229 lines
12 KiB
Plaintext
229 lines
12 KiB
Plaintext
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* (CHN) Connecticut Hacker Newsgroup (CHN) *
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= CHN News File #7 =
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* an I.I.R.G. affiliate *
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= -=>Present<=- =
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* Alternative News Gathering Techniques *
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= (Reprinted from Issue #12 =
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* (July/August 1995) of Cybertek: *
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= The Cyberpunk Technical Journal) =
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Alternative News Gathering Techniques
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by Thomas Icom
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What never ceases to amaze and disgust me is with the extensive means we have
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in this country for the dissemination of information, I find that it is more
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difficult to get real news about matters regarding personal survival, than it
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is to find out the latest fad in Hollywierd. I don't know whether it's
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because the American people have sunken to the lowest common denominator, or
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if it's because New World Order advocates in the media are deliberately trying
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to keep the people ignorant to further their aims.
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James Madison once said "A people who mean to be their own governors must arm
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themselves with the power knowledge gives." With that adage in mind, it would
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make perfect sense for the totalitarians to keep their potential subjects in
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the dark, as it would make their ascension to power easier. Whatever the
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reason, the result of this situation is that people into personal security
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and self-reliance have to make a little extra effort to stay informed.
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Ironically enough, one of the best places for certain types of news and
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intelligence is the idiot box (TV). If you have cable, you probably have
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access to a network called "CSPAN". CSPAN is a public affairs network that
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feeds the activity of the senate and house of representatives right into your
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home without any commentary attached. When the house and senate aren't in
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session, they cover press conferences and meetings of public organizations.
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Not only does CSPAN let you see what your "elected representatives" are up to;
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it lets you know who your friends and enemies are. The latter can also be
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said of monitoring network-TV news and "popular shows". If you can stomach
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it, watching network-TV will also give you a practical education on enemy
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psychological warfare techniques. Such an education is necessary in order to
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implement effective counter-measures.
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One of the "better" networks for news is CNN. Since all they do is news, they
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will report on things that will be missed by the other networks. The drawback
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to CNN is that you need to have Cable TV in order to get it. For those in
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areas without cable,I would suggest checking the FM and AM broadcast bands for
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an all-news station. Some news radio stations do rebroadcast CNN's audio.
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The shortwave bands still remain one of the best sources for alternative news
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information. Despite their increasingly socialistic leanings, you can still
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receive better quality news from overseas stations such as the BBC and Radio
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Duestche Welle than you can from CBS, NBC, and ABC. More American stations
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are also coming on the air; a radical departure from the days when the VOA
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(Voice of America, a government run station) was this country's only voice on
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shortwave. These American stations, particularly WWCR, provide an excellent
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amount of alternative news and current affairs commentary in their
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programming. Specific frequencies for a shortwave broadcaster change
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periodically. A current issue of Popular Communications or Monitoring Times
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magazine will provide you with specific frequencies and times of broadcast,
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but if you just want to tune through the bands and look around, the most
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common frequencies (in Khz.) used for shortwave broadcasts are:
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5950-6200 9500-9775 7100-7300 11700-11975
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15100-15450 17700-17900 21450-21750 25600-26100
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The frequencies below 10000 Khz. are better for nighttime reception; while
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those above 10000 Khz. are better for reception during the day.
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Small press publications, colloquially known as "underground newspapers" or
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"'zines" are more popular today than ever with the advent of desktop
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publishing systems and personal copiers. I personally believe that the
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advent of low-cost personal computer-based publishing systems was one of the
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greatest things ever to happen to the cause of freedom! The reason behind this
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belief is that now anyone with a little spare cash and a cause can become
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their own press. So, what was once the domain of big corporations is now the
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domain of anyone who wants it!
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There are too many excellent alternative press periodicals out there to list.
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I'm going to list a few of my favorites, but for more I strongly suggest you
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subscribe to Factsheet Five. Factsheet Five is a 'zine whose entire purpose
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is reviewing other 'zines. If you're looking for it, you'll find it in
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Factsheet Five. Factsheet Five is generally available at your local Barnes &
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Noble bookstore, or you can get it via mail.
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Still talking about computers, another excellent alternative news gathering
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and dissemination technique are computer bulletin board systems (BBSes). A
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BBS is a computer system that is set up by a private individual for the
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purpose of other people calling into it to leave public or private messages
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(e-mail) to other users, and public-domain (free distribution) software. Some
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of these BBSes are networked; which means that you can make a local call to a
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nearby BBS, post a message, and have it distributed across the world in 24
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hours. Every semi-populated area has a local BBS that is part of "Fidonet",
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the largest of the BBS networks. Most BBSes are free to use; with you just
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paying for the cost of the phone call; although some solicit donations to help
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offset the cost of running the system.
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All of this is done with your computer and a device called a "modem"; which
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interfaces your computer system to the phone lines. Modems and BBSes are
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another great invention for cyber-libertarians and other dangerous types who
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are into freedom. If you want to say something, just jump on your local
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Fidonet node and within a day or two your opinion will reach the opposite
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coast and everywhere in-between.
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It's easier to get in the BBS scene than it is to get into desktop publishing.
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All you need is a computer, a modem, and a terminal program to make the two
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work together. You don't even need a "state-of-the-art" system to do all of
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this, as the standards used for communications are universal between the
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various computer systems.
