FC: More on ADL warning Feds that terrorists use e-gold

From: Declan McCullagh (declanat_private)
Date: Wed Jan 22 2003 - 14:22:12 PST

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    Previous Politech message:
    http://www.politechbot.com/p-04346.html
    
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    Date: Wed, 22 Jan 2003 14:30:47 -0500
    From: Mathias Wegner <mwegnerat_private>
    To: Declan McCullagh <declanat_private>
    Cc: FRosadoat_private
    Subject: Re: FC: ADL warns Feds that terrorists use e-gold to transfer $$$
    
     >         "While we know of no links between e-gold and terrorism at the
     > present time, e-gold merits serious attention given the record of Internet
     > use by terrorists and the abuse of similar devices by domestic extremists,"
     > said Mr. Foxman.
    
             This just in - terrorists have also been known to use dollars, 
    pounds,
    yen, marks, lira, euros, and other currency that comes printed on paper or
    minted as coins.  I don't have any proof, but hey, I'd like to make it look
    like I'm doing something useful.  People carrying any one of those currencies
    should be stopped and interrogated until they confess...
    
    mathias
    
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    Date: Wed, 22 Jan 2003 16:19:39 -0600
    Subject: Re: FC: ADL warns Feds that terrorists use e-gold to transfer $$$
    Cc: politechat_private, FRosadoat_private
    To: declanat_private
    From: Jim Davidson <davidsonat_private>
    
    Dear Declan,
    
    Quick!  Sell your e-gold to me before it gets closed
    down! <grin>  Seriously, I've been using e-gold since
    1998.  Never met a single terrorist using it.
    
    If the ADL wants to look foolish for opposing e-gold,
    let them.  It takes about two minutes on a dial-up
    connection to Google for Julian Dibbell's article
    on e-gold and the dinar connection in _Wired_
    magazine, which essay reveals that e-gold's staff
    sits around the conference table with government
    agents and shares donuts and coffee with them.
    
    When subpoenae are presented at e-gold's offices,
    the government gets results.  ADL is simply foolish
    for supposing that e-gold represents some deep
    dark money transfer scheme.  Anything recorded in
    the e-gold account history of any user can be
    accessed by a properly organized subpoena from a
    court of competent jurisdiction, such as Florida.
    
    I expect the ADL won't bother with a retraction.
    They could, however, do themselves a favor and
    stop shouting about the sky falling.
    
    Regards,
    
    Jim
      http://cambist.net/
    
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    Date: Wed, 22 Jan 2003 15:14:00 -0500
    To: declanat_private
    From: Stephen Cobb <scobbat_private>
    Subject: Re: FC: ADL warns Feds that terrorists use e-gold to transfer $$$
    
    At 1/22/2003 01:55 PM -0500, you wrote:
    
    >I accept e-gold donations to pay for Politech hosting fees:
    >http://www.politechbot.com/donate/
    >
    >Does that make me a terrorist too?
    
    It probably boosts your scores in the suspicious activity algorithms of TIA 
    and RDC. And of course, there's another 3 letter entity that is always very 
    interested in anything that suggests a US citizen is trying to get 
    something of value in this life without fully declaring it.
    
    More seriously, there are many global value transfer systems that run below 
    today's regulatory radar. There are some obvious reasons for their 
    existence (such as tax evasion and distrust of, or exclusion from 
    "legitimate" banking systems). These sub-radar systems are often associated 
    with ethnic or religious groups because they rely on a certain amount of 
    implicit trust. Examples include Indian and Pakistani havala, and even 
    charitable aid groups such as those exploited by the IRA and Islamic 
    extremists. What is perhaps most surprising about the ADL highlighting one 
    such system is the fact that the ethnic group which the ADL seeks, very 
    understandably, to defend, is historically famous for providing 
    alternatives to mainstream banking services.
    
    Stephen
    
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    Date: Wed, 22 Jan 2003 11:34:11 -0800
    From: "Clinton D. Fein" <clinton.feinat_private>
    To: <declanat_private>
    
     >>"While we know of no links between e-gold and terrorism at the
    present time, e-gold merits serious attention given the record of
    Internet
    use by terrorists and the abuse of similar devices by domestic
    extremists,"
    said Mr. Foxman.<<
    
    A rather flimsy excuse for a press release, no? Note that their headline
    uses the word "may". For all we know, terrorists "may" use Bank of
    America for the same insidious purposes. But I guess that's why we have
    "Know Your Customer" services offered by Dow Jones and Reuters. Who
    needs to worry about government invasions of privacy when media
    properties are doing such a fine job?
    
    Clinton
    _____________________________________
    
    Clinton Fein
    Editor & Publisher
    Annoy.com
    555 Florida Street, Suite 407
    San Francisco, CA 94110
    Phone: 415-552-7655
    Fax: 415-552-7656
    http://annoy.com
    
    ---
    
    Subject: Re: FC: ADL warns Feds that terrorists use e-gold to transfer $$$
    From: Dan Trevino <dantrevinoat_private>
    To: declanat_private
    
    Wired had a story about e-gold some months back (
    http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/10.01/egold.html ).  I find it ironic
    that an organization whose goal is to "...counteract hatred, prejudice,
    and bigotry" is spreading this FUD.  Pathetisad.
    
    -- 
    Dan Trevino <dantrevinoat_private>
    
    
    
    
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