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Swan Song

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----

It's Thanksgiving, 2008, as I start to write this.  Nothing is likely
to change for me between now and the one year aniversary of my exodus
from usenet.

Many will not remember me, and some who do will not be glad to be
reading this, because I am free and untouched by the events of March,
2008.  Untouched; not investigated, tried or jailed.

It is clear that the precautions I was taking then were sufficient.
If they weren't, I would have been in the same boat as many others
who knew me.

So in retrospect, after much time to contemplate, review and analyze
what went wrong, I understand why some were safe and some weren't.

The reason for having a group wasn't protection, but economy.  Open
posting not only provided a target, but the loss of the account used
for posting was likely (or inevitable).  Accounts are not cheap, but
if the accounts were used only for encrypted exchange then there
would be no basis for closing the account (on the part of the ISP).
Failure of screening, therefore, would have only one adverse
consequence - loss of any anonymously created accounts.  Not loss of
freedom.

Part of the screening process, in fact, was the requirement that the
applicant demonstrate proficiency in posting anonymously.  Each
person chose their own "strategy" for anonymity and personal
security.  The failings of the group concept did not, all by
themselves, get people arrested.  Everyone I know that used
Privacy.li exclusively was arrested, most notably my number 2 who
relied on privacy.li for everything.  Everyone I know that used tor
and remailers exclusively is still free.  The arrests are the
ultimate test of anonymity, and SSH tunnels failed that test.  At
least one never used any particular method of security because he
never posted any binaries.  He was still arrested, however, for
posting a thank you note.  And being part of the group.

During times of plenty, there was little reason to have a group at
all.  Anything one could want could be found in usenet groups, and
one only need download the material.  Such times were few and far
between though, and the group functioned as a "filler" for online
material, or just a way of keeping everything organized during both
feast and famine.

Regardless, I'm not back.  I'm happy with my life despite it's
ordinary tribulations.  I lack nothing of importance, although I do
have regrets.  The group concept itself was, in retrospect, a
mistake.  Properly excuted, it might not have been so disastrous, but
staying anonymous is no easy task.  Relying on privacy.li was clearly
a big mistake.  As for Cotse, I would expect that, if asked, Gielda
would answer honestly about any subpoenas he responded to that lead
to arrests.  Or maybe not.

The only surprizes from the whole affair were the intensity of the
investigation and the coverage after the fact.  The Assistant
Director of the FBI?  CNN?  For that tiny group?  Unreal.

But OTOH, we knew that the magic word "ring" would inspire
exaggeration, and provide a convenient target for those who like
"conspiracies."  Especially "Global" or "International"
ones.  Ha!

Curiously, the fall of egold coincided with our activities and the
indictment in April, 2007 followed the seizing of our account.  You
could read about egold in wikipedia and decide for yourself.

But for me, it's all over, and I have no desire to get involved in
usenet again.  The writing has been on the wall for usenet for some
time, and I don't need the excitement.

I wondered if I should anticipate the responses to this writing and
answer them in advance.  Usenet is paranoid, and so there will be
questions about the authenticity of the post/poster (assuming someone
actually reads it) despite the PGP signature.  There will be
suspicion about motives, and resurrected suspicions about what
happened and who did it.  Too many questions to answer.

For historical interest, I may post another message that addresses
some of the internal workings of the group as seen from the top.

I leave you with the words to a song that I found to reflect the
thoughts and feelings of the 10 years I participated in usenet.

- ----------------------------------------------
We skipped the light fandango
turned cartwheels 'cross the floor
I was feeling kinda seasick
but the crowd called out for more
The room was humming harder
as the ceiling flew away
When we called out for another drink
the waiter brought a tray

And so it was that later
as the miller told his tale
that her face, at first just ghostly,
turned a whiter shade of pale

She said, 'There is no reason
and the truth is plain to see.'
But I wandered through my playing cards
and would not let her be
one of sixteen vestal virgins
who were leaving for the coast
and although my eyes were open
they might have just as well've been closed
- -------------------------------------------------

I could interpret the song, but I think it speaks for itself.

Good luck, and good bye.

Yardbird.

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