Here is a topic that has been bothering me for quite some time to which
I do not have an answer. It is the topic of our personal security.
Ernst is constantly onto my case because he worries for my safety - he feels
I am too free and careless with revealing personal aspects of my life. I
remember quite some time ago a conversation on this topic where Ernst said
that he did not wish to ". . . give the enemy the power to alter too
much of your personality, but . . . " and then gave several very good
reasons why I should be more circumspect.
I am not a secretive person, and it causes me profound discomfort to disguise
who I am, what I do, and where I might or might not be. I also feel there
is a principle involved because we should stand straight for what we say
and do. Furthermore, I don't think that this battle will be as efficient
as it should if it is underground. The more people stand up to be counted,
the stronger we will be.
But, lately, I have received several threatening calls as well as ugly e-mail,
and I know that others in the forefront of this struggle have experienced
much the same - and so I want to throw a few reader responses out for feedback.
How do YOU handle this? What are your personal strategies?
Here's one:
"In today's Zgram you mentioned that you can no longer notify recipients of your Zgram of your planned vacations in advance, due to safety reasons. Because you have brought the subject up, I am going to now say what I have thought about your and Mr. Zundel's situation for a while.
I agree that the use of aliases is excessive, and almost cowardly. I am in the process of discontinuing my own. But! I will hold fast to my position that there is nothing cowardly about covering one's loose ends. I am referring to published physical addresses, published phone numbers, the not destroying of one's documentary waste, and the letting out of too much information about one's personal life routine.
Because of what we know, and because of the abilities we have been given by chaotic chance, or the ultimate Will of the Cosmos, it is our responsibility to participate in the historical process. It is our responsibility to do our best to realize this most important goal, regardless of selfish desire.
Therefore, we no longer belong only to ourselves anymore! We are agents of the Will, and to risk our own few-and-far-between selves is to risk the property of that Will!
A while ago, I read a writing of Mr. Zundel's which was contained in one of your Zgrams. In it, he told of his fruitless attempt to locate the NIZKOR office. You know the story. He later went on to exclaim his lack of respect for those who "hide" behind a mail drop! I respect him greatly. He is my blood elder who answered the same call I have.
But, for his and your own sake, I don't mind lending my young, inexperienced opinion. His home was practically burned to the ground. That setback speaks for itself."
A second wrote:
"I use a pseudonym as part of my effort against the oppressors - I am not 'hiding'! I'm pretty certain that those who 'need to know' are aware of my identity, but let (the enemy's) foot soldiers stew in their own juice.
When an a/c is found out I change the 'nym and let the idiots go through the tracing business again ;-).
Of course I realise your comment was a general view on pseudonyms, not to me in particular, but I thought I'd let you know that they can be of value.
There are many ways of struggle, I happen to favour 'nym systems and PGP for irritating the enemy."
A third had this to say:
"In this Cold War between patriots and (our opposition), many methods of struggle may be implemented. For public announcements and megafone personal opinion, standing up and 'saying out loud what we know in our hearts to be true' is fair enough.
However for internal matters/tentative personal views, encryption offers body armour for the patriot who doesn't want his nosy antagonists from knowing his views/intentions of the moment.
The enemy doesn't (by nature) like being excluded from our lives, and therefore encryption itself is a form of weapon: they don't like not knowing what (if anything) is being said. They think they have the Yahweh-given right to stick their noses into everything the Goyim do.
The tyrant has to be disabused of the notion that it has the automatic right to sneak on people, and if we can't alter the fact of their power to intercept law-abiding citizens messages - we can STOP these arrogant bastards from reading it.
THIS IS A FORM OF FIGHTING BACK, not hiding."
Well said! In the future, I shall be more careful!
Ingrid
Thought for the Day:
"A free society is one where it is safe to be unpopular."
(Adlai Stevenson)