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Activist Times Inc. Issue 057
HEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEY
HEYHEYhey, hey, hey, it's ATI!HEY
HEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEYHEY
-----> issue 57
November 6, 1991.
===========================
= info following brought =
= on by a need for more =
= real information =) =
===========================
Our net address: gzero@tronsbox.xei.com
U.S. Mail:
ATI
P.O. Box 2501
Bloomfield, NJ 07003
U.S.A.
ATI's Insane Staff:
Ground Zero - publisher, editor, writer
Prime Anarchist - editor, writer
Media Assassin - crass columnist
Geraldo Riviera - sleazy news columnist
Writing/Research Staff: Happy Harry Hardon, Fah-Q, MAC???,
and other occasional contributors
Hi, folks. Here we go again with a new ATI! It seems that we
are sticking to our monthly schedule for the time being. Pretty good,
huh?
We've got some great stuff in store for you in this issue -
mainframe fun, political commentary, letters, and more!
Let's get right to it!
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
LETTERS TO ATI
Please do write to us with any information, thoughts, ideas,
criticisms, suggestions, or just about anything!
LETTER #1:
"...I was offended by what was written by someone who is
obviously a member of the Libertarian party (Media Assassin's "Crass
Commentary", ATI55). I don't believe that something said by a member
of the Libertarian Party should be accepted as gospel. Frankly I think
Libertarians are greedy, rich bastards and do not represent the
anti-authoritarian ideas I am interested in."
The Media Assassin replies:
Hey, first off, who said I am a member of the Libertarian Party?
I sure didn't. I merely quoted Andre Marrou, the LP's Presidential
candidate in my column. And what does it matter if I a member of the LP?
Are LP members automatically wrong?
About Libertarians being "greedy, rich bastards," that's an
unfair generalization. I know about 4 "libertarians" and only one is
gainfully employed. Two are unemployed and have been looking for work,
and one is underemployed in a full-time job and has to work another
part-tine job. Hardly a collection of "rich, greedy bastards". And
what is your objection to someone being rich, anyway?
I suggest you read Ayn Rand and reconsider your own definitions
of "greedy", "selfish", and your ideas on just what you consider to
be "anti-authoritarian".
LETTER #2:
In ATI issue #55, you wrote...
> What's an ANAC? It stands for Automatic Number Anouncement. It
> refers to a number that you call that will give you a computer-voice
> reading of the phone number you're at. Telco repairmen use these
> numbers, but others sometimes find use for these numbers as well.
> Here are some that I have gathered from various sources such as 2600
> Magazine, and e-mail conversations I have had with people in different
> parts of the country:
New England Telephone uses 220 (at least for the 617 [MA] area code). I
haven't personally verified if it works for the other area codes that NET
serves, but will try to let you know if I ever get verification on them.
I can't recall if I checked on it for 203 (CT); mind's a little fuzzy at
the moment.
Cheers...
LETTER #3:
Here's how you can prove that 2 = 1 !!!!!!
A**2 means A squared the same for B and here it is!!!!!!!!!!!!
A=B and A*1 is A times 1
B=1
B**2=A*B Now subtract A squared from both sides
B**2-A**2=A*B-A**2 Now simplify these
(B+A)*(B-A)=A*(B-A) Now divide both sides by (B-A)
(B+A)=A
1+1=1
2=1 PROVEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Are you happy now??
Do send us your letters!! If we print your letter, your name and
location/email address will only be revealed if you specifically ask us
to mention it.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
MAINFRAME ANTICS
=============== start of article (der!) ==============
=================================================================
>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Warp 9 's Warped Views and reviews <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
=================================================================
Brought to you (infrequently) by a rare late night with nothing to do
but write an article for ATI!!!
