Re: [tor-relays] #torstrike

Arisbe arisbe@cni.net writes:

I agree in general with a lot of what is said here, but I have to take issue with one point:

Okay, so I've been concerned about the safety of at-risk Tor users
since all this shit broke. New employees at the organizational
structure serving as the main accuser, an all new board with
interrelationships and motivation unknown, grenades rolled under
office doors and all of the rest leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I
cannot, at this time, recommend to a third world citizen, that (s)he
trust the Tor network. I hope that changes.

The issue is whether or not someone new in the Tor organization
will, accidentally or intentionally, put third world users at risk.
I cannot trust an all-new board. Tor needs to be on their best
behavior in order for me to re-establish trust in the organization.


As a retired corporate manager I've seen these problems before. I
have several suggestions that I feel are must-do tasks for the Tor
Project:
1) Secure an independent investigator to look into the allegations
against Jacob. Either demonstrate that he is not an honorable
employee or reinstate him. No one should trust anonymous claims
that can ruin his career. If Jacob is guilty, he should be
prosecuted;

... and this is it.

I've seen this now over and over in these discussions: if Applebaum is guilty then some legal action must follow.

Involving your local legal system in rape and sexual misconduct cases is problematic for many reasons. I highly encourage anyone who thinks that the obvious answer to the kinds of wrongdoing that Jacob Applebaum is accused of is "the courts" to read *something* about rape culture. Here are three links that aren't bad starting points:

http://time.com/40110/rape-culture-is-real/ http://jezebel.com/5822649/why-a-rape-doesnt-get-prosecuted http://everydayfeminism.com/2014/03/examples-of-rape-culture/

I would also encourage anyone who thinks the police or court system of any country on the planet are always good ways to resolve these issues should also read this article and follow the links in it:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/03/18/idaho-sheriff-said-mo...

There are obviously a lot more articles online about this issue, and I want to stress that this goes well beyond these accusations against a specfic person. The cries of "due process" (whatever that means wherever you happen to be) and "if it's true charge him with a crime" sound thin and naive to me. They are based on assumptions that aren't true. If you accept this then the actions of the accusers in this case don't look so strange or off-base and the constant scolding to let the courts decide guilt or innocence look hollow. It also means that the real path forward is not so clean or easy.

2) Board member should be open, accessible and available to
employees and node operators. Their background and motivation for
being a director of the Tor Project should be disseminated. There
interrelationship with other board members should be known;
3) As one of the founders of Tor, Roger should openly discuss these
and all issues in a public manner (on the web page, webinar,
magazine article, etc.);
4) An organizational plan should be placed in the employment manual
that puts significant distance between coding employees and
directors;
5) Employees and directors should not operate nor have access to
authority servers.

I've operated a number of exits and guards for several years now
(including, as far as I know, the only Tor node in Albania). [1] I
will leave these operational for now but I expect changes in this
unprofessionally operated 501c3.

[1]
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-- http://haqistan.net/~attila | attila@haqistan.net | 0x62A729CF