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Again there are too many BBS systems out there to mention them all, but for
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now I'll mention the official Cybertek BBS; RuneStone BBS, (203)-832-8441.
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When asked for the "newuser password" enter the word: CYBERDECK.
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Going beyond BBSes, we have the Internet. The Internet has come a long way
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since its inception. It eliminates the disadvantages of BBSing (large LD phone
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bills and a relatively small audience) while retaining all the advantages.
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There is already a ton of information out there available on the Internet,
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so I won't go into any major detail on it. Nevertheless check it out. It's a
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very powerful tool.
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In regards to news in your local area, the best thing I've seen is a "scanner
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radio". With one of these tuned to your police and fire frequencies, you'll
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get a first-hand report of events in your local area. While some places are
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beginning to scramble their radio transmissions, overall the practice isn't
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common. It might also pay to attend your local town-board meetings, as this
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will also give you a first-hand look at how well, or poorly, your community
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leaders are doing.
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The entire shortwave frequency spectrum (1 Mhz. - 30 Mhz.), as well as the AM
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and FM broadcast bands will probably become very useful in the event of a
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hostile takeover of the United States Government, whether it's from an
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internal problem, or an external power trying to take over. In such a case,
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freedom fighters with the background and equipment could set up underground
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broadcast stations to help the resistance effort. This will be more
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prominent on the shortwave bands because the equipment is easier to obtain,
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and due to the nature of the band, it is more difficult to use radio direction
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finding techniques to track down an "illegal" transmitter.
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Also of interest to survivalists is the Emergency Broadcast System. This is
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run by the mostly non-existent Emergency Management Authorities to provide
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official news and instructions in the event of a national emergency. It is
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one of the holdovers from the 1960s Civil Defense Program, and unless you
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live near a place such as a Dam or Nuclear Power Plant, there isn't much to
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the Emergency Broadcast System other than the fact it exists. However, if you
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have a spare AM/FM radio, or TV it might prove at least interesting to listen
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too, just to see what little the government informs you off, or instructs you
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to do. In the event of an actual emergency, I suggest programming the areas
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public safety frequencies in your scanner, as you will probably hear more
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information over them. You might also want to tune around the ham radio bands
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in the event of a nationwide emergency. Many hams are involved in disaster
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relief services such as Red Cross and RACES (Radio Amateur Civil Emergency
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Services). Being a ham operator myself, I can tell you that a lot of info
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goes over these frequencies; both official and unofficial. Common frequencies
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are:
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3500 - 4000 Khz. (80 Meter) 7000-7300 Khz. (40 Meter)
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14000-14350 Khz. (20 Meter) 21000 - 21450 Khz. (15 Meter)
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28000-29700 Khz. (10 Meter) 144-148 Mhz. (2 Meter)
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The frequencies labeled in Khz. are shortwave frequencies, and offer worldwide
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coverage. The 80 and 40 Meter bands offer better coverage at night. The 20
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Meter band offers decent coverage around the clock. The 15 and 10 Meter
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bands are best during the day. The 2 Meter band is a local coverage band
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which is useful for finding out news regarding your local area. Also
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potentially useful to listen too would be the CB band. Everyone has at
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least one CB which makes it a good community "jungle telegraph".
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The above is just a small sampling of radio frequencies that might yield
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useful information. You will also want to read Thomas Roach's excellent book
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_The Hobbyists Guide to COMINT Collection and Analysis_ which was reviewed in
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Issue #10.
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Small Press Periodicals Worth Checking Out
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2600 Magazine: The Hacker Quarterly
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P.O. Box 752
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Middle Island, NY 11953
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516-751-2600
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Good magazine covering computer and phone security. You'll also want to
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acquire the eleven years worth of back issues, as they make great reference
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material.
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$18/year
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Factsheet Five
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P.O. Box 170099
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San Francisco, CA 94117-0099
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$20/year
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Reviews other small press 'zines. Excellent source for those of you wanting
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to expand your sources of alternative press periodicals.
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Gray Areas
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P.O. Box 808
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Broomhall, PA 19008-0808
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$23/year
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A highly recommended magazine that covers "the gray areas of Life" - 'nuff
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said! Netta Gilboa, the editor and poublisher, is one of the few people I've
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seen who has given the computer underground an objective and realtively
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unbaised look, and let them have their own unedited voice; despite all the
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shit that certain STUPID people in that community have given her. (Those
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who disagree should compare her coverage of the community with that of the
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establishment media.) That fact alone gets her my support.
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U.S. Militia - "The Only Magazine For Community Defense"
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Kurt Saxon's excellent periodical version of The Poor Man's James Bond.
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$35/year
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Shoestring Entrepreneur
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Another excellent self-sufficency periodical by KurtSaxon. This one is geared
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towards learning a trade and using it to go into business for yourself.
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$15/year
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Kurt's periodicals are available from:
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Atlan Formularies
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P.O. Box 95
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Alpena, AR 72611
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(501)-437-2999
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Iron Feather Journal
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c/o Stevyn
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P.O. Box 1905
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Boulder, CO 80306
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$5 for current issue
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This techno-anarcho 'zine is another favorite of mine. I think Jerod Pore put
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it eloquently and accurately in Factsheet Five #52 when he said that "Iron
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Feather Journal is the Anarchist's Cookbook of the '90s, without all the bogus
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data that would get you killed."
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