> As mentioned earlier, the latest set of attacks against
> despamming, UUNET, Tale, and any sort of organized Usenet
> appears to have taken the form of mass-cancellations of FAQs,
> forged in various people's names. Ie: mine.
They were clearly forgeries designed to conceal the forger's
identity -- unlike typical "cyberspam" cancels, for which
forgers take proud credit.
They appear to be a guerrila -- or terrorist -- retaliation
against the popular acceptance of forged "cyberspam"
cancels. There is a strong Internet free-speech movement
objecting to any forged cancel as censorship, even cancels
of worthless MMF spam.
The author of one of the targetted FAQs, Chris Lewis, is a
prominent forger of spam cancels and an advocate of denying
Internet access to spam posters. The authors of the other
targetted FAQs are similarly active in forging spam cancels.
In fact, the forger used the targets' own "cyberspam"
forgeries as templates for the retaliatory strike --
changing only the word "cyberspam" to "faqcancel" in the
'Path:' header.
How can an opponent of forged cancels use forged cancels as
a weapon? Such fight-fire-with-fire tactics have ideological
support. It is the impetus for most terrorist movements.
I believe the "kike/fag/twat/geek/slanteyecancel" are
further examples of such tactics. The forger is saying: If
you can use forged cancels for a supposedly "good" end --
removing spam -- let me show you how others can use the same
means for evil.
I also use a cancelbot, but only for mindless MMF spam
posted to alt.union.natl-writers, as explained in my FAQ. As
an absolute foe of censorship, I justify myself by arguing
that "fraudulent or specious" appeals for money deserve a
lower level of protection than other speech.
I am beginning to wonder if I should reconsider and let any
post, not matter how hostile, irritating, or irrational,
stand. After all, my FAQ also beseeches users not to
complain to sysadmins or otherwise attempt to close an
abusive account, lest writers and publishers come to
resemble their worst enemy, the censor.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vicki Richman vicric@panix.com National Writers Union
Harlem, New York PGP 2.6 UAW Local 1981, AFL/CIO
"The fare shall not be fowl." -Credo of the Vegetarian Umpires Association
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