trivia

[Q G Campbell]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Ross Anderson [mailto:Ross.Anderson@cl.cam.ac.uk]=20
> Sent: 13 July 2001 13:33
> To: ukcrypto@chiark.greenend.org.uk
> Subject: RE: trivia

In response to a posting from Quentin Campbell who said:
>=20
> > It seems to me that a confrontation between a majority of=20
> GPs and the=20
> > Government is a more threatening situation than the one=20
> postulated by=20
> > Ross Anderson in an earlier posting (on possible=20
> applications of the=20
> > Terrorism Act in medical contexts).
>   =20
> To the UK government, sure; but to the Government of Iceland,=20
> the IMA boycott (in which I was involved as a technical=20
> adviser) was more serious than GP shroud-waving in the UK=20
> would be. There was an election coming=20
> along; there were allegations floating around of improper=20
> finanical deals between the database company and the Prime=20
> Minister's family; most=20
> doctors disapproved of the scheme, as did most scientific=20
> researchers; 11% of the pupulation had opted out; the=20
> company's stock price bubble had significant effects on the=20
> Icelandic economy; and so on. It was a much bigger deal than=20
> anything the BMA is likely to get up to.
>=20
> Part of my point was that by helping the IMA hold the flames=20
> to the feet of the Prime Minister of Iceland, by supporting=20
> their action at a=20
> conference in Phoenix where my speech was absolutely=20
> protected by the US constitution, I was committing a serious=20
> criminal offence in the UK.

Ross

I suspect that the Terrorism Act will be used as cynically by
Governments as the OSA has been. As your activity (in this regard at
least :-)) hardly seems to threaten the UK national interest, it is
unlikley to bring a charge under the Terrorism Act.=20

I doubt that the UK Government cares a fig about whether the Prime
Minister of Iceland gets his feet burnt. Do we have a multi-billion
pounds arm deal at risk, or concerns about Islamic extremism, coming
from Iceland? I suspect not.

Now if your campaign was directed at, say, the activities of the ruling
family in Saudi Arabia then things might be different.

Seen in this context, what poses the bigger threat to the UK national
interest (ie. The Government's interest): "GP shroud-waving" or the
embarrassment of the Icelandic Government and PM by a respected UK
academic?

Quentin
 =20