With personal freedom and privacy going down the tubes (the Supreme
Court is now 7/9 conservative and 2 moderates --- ha), there will be more
need for precautions in your day to day computer activities, even if they
are not illegal, just private. You can always use a version of DES on your
text files, but who wants to bet the NSA/SS/FBI/CIA can get a backdoor to it
anytime they feel like it? You can always use the rot13 of mail, but so can
most people. Some of the homebrew encryption programs I've seen are ok, but
not imaginative. You usually type something like 'encrypt myfile.txt password'
and it uses the password as a key on the file. Something like that would stop
a serious super-narc/hacker (slacker? hey, new definition!) for maybe a few
minutes until his highspeed computers picked your password and starts spewing
your private files into the 'ol print buffer. Sure 'the man' has access to the
best equipment and brains (debateable, I know, but never underestimate the
competition), but hey, let them work for it if they want to phuck you over.
In my opinion, the best type of encryption/decryption program would be
one you could customize yourself so that so many different versions use so
many different ways of encryption that nobody can keep tabs on them. ("hey,
this punk is using version 4.56 of Genericrypt(tm), I got that in my drawer!")
Using only a password as a key is lame as well. Ideally you could use long
digital strings and some DES like method, but how many of us are that up to
speed on the math theory ? To get to the point, I have come up
with a cheezy but functional pair of programs that use ANY text file you want
as an encryption/decryption key. It can be anything from your resume to the
documentation file on your favorite program. I highly reccomend that whatever
you use should never often be changed (U be phucked) and you should keep it and
a copy or two on diskette somewhere 'safe'. Compile the C code and only save
the executables on your machine, as it is pointless if an intruder is reading
this before he/she/it messes with your encrypted data. Sure someone can use
an unassembler to get a semi-clue from the .exe file, but what a pain in the
ass for most situations. This is only for the mildly paranoid anyway.
Enjoy and spread around.
------------------------------- cut here for jam.c --------------------------
/* JAM.C encryption program ---- meshes your Text file with target TEXT file
and can do customized byte operations to encrypt it.
Version 1.0 created by Warp 9 somewhere out in cyberspace Oct 1991 */
/* USAGE: jam filename.ext keyfile.ext
Where the keyfile can be any file at all, text or binary, preferrably
on disk instead of your hard drive. In the event of confiscation,
hiding the keyfile on disk somewhere could save your ass. Unless they
start assuming any encrypted data is the worst treasonous secrets and
treat you accordingly if you refuse to cooperate. Its up to you.
Creates file NEWFILE.JAM with the encrypted data. You must rename it
filename.jam or whatever, as I haven't looked into reading only the
filename without the extention from the argv[] element and using it
as a variable for the output filename. I'm sure its trivial (?).
Possible Improvements:
* Delete original file after encrypting into
new one.
* Allow encrypted file to have same filename but different
extension in code.
* Could expand to allow any binary .exe .com file
as keyfile or even file to encrypt (doesn't work yet), may need to use
buffers of bytes instead of relying on finding EOF's to stop while loops.
If try using straight binaries now, as soon as it encounter a '\x1A' byte
it terminates even if more data. Another trivial (?) change I haven't had
time to work into this version.
* Another idea: once you are convinced this works ok, rewrite it to
delete the original file once you are done jam-ming it.
****** IMPORTANT! *******
If you really want to be secure, when you delete any file, use a better
way, like Norton's WipeFile.EXE (or some equivalent) with a /Rn flag to
write 0's over the space in memory n times. Really burns the old data
away. Unjam.exe has an option to see the encrypted file onscreen
using ^s and ^q to stop scroll, without creating a text translation.
You can always use this option and direct it to a file on disk, too. This
is a better way to go. If you are worried about it, store text versions
of your favorite sensitive files/data at a remote 'safe' location like in
a friend's closet in another town/state/etc. Just be sure you can trust
them not to acknowledge they have them to anyone. Maybe somebody w/o a
computer is best?
..... and now back to our program.....
