🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1992Oct27.220037.22284@osf.org>, karger@osf (Paul A. Karger) writes:
>A number of European countries require some form of
>key registration before cryptography can be used in
>telecommunications.  I believe that both France and
>Germany have laws of this kind.
>
>I personally am uncomfortable with crypto key
>registration, but there certainly is precedent for it
>in the laws of some "Western democracies".  

There's a rumor (for circulating which I can be blamed on my part)
which says that in Canad you must register keys with "her majesty's
post office" or something like that.  Some people have said it's just
a rumor, though.

I don't know if "Western democracies" are an example to look up to in
any respect - sad to say, it seems that only if want to find out how
to kill and plunder people and nature over religious or ideological
reasons, or how to turn any good religion, idea or issue into
violenece, destruction and unhappiness to people should you go and
learn the ways of "Western democracies".  Not to say that other
societies don't do the same things, "western democracies" just seem to
be so damn efficient with it.

Anyway, off one soapbox and onto another - it seems that the EC of
Europe wants to turn the world into 1984, just as pictured by Orwell.
USA is doing their part as well, don't know about Japan.  That is to
say that they are not much into personal freedom in EC nowadays,
either - the decision-making is very secretive and centralized, there
is a Trevi, apparently a political police (of course "against
terrorism and organized crime" in the official parlance) and so on.

It also seems that for some reason the governments of many European
countries are very eager to join EC/EU and would do just about
anything for it, while the people are not so eager and in many
countries around 50 % are against, with the percentage increasing.

As an example, the Finnish government's EC/EU talk has been a farce
for a long time.  Also, Finland is taking it's laws to Euro-level (and
has been for many years with no official decision to do so) which
apparently means we'll be getting phone and data network tapping
(traffic analysis was allowed already, from start of October), primary
reason to which apparently is "because everybody else in Europe has
it".

"Everyone else does it" is a not a good defense, and a very bad reason
for removing freedom.  It seems it's a working strategy, though -
especially in international negotiations.  Works a bit like a bunch of
kids daring each other to bigger and bigger thefts.  As an example, in
intellectual property negotiations USA is pressing for much wider
monopolies than it has back home - and when they come back home and
the treaty is written, they say to Congress (or whomever) "Well, this
is what was negotiated.  Ours was only a limited say in it, and you'll
have to take what you get.  And besides, it's bundled in with a bunch
of other GATT treaties so you have no other choice than accepting it".
Same way with EC/EU, same way with the international drug prohibition.
The governments gain, people lose.

sorry, rambling again

//Jyrki