Back in the 1990s, the Clinton administration tried to snuff out PGP using the very same obscure regulation it’s wielding against Cody Wilson and Defense Distributed now.
Yes, PGP was (and IIRC, still is) a “munition.” The regs didn’t change; the fedgov just knew that was a battle it was going to lose so it backed off. Encryption is everywhere and Phil Zimmerman is a free man. But nothing’s new under the sun reeking pall of Mordor.
Now a new generation of regulators — and a new anti-gun president who has vowed to take covert action against firearms if he can’t get his way in the legislature (whimper, whine) — wants to use absurdly complicated ITAR once again to stop the unstoppable.
Question: What’s the outcome going to be in the case of Furiously Frustrated Fedgov vs Cody Wilson?
There are lots of aspects to consider here. Not only what will happen to Wilson and DefCad. Not just what will happen to the banned “blueprints” (we already know that).
But aspects like: Will the feds back off the their King Canute routine? Or will they end up drowning in this rising tide? Will the ATF get into the act? The FBI? Will there be some attempt to control/surveil 3D printers (e.g. force them to keep records for the feddies, as photocopiers do now)? Will the tech community wield its power — or will the big tech voices keep mum because this is “a gun-culture thing”? What kind of laws will be proposed or passed? Will people get that you can’t stop this any more than the Church could stop Gutenberg’s outrageous information diseminator? Will they laugh at the folly of the pols and bureaucrats? Or will the media buffalo them into hysterical fear? Even if they buffalo and legislate their little hearts out for a decade, where do technology, freedom, and the best sort of Bad Attitude take us from here?
Envision a scenario, envision the future …
Well, 1st off, Svein Forkbeard is an awesome name. I might adopt if myself.
I expect all manner of hand wringing, hand waving, poorly worded legislation, maybe executive orders. TPTB will expend much effort and hot air in opposition to this.
They will fail, simply because there is no way to control it. Seriously, there is no practical way to limit production or purchase of the various plastics involved. Too much industry impact. They might try to limit personal purchasing, much as was done with ammonium nitrate following the Murrah bombing. But some of the feed stock can be created simply by pulverizing and /or remelting. And when machines such as the Rep-Rap are almost entirely self-replicating, well, how will they prevent the spread of those?
I think the only component which might be controlled with any success would be the actual extruder head. But I’m not sure I expect that, since there’s too much crossover with non-gun applications.
Maybe the route will go to firearms laws. Right now, it’s lebal to manufacture a firearms for your own use, as long as you don’t sell it, and it isn’t in one of the special prohibited classes. Maybe 3D gun parts will be the wedge used to get self manufactury outlawed.
Well, I sort of see the government’s take on this. I mean, what if the design falls into the hands of people in, say, Pakistan? They might use it to illegally make guns.
Oh, wait. The folks in Pakistan already reproduce boatloads of most of the world’s modern guns, even though they barely have electricity. So they won’t be using Cody’s design without the power to run the printer.
So even if the government could block the 3-D gun, they’re still spinning their wheels.
A single shot gun. Not exactly going to win WWIII with it.
One bullet from a piece of plastic — quite an accomplishment, and it ignited both a bullet and a power struggle between the most powerful humanoids and the most creative humans — quite an accomplishment.
Outcome? A further division between the subjects and the king; further power to the creative humans because of the Internet; more creative humans becoming visible because they are loosing their fear of the king; they realize that the king has lost control of information dissemination. His propaganda is not believed any longer. The Internet has won. We are winning through the Web. The King is in defense mode.
“Outcome? A further division between the subjects and the king; further power to the creative humans because of the Internet; more creative humans becoming visible because they are loosing their fear of the king; they realize that the king has lost control of information dissemination. His propaganda is not believed any longer. The Internet has won. We are winning through the Web. The King is in defense mode.”
I hope so. I’m not so sure about the outcome, however. The kind doesn’t take kindly to being embarrassed or losing. He could pull the plug… or just throw a 404 on certain pages.
Therefore my interest in secure networks and comms.
“What’s the outcome going to be in the case of Furiously Frustrated Fedgov vs Cody Wilson?”
Another gurgle. Eventually, the gurgling stops.
Somebody stepped on the toothpaste… and mangled the tube. The paste really and truly isn’t going back in no matter what they do. LOVE IT.
Maybe I’m just more cynical. BigBro not only don’t play ‘fair’ – he don’t play at ALL. And killing doesn’t even raise media eyebrows any more. I can think of a whole bunch of insidiously evil false flag ops that I can’t help but think are already in some shady PowerPoint presentation, properly insulated for plausible deniability.
None of that will ‘stop the signal’ of course.