*/
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
main(argc,argv)
int argc;
char *argv[];
{
FILE *inptr,*keyptr,*outptr; /* pointers to files */
char datach,keych,ench; /* characters from each file */
if(argc!=3){
printf("Error: need correct version of file 'LINT.TXT' to run.\n");
exit(0);} /* red herring to frustrate bogus attempts to use */
/* check for and open all files */
if((inptr=fopen(argv[1],"rb"))==NULL){ /* open files as binary in order
to read control chars like newline */
printf("What? Get a clue, Holmes.\n"); /* rag on novice trying to hack you */
exit(0);}
if((keyptr=fopen(argv[2],"rb"))==NULL){
printf("What? Unknown reference, man.\n"); /* another frustration jab */
exit(0);}
outptr=fopen("newfile.jam","ab");
while((datach=fgetc(inptr)) != EOF){
if((keych=fgetc(keyptr)) == EOF) fseek(keyptr,0L,SEEK_SET);
/* rewinds keyfile if at end */
ench=keych^datach; /* XOR's keybyte and databyte
should insert own additional
manipulations here to be a
pain in the ass. Remember to
do the REVERSE operations in
UNJAM.C !! */
/* APPROPRIATE COMMENTS ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Lots of room here for stuff like taking each byte and using bitwise
masking to get each bit and apply some funky n-bit stuff. Hell, you
could even read it in and mess with it 19 bits at a time if you were
clever enough (store excess bits and shift right next bits, etc.)
In this sample setup, it only XOR's bytes, so whenever you have 0 values
data is transparent from the keyfile or the textfile. This means that
if you run as is, the encrypted file contains some bits and chunks from
both the original and the keyfile. This is still ok, as you can't tell
what the hell the encrypted file is if you don't know what the two files
used were. Most of the bytes are gibberish, but at least add code to
complement them or convert to integer and add a number (subtracting after
same change in unjam.c) or whatever. I left it as is for simplicity and
lack of time to construct lots of manipulations that may confuse rather
than educate.
Feel free to use this as a general guide, as if you have this file, so
do 'they' ha ha ha. Seriously, folks, if you want legitimate security
on your files:
----Customize/mutate/twist this program to your whim. If there are
hundreds of versions out there all different, it makes it hard for
'the random unenlightened John Q. Dickwadd' to read your stuff.
----keep the keyfile used the same unless you unjam all files before
you change it
----if you are REALLY paranoid like me, never keep your keyfile on
the machine you need it on. Use a diskette and keep off site backup
somewhere so you don't get phucked. Hide the keyfile disk well if
you must keep it nearby. Make the bastards work if your machine is
going to be ransacked. Most files really don't need security, as the
first amendment is supposed to cover things like Phracks, LOD/H files,
ATI (of course) etc. (1st amendment, ha ha ha ha thats a good one!).
----NEVER tell anyone what file you use as a key. The beauty of this
program is that you can pass around the executable code and each person
can use whatever the hell text file for a key they want.
---If you give someone the executable only, write down the instructions
and tell them to memorize and destroy. The stupidest thing you can do
is to write down everything in some book that can be found/stolen.
Well, thats all I can do. Hope this is of use. I have other schemes for
encryption brewing in my warped mind as well, even more devious, but I have
to work out the details. See you in the bitstream, shockwave riders.
*/
fputc(ench,outptr); /* put encrypted byte in output file */
}
fclose(inptr);
fclose(keyptr);
fclose(outptr); /* shut down and bail -- mission
accomplished, commander! */
printf(" Success! Your file %s is encrypted and called NEWFILE.JAM\n",
argv[1]);
printf(" Please remember to rename it accordingly (like filename.jam)\n");
}
---------------------------------- cut here end of jam.c ----------------------
/* UNJAM.C Decryption program to go with JAM.C by Warp 9
October, 1991. Written using MSDOS TurboC, but
generic enough code for most machines (?)
*/
/* USAGE: unjam file.jam keyfile.ext [s]
If you want direct screendump of encrypted file, use 4 arguments, a letter
's' being the last (smallcase). If no 4th argument, a file is created.
Keyfile for decryption can be any text file as long as it is the SAME
one it was encrypted with byte per byte (so don't change the contents,
der!) NOTE: Making the keyfile a hidden file and keeping it on the HD
is stupid, as anyone can make files unhidden if they have any experience
with Norton Utilities, etc. If you are not using DOS, ignore this.
Compile code and don't keep it around once you have a working .exe file.
Possible improvements:
* setup screen buffer to read into and use the
pause() function to allow stopping screens as you read if 's' option
used. Pause() just stops until you hit return.
