Re: A 'Funky A.T.M.' Lets You Pay for Purchases Made Online
One point being overlooked here is digital versus physical anonymity. The funky ATM (what, does it smell or something?) will allow you to (among other things) stick in some cash and let someone else withdraw it using a password which you have sent him out of band (according to the patent - which I've actually read, more than anyone else here can say). This will allow for digital anonymity in the sense that there is no account information associated with the transaction. Now, it's true that ATMs take pictures of people, so you don't have full physical anonymity. But given the limited reliability of facial recognition systems, especially if you take simple precautions like wearing a hat and tilting your head down, you can have de facto very strong anonymity putting money into or taking it out of an ATM. The mere fact that it takes your picture doesn't mean that much. It's also true that the amount of cash that could be practically transfered in this way is limited to a few thousand dollars at most, given that the machines will probably only accept and dispense twenty dollar bills or equivalent. Nevertheless such payments would be a good start. The ability to pay or receive a few thousand dollars, untraceably, would enable a number of interesting applications involving freedom of speech and action. Writing custom software or providing sensitive information could be funded at these levels. The point which has been mostly overlooked is that this article was nothing but vapor, based on the issuance of a patent. There's a huge barrier between the idea and the implementation. A cash-transfer ATM would be a true boon to cypherpunk goals, but it is doubtful whether such a system will be allowed to exist in today's world.
Re: Dead Body Theatre
On Saturday, July 26, 2003, at 01:10 AM, Sarad AV wrote: I wouldn't like to see american soldiers killed either.How ever I talked to an american citizen a few days before the second iraq war and he supported the war saying that-If one is an american,where do you think all the money,power and previlage for american people will come from? That sounds very logical. I retaliated saying that the previlages,power will come with the death of thousands of iraqi men,women and children. He wouldn't budge any way. This is a silly, naive view of things. First, the concept of privilege is one of those lefty, cockeyed notions the liberals use to vaguely imply that success in life is due to privilege. Second, though I strongly disagree with the Second Iraq War, nothing that happens there has anything substantive to do with economic success and money, power for anyone I know. Our money, power comes from work, investments, high tech, etc. I have no idea if you are really the Third World mutant you usually come off as being, but you really need to get out more. --Tim May
