The main problem is controlling
access to a communication medium. Almost any excuse could be used by various entities to allegedly justify controlling access, thereby potentially excluding access to "unqualified" or undesirable patrons. Question: How many of you have paid for access to the InterNet with cash, i.e. totally anonymous?
One could use a prepaid telephone card purchased with
cash for access to an easily monitored RF network, but access to the InterNet through an ISP still remains a problem. If any of you know of an ISP who accepts cash payments, let us know.
Personally, I'd like to see the use of RF networks minimized and the increasing awareness of the hazards of RF radiation will likely force the issue eventually.
Since competition is good, FidoNet is an alternative to the InterNet for global communication. However, we still have the problem of an entity, i.e. government (FCC), controlling "access" to the communication medium, this time through PSTNs.
Now, the question becomes: Is a patron's access to a global communications network more easily controlled through a PSTN or through an ISP? Is RF more easily monitored than fiber? Personally, I'll gamble with a PSTN. Why? The answer is related to the dual-purpose nature of a PSTN, i.e. voice AND data. Can you imagine the government trying to ban incoherent light one day or restrict grandma from using her telephone? Maybe, the government will just ban specific products using specific wavelengths, e.g. light bulbs and LEDs. HaHaHa!
In the meantime, optical links are much more secure than RF. Hence, the really smart
folks reading this thread will be on local mesh networks employing optical links using incoherent light, e.g. high-powered LED, or coherent light, i.e. laser. Now, secure LANs are totally feasible with optical links. The main problem is the LOS limitation and the requirement for a sufficiently large tower, i.e. at least 40+ feet, to clear a normal lines of trees. With a tower in the yard
and Ronja optical links (
www.fasto.cz/fso) spread among local peers, a neighborhood can be essentially free of FCC regulation and illegal government snooping of private communication.
Two obstacles remain in having totally anonymous and free communication:
1. Drive to cashless society as embodied in numerous automatons on the InterNet.
2. Ubiquitous use of easily monitored RF communication links despite the use of encryption.
Now, how do I find a PSTN provider who accepts cash payments from John Doe?
FINALLY, WHY THE LIMITATION ON ONLY 6 IMAGES IN A POST, or why are emoticons considered images under this limitation?