* Also find a way to change the output file to the same filename
as the .jam extension, but back to .txt or something. I haven't got
the time, so this version you have to rename the results.
*/
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
main(argc,argv)
int argc;
char *argv[];
{
FILE *inptr,*keyptr,*outptr; /* pointers to files */
char datach,keych,ench; /* characters from each file */
if((argc!=3)&&(argc!=4)){
printf("Error: need correct version of file 'LINT.TXT'. \n");
exit(0);} /* red herring to frustrate bogus attempts to use */
if((inptr=fopen(argv[1],"rb"))==NULL){ /* open files as binary even
if text to read control chars */
printf("What? Blow me, baby.\n"); /* watch the steam from the 'suit' :) */
exit(0);}
if((keyptr=fopen(argv[2],"rb"))==NULL){
printf("What? You've got to be kidding, eat shit.\n");
/* serves to annoy the infiltrator */
exit(0);}
if(argc==3)outptr=fopen("newfile.txt","ab");/* check for and open all files */
while((ench=fgetc(inptr)) != EOF){ /* while encrypted file not at end */
if((keych=fgetc(keyptr)) == EOF) fseek(keyptr,0L,SEEK_SET);
/* rewinds keyfile if at end */
datach=keych^ench; /* XOR's keybyte and encrypted byte
should insert own additional
manipulations here to be a
pain in the ass. Remember to
do the REVERSE of operations
as in JAM.C !! Experiment on copy
of this code only. */
if(argc==4) printf("%c",datach); /* onscreen if s option used in command
line */
if(argc==3) fputc(datach,outptr); /* put encrypted byte in output file
by default */
} /* end of while loop */
/* shut down and bail -- mission
accomplished, commander! */
fclose(inptr);
fclose(keyptr);
if(argc==3){
fclose(outptr);
printf(" Success! File %s is decrypted and called NEWFILE.TXT\n",
argv[1]);
printf(" Please remember to rename it accordingly (like realname.txt?)\n");
}
} /* end main */
-------------------------------- end of unjam.c ------------------------------
Short and simple, but good for most purposes. If you're a real hacker
badass you memorize all your text files an burn them. The rest of us slobs
have to make do with what we got to protect ourselves.
...... and now for something completely different....
Pat Robertson and other clowns on CBN (my favorite late-night comedy channel)
have been wetting themselves with joy at the trends in the Supreme court and
in Eastern Europe. Pat has a bunch of missionaries over there to bilk them of
their szlotys or rubles or whatever, and he's 'counting the hours' until Roe
vs. Wade is history. I love how most of these evangelists are against
abortion yet for capital punishment. A funny bit of hypocrisy I saw was when
Robertson went into a long speech on how the split of the soviet union can be
interpreted by the prophecies, etc. (even though it fit better as the 'evil
empire'), and how the world has few days left to it before the big ending,
and on and on. After the commercial break (the average attention span of
the audience) he talks about how the word of god can make your life better and
if you get his new series of tapes you can make wise long term investments
and prosper. He's got a lot of gall to spew damnation one minute and long
term investment the other. Whatta crock. He pushed his new book on his views
on the 'New World Order' and how the christians are going to be persecuted
like the jews in WWII if a world government takes place. He says abandoning
nationalism is too high a price to pay for peace. He may be right, but I
sure ain't gonna fork over $100.00 to get a copy of his book or go to the
bookstore and look for it. The way things are going, a guy like him will get
in office and the non-christians will be the abused group in future Amerikka.
You notice the lack of guest accounts on the nets lately? Lots of 'em shut
down due to pressure from admins or due to too much cpu useage. Thats too
bad, I enjoyed using them, especially the **.ai.mit.edu ones. Another score
for the repressive system. Like the DSS (digital switching systems) the phone
companies use a lot now. There is instant number ident and probably zilch
chance of any of those multi-colored boxes working again. Its the end of an
era. I hope somebody somewhere is industrious enough to infiltrate into the
baby bells to smuggle out some tech manuals on this beast so new phreakers
will be able to do more than play with voicemail. Dialouts are extremely
rare to find now, as they close up as fast as word leaks (surprise,surprise)
and organizations are going to more secure methods of remote access. There
is sure a lot of challenges out there now. I'm glad I'm not much more than
a dabbler, as the frustration would no doubt take its toll.
