) political crypto form, perhaps another list is
> in order.
I thought this <was> the other list that encouraged discussion of
the politics of cryptography. I agree that ethanol is off-topic,
but my last resubscription returned a blurb that said:
WHAT TOPICS ARE APPROPRIATE:
"On topic" discussion includes technical aspects of cryptosystems,
social repercussions of cryptosystems, and the politics of
cryptography such as export controls or laws restricting cryptography.
I think Perry's been doing a good job of keeping it pretty focussed.
I agree with Steve that preaching to the choir here is counterproductive.
Perhaps more productive would be to continue to discuss practical ways to
help render inappropriate controls irrelevant... and then to implement
them!
--
Jim Gillogly
Trewesday, 8 Wedmath S.R. 1999, 17:15
12.19.6.7.6, 11 Cimi 14 Xul, Second Lord of Night
