Privacy

Zimmermann Legal Defense

CypherPunks

Pretty Good Privacy

[NOTE from Modemac: All quotes supplied here are excerpts from FREEDOM articles, reprinted under Fair Use for the purpose of comment and criticism.]

The so-called "church" of Scientology has several publications, one of which is called FREEDOM. This one bills itself as "investigative reporting in the public interest," though in actuality is a mouthpiece for the CoS to take potshots against its perceived enemies, the psychiatric profession and the Cult Awareness Network. They have just published an issue dealing with the Internet, where they praise their raid on Dennis Erlich's home as a corageous victory against "copyright terrorism." (See alt.religion.scientology for more details of that.)

Also of note in the issue are the statements made by the CoS about anonynmity on the Internet. They waste no time in coming out an declaring that anonymous messages are a "threat" to the Net. Here is an example, quoted from FREEDOM Volume 27, Issue 4, pg. 17, "Solutions to On-Line Lies." Note how they equate anonymous messages with neo-Nazis:

"What does the future of the information superhighway hold for neo-Nazis and anonymous sources of libel? According to attorney and author Robert B. Charles, 'Computer libel is a real threat, not just to those who revere unrestricted First Amendment rights and those vulerable to libel, but to those who may end up liable. If the industry doesn't deal with it, the courts will. And that could lead anywhere.'

"False, libelous and anonymous messages are a problem the Internet must come to grips with. In no other medium can an individual find himself facing scurrilous lies that he would never be contronted with in 'real' life.

"Remailers and Internet access providers such as Prodigy and America On-Line [sic] are waking up to their potential liabilities as conveyors of anonymous libel.

"For the law to be applied in cyberspace as in the everyday world requires installation of two standard practices: User identification on all communications or, alternatively, remailers who post anonymous communications knowing who their anonymous users are - and accepting responsibility for the consequences of being, in effect, publishers. This would bring activities on the Internet into alignment with standard practices in other media. "In this manner, laws which exist to protect citizens from defamation and discrimination can be applied to the information superhighway."

Also from "The Good, The Bad and the Internet," pg. 9-10 of the same issue:

"...Criminals and bigots exist in society, so it comes as no surprise that they also exist on the Internet. But the Internet offers them a new and unique way to hide from discovery and work their frauds and subterfuges from the safe harbor of anonymity. "An Internet user can travel widely in complete anonymity because computer facilities are especially designed for that purpose. An individual can, untraceably, traffic in child pornography, infringe copyrighted works, spread false and libellous information on builletin board and even answer another person's mail."

(How do you use an anonymous remailer to answer another person's mail?)

If the so-called "church" of Scientology is to be believed, then the anonymous remailers serve no purpose other than to encourage "anarchy," criminal behavior, and law-breaking on the Net. Therefore, according to the so-called "church" of Scientology, anonymous remailers should be shut down.

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