Thats about all, hope the encryption programs give you some use, even
if you just use them as examples for your own kind. Keep rockin', later.
-------- Warp 9 -----------------------*
P.S. I tried the programs out on a VAX using VMS as well. They didn't
carry the newline charachters for some reason, so the text, although ok,
is not properly spaced if using VAX. Stick to MSDOS if it does similar
things on your machine, or be creative and find out the whys to fix it.
-W9
GZ's note: I have not tested these programs at all, so use at your own
risk!!!
% % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % % %
RECENT POLITICAL EVENTS IN NORWAY/EUROPE
==========================================
By Nosferatu of RAZOR 1911 <data3d@ahhs.no>
I'm writing this article out of total disgust with the overall political
situation generally in Europe, specifically in my country, Norway.
Problem: We are not members of the EC, the European economical Community,
the free-trade organization for all significant developed nations in Europe.
Cause: A bunch of isolationist farmers who are *VERY* heavily subsidized by
the government, and are worried that if foreign farmers can sell their stuff
in Norway, they might have to start working in order to compete. The group also
contains others who leech on the people in the same way, producing services
or goods in such an inefficient way that foreign competition will sweep them
off the market unless they are protected by protectionist toll and tax
systems. Unfortunately, this group is very simplistic in their argumentation,
and hence very persuasive to the average John and Joan Doe (in Norway we call
them Ola and Kari Nordmann). The main political parties in Norway (yes, we
have more than 2!) are all in favour of EC membership, and so are all the
leaders of major companies. The government (a socialist one, blaeh!) is trying
to make a trade agreement with the EC to augment the difficulties arising from
lack of EC membership for norwegian companies, and they have majority support
for this in 'Stortinget' - our version of Congress - but the 'no-parties'
(that have grown fat protesting about EC and appealing to people's emotions
rather than their reason) are saying 'no' to this trade agreement already
before there is even a rough sketch of it! Thus they are making large
difficulties for the government who are trying to make an acceptable treaty. I
liken their arguments (though I will not go into any arguments for or against
EC, they are so tedious) to the actions of the norwegian priest who mailed a
baby doll covered in blood to one of the royal family, in order to protest
against freedom to abortion.
I don't know why, but all this seems to come at the same time as a lot of
ethnic unrest in the rest of Europe - the Soviet Union fragmenting, the
various ethnic groups in Yugoslavia shooting at each other for reasons that
seem utterly irrelevant and illogical to me.
Anyway, this brings me to the gist of the article: This surge of territorialism
or egoism or a bunch of other isms is not confined merely to international or
even intranational, ethnical groups. Now Norway is built up of 19 'fylker' -
let's translate that to 'counties', shall we? Now the county where I live is
built up of 3 geographical areas. For some reason, the northern part has
lately been over-represented in the 'fylkesting' - County Congress, I suppose.
And the southern part was grossly under-represented. So, some bright minds here
in the south decided that this was not fair, and they'd start A NEW POLITICAL
PARTY to serve the interests of the southern part of the county. Actually,
TWO significant such parties were started for some reason. To start with,
most people looked upon these with something akin to humour. But the last
county-election, some weeks ago, saw these two parties get OVER 50% of the
votes in the major southern city. Disgusting, isn't it? Now elections are not
about political issues anymore (what should we improve, and how?) but
territorial haggling (In what district should we improve?).
What are the logical consequenses of this? Well, the northerners have no
parties dedicated to the furthering of northern interests, so they will be
dominated by the southerners. Until next election, that is. Then they will
retaliate, to end the domination. We'll get a system where the most populous
part of the county dominates the less populous ones.
But it doesn't stop there. In a communicipality in the west of the country,
composed of two small islands where about 2000 people live, some people from
the northern island started a political party dedicated to furthering their
own interests. Since the others had no such party, the northerners got the
mayor. The southerners, having divided the representants from their votes
among the political parties (as opposed to the territorial parties), will be
dominated by the northerners, who have not an outright majority, but has the
largest bloc.
