FC: Jam Echelon day is today, definitely not a publicity stunt

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

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Date: Sun, 21 Oct 2001 16:46:17 -0700 (PDT)
From: James Ausman <ausman () CSUA Berkeley EDU>
To: declan () well com
Subject: Jam Echelon Day!

http://cipherwar.com/echelon/index2.htm

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Date: Sat, 20 Oct 2001 21:09:14 -0700
To: Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>
From: Michael Teetering <teetering () cipherwar com>
Subject: A Jam Echelon Day request

Hi Declan,
   I know that your original evaluation of our efforts was that it was 
primarily a publicity stunt. Although that may have actually been a true 
assessment, that is not a bad thing in view of the fact that we have always 
been dead serious about getting the subject of the existence of Echelon 
before the public eye.
   Tomorrow is Jam Echelon Day and your forum is an important gateway to a 
lot of people who can make this a stronger success than it has been so far.
   With that in mind, could you find a place in your releases for the 
following? (Any or all, as the reminder is the important part.)
   Either way, thanks for being there. You do an important job.
                                - - - Michael

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Dear Sponsors, Friends and Concerned Netizens,
   We want to take this time to thank each and every one of you for 
supporting this effort with your constructive suggestions, mirrors, and 
news coverage. We never could have reached so many people without you.

   Currently there are well over 30 mirrors, available in seven languages, 
with news coverage in more countries and languages than we can keep track of.

      Actually, there is no real intent on our part to overload Echelon, 
as we recognize that this would not be possible. Our intent is to bring the 
issue of the current state of personal privacy invasion and the existence 
of Echelon to the public forum and hopefully, educate in the process.

   If every single email user in the European Union sent the entire 
trigger word list on October 21st, Echelon wouldn't feel the impact but 
minimally. The truth is, that they are geared way beyond our ability to 
actually create an impact.

   What we are really doing is running  a public awareness campaign. With 
that goes the addressing of the overall issues of personal privacy and the 
underlying methodology for assuring this in a "not perfect" world. All of 
the coverage we have garnered has been success, based on our actual goals.

   Echelon does not monitor internally in the States. (As far as we can 
ascertain.) An email campaign would ONLY be effective to, or within the 
European Union. I think that flooding the servers in Europe with Echelon 
related mail of an un-requested nature would hurt the cause while not 
impacting Echelon in the slightest. Most email users in the states would be 
hard-pressed to generate even 10 addresses in Europe anyway.

   With some success on our part we may be able to cause discussion about 
the use of encryption by those who have, up to this point, never considered 
it's use. The pressure may begin to build against Echelon later as the 
daily awareness factor takes hold.

   With luck, the larger issues of personal privacy invasion will be 
brought before the general public's awareness. Only in that way will this 
campaign make a difference.

                        - - - Scully and Michael Teetering

More information can be found at www.cipherwar.com/echelon
E.U. Addresses to mail to can be found at: http://www.gksoft.com/govt/en/




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