But it may very well help initiate the ‘incivility’ they are clearly so anxious to foment.
[Another gurgle. Eventually, the gurgling stops.]
Hee hee. I think the Schumers in congress will try to make hay from it (it will help raise funds from idiots in their districts) but the slightly more sensible congresscritters will blow the whole thing off, realizing that conserving what little apparent legitimacy they have left is more important than stopping the unstoppable.
Once again, Randall Munroe is ahead of the curve.
https://xkcd.com/504/
Will someone please award him his Nobel Prize already?
I think they’ll try something only to realize they’ve lost the battle of control of information. The only way to regain control now would be to get a big EMP attack thus destroying all electronics.
No matter what they do, WE will find ways around any obstacles they construct.
Elvis has left the building and he’s not coming back.
Well….as I said in a post yesterday…I don’t think its about guns. Its about control.
The hand wringing, the feddies blocking and blacking out websites is all part of the continuing saga of them trying to control the internet.
They already have enormous power over the internet….it just isn’t made visible very often. They can covertly monitor, store, and secretly install invasive software. Chuckie, et al will try to create some legislation that will increase control. Maybe it will succeed…if its obscure enough, and they manage to tuck it into some obscure corner of a 300 page bill, they might get it through.
But, as has also been pointed out, that boat has already sailed. Strong encryption, anonymous and secure networks are available.
Neither party will give up….they cannot. Just like the terminator, it will never ever stop.
Its just more drama to the classic….dark vs light.
“…more sensible congresscritters will blow the whole thing off, realizing that conserving what little apparent legitimacy they have left is more important than stopping the unstoppable.”
Ha. I think you’ve got the result right; I’m hoping you have the reason wrong. Besides, how important is legitimacy to the morons they fool? [Alright, alright…college grads are often big on “apparent legitimacy”!]
I rather suspect that the actual reason may be, or surely will be, outright fear…as in fear for their own damn selves. Fear is generally a lousy and false motivator, but in this instance, considering the who and when of it, I think fear is a fine reason.
> Just like the terminator, it will never ever stop.
“If something can’t go on forever, it doesn’t.”
“reeking pall of Mordor” I like that
So, does this mean Leviathan can declare that any prints for the manufacture of firearms fall under the purview of ITAR and thus are subject to being banned?
“So, does this mean Leviathan can declare that any prints for the manufacture of firearms fall under the purview of ITAR and thus are subject to being banned?”
Probably… and why, just for giggles, should anyone give a damn?
I wonder how many places I could find the CAD files for the AR-15. I suppose it’s already passed the “commodity” test.
“I don’t think its about guns. Its about control.”
That’s such a cliche statement that its lost its meaning, when heard, the listener just shuts down and inserts a canned thought.
But yes, it IS about control. The idea of freedom is not what you want, its what you allow others. Holding your tongue, minding your business, standing clear out of the way, and just letting the world be.
But no, we are not wired that way. And we are regressing, letting freedom die, and returning to the caves of natural human behavior.
Because everyone sees problems and solutions, which always ALWAYS require knowing, controlling, making rules, collecting data, doling punishments.
What a crap thing to see and understand the fundamental principals, ideas, and workings of our system of government, to know that it was constructed to live and let live, to only intervene when someone failed to keep to themselves, and to see that it is itself now used to cross that line.
I’m gonna go sulk in a corner and pretend this isn’t happening here.
I am waiting for the control freaks to realize that not only can 3D printers make guns, 3D printers can make 3D printers…
Great fleas have little fleas upon their backs to bite ’em,
And little fleas have lesser fleas, and so ad infinitum.
Somewhat OT, but have you all seen that the Missouri legislature has passed a veto-proof nullification of ALL federal gun laws? http://www.rightsidenews.com/2013050932519/us/homeland-security/missouri-legislature-nullifies-all-federal-gun-control-measures-by-a-veto-proof-majority.html This includes the 1934 Act, which is the source of the (partial) ban on automatic weapons. It will be interesting to see where this goes.
And yes, this is real. I’ve checked the actual language of the statute (http://www.house.mo.gov/billtracking/bills131/billpdf/intro/HB0436I.PDF) and the legislative history to be certain that it passed (http://www.house.mo.gov/billactions.aspx?bill=HB436&year=2013&code=R). Why has this not been all over the national media? In fact, I can’t find any references to it except on various blogs and non-media websites (not even Drudge or Fox News). What’s up with that?
Laird — That’s amazing that they came right out and named the 1934 & 1968 fedlaws specifically. And even more amazing that they passed such an explicit bill by such wide margins. I agree, that news ought to be getting around more. Your comment was the first I’d heard of it.