At this election, we had only some isolated incidents, but they were *VERY*
successful. In the next election, which I await with horror and disgust, they
will most likely spread horribly. The parts of any community governed by a
single organ, will either have to be populous enough to assure themselves a
majority in this organ, or withdraw from that community and form their own
governing organ. But within that smaller community, someone from the eastern
part will form a party, thus reiterating the whole process... This way, in
a few years we will have about three million small parties (which is the
number of voters in Norway), each dedicated to furthering the interests of
a single person.
What is the point of having a nation if it is divided into countless small
factions just interested in themselves? Imagine this: In the US, at the
next presidential election, there are not just two candidates, one
republican and one democrat. There are 50 candidates, one from Texas, one
>from California, one from Utah, one from Montana, and so on... A chilling
scenario, isn't it? Well, it's what's happening in Europe. As of yet, it's
mainly confined to ethnical minorities, like in the Soviet Union, where
nobody wants to be associated with people of slightly different ancestry,
and indeed are attempting to kill them or drive them off what they consider
'their' land.
In Yugoslavia, Croatians don't want to be governed by a government that
includes Serbs, and the Serbs, having control of that government, do not want
it to lose power over the Croatians. So someone gets the brilliant idea to
start a war.
In Czheckoslovakia (probably wrong spelling) the Czhecks and the Slovaks
both want to form their own little nations.
How does this relate to the reunion of Germany? Well, the Germans are, of
course, all of the same race... But before long, I'll wager someone is
stupid enough to start 'The Party of Eastern (or Western!) Germany' or some
such thing, and actually be successful.
What is the cause of all this isolationism and recessionism? Two things:
On the local scale: Selfishness. In ethnic aggression: Xenophobia, fear
of anything that's different.
Well, some time has passed since I wrote that, and as of today, the trade
agreement (EXS) negotiatons are finished, and the agreement only lacks
ratification from each individual government. The treaty involves tax
reductions of international trade (within the EC and EFTA) of up to 70%.
No reductions on norwegian salmon though. Since Norway is likely to export
more fish than we import, we had to give the EC countries the right to take
up a quantity of fish in norwegian waters. Norwegian fishermen, of course,
went totally apeshit. In a nationwide action, they blockaded all of Norway's
commercial harbours for a day. Nice going! That will surely better their
lot - a whole lot! Ignoring that they now can sell their (stinking) fish
to the rest of Europe without being hassled by a lot of stupid and unnecessary
taxes, they grow angry because our government hands over a part of the fishing
rights to some people who accidentally do not live in the geographical area
people think of as 'Norway'. Incidentally, these people (and I'm sure the
fishermen think of them as 'degos') are capable of staying solvent, unlike
the norwegian fishermen who are almost as heavily subsidized as the farmers,
they can even travel large distances from their home ports to norwegian waters
and back again, and STILL make a profit. The norwegian fishing fleet can't.
Well, that's what EC and free trade are all about, sharing resources with
those best capable of utilizing them.
OK, I think I'd better stop now, because I've said my piece, and besides
this file is getting long (just passed 8K) and I wouldn't want GZ to cut
too much text (grin). Oh, and by the way, this file is in no way an unbiased
factual account, but I believe it to be, at least, factual. And the opinions
stated herein are not to be attributed to anyone but myself.
Nosferatu - October 23rd, 1991
_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_
Well, that's about it for ATI57!
A quick note: Hats off to channel 4, WNBC-TV News, New York,
for presenting a short series on their nightly news about "Killer
Taxes." This program spoke about the extreme hardship of the middle
class to live under a repressive tax system. The program cited that
middle-class taxpayers pay about 50% or more of their income in federal,
state, local, property, and sales taxes, and often have to resort to
going to community food banks just to get food to eat! Knowing that
federal, state and local governments eat up about 47% of our gross
national product, the plight of the midle class doesn't surpise me.
(tax revolt now!!!!)
CIAo (the root word is CIA - heh)
Ground Zero
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
ATI: part of George Bush's thousand points of light.
