Who would seek to undermine such a paradigm? The answer to that question begins on the island of Murano, in the Caspian Sea. Here, artisans learned the ancient art of mirrorcraft as it was passed down from father to son. A hot mercury bath was applied to the back of a paper thin sheet of glass, and as it cooled, it left a silvery, reflective residue on one side of the glass. Mounted on hardwood and framed, these mirrors were far better than the Bronze & Copper versions sold elsewhere in Europe and fetched a high price even when imported to America.

But capitalism demands that supply stay low for prices to stay high, and the artisans of Murano faced a problem. How could they control the supply of mirrors? Their answer: by containing the knowledge of mirrorcraft. The punishment for illegal knowledge transfer on Murano was very simple: if you taught an outsider, you were put to death.

The artisans of Murano had grasped a fundamental concept of security: if you reveal the workings of an intricate process, you no longer control the outcome of that process. Just as Stradivarius and Damascus held their secrets tightly to their breast, so today do our most successful companies and governments. The process of money transfers through ATM machines is a carefully guarded secret, punishable by devastating lawsuits or worse if revealed. America's National Security Agency (NSA) makes sure that potential employees waive many of their rights contingent to their employment with the agency, allowing the NSA to crack down on would-be information thieves. The entirety of the world's banking system uses closely guarded software whose inner workings must never be revealed. Think of what Osama's followers would have done with the ability to understand the inner workings of the New York Stock Exchange!

All of these organizations have grasped and successfully implemented the process of Knowledge Containment. Shouldn't we all? Well, if we are to believe what we're told by "The Popular Media", then the answer is: Absolutely Not!

A new movement is brewing in America, one that threatens to undermine the ancient traditions and successes of Knowledge Containment. Branding Knowledge Containment with the Politically Correct catchphrase "Security Through Obscurity", these gun toting radicals tout their propoganda to anyone willing to publish it. Their replacement for 10,000 years of wisdom? A 20 year old process called "Public Key Cryptography". The gist of their argument, as best it can be followed, goes something like this (I've made this very simple so the less technically oriented can understand):

1. "Encryption" - There exist certain mathematical problems that cannot currently be solved that involve "factoring".
2. "Ciphertext" - You should use these "factoring" problems to obscure your most precious information by dividing it by a large prime number.
3. "Open Source" - You should reveal to the world at large exactly how your division process works, so that they can offer you helpful advice on how best to protect your information.

Sounds a little half baked, doesn't it? Well, you're not alone in your opinion. While many of our citizens may have been tricked into using this process to secure their information, you can rest assured that your personal information isn't being protected by such inanity. Do you know who owns your credit record? You shouldn't, that secret is pretty well guarded. Those who know the names of these three companies (let's call them "Trans Union", "Equifax", and "TRW" to protect their anonymity) tend to keep to themselves. Do you know how these companies protect your personal information? No? Well neither does anybody else, and that is why it's safe. It's a secret. This seems like an obvious point, but it's not. If the self-proclaimed leader of the "Cryptography" movement, Bruce Schneier, is to be believed, then these companies should tell everyone how they're securing your home address and telephone number. I, for one, shudder at the thought that a day could come when overeducated angry teenagers will be given the right to pore over the inner workings of the system that protects my bank account. If this idea bothers you as well, don't worry - help is on the way.

In his groundbreaking book, The Road Ahead, computer visionary Bill Gates states that the way to defeat "Cryptography" is completely obvious:

"The obvious mathematical breakthrough would be development of an easy way to factor large prime numbers."
- Bill Gates*

This revelation cuts through the hand-waving and dense technical jargon - getting directly to the point. The problem is that if anyone figures out how to "factor", everything that is currently protected by "Cryptography" instantly becomes un-protected. The "Cryptologists" (how morbid!) would like us to bet our future on the assumption that mankind will never solve their favorite math problem. History has shown this to be the absolute height of arrogance, and should we choose to take part in this parade of hubris, we shall surely go the way of the Titanic.

Indeed, it is likely that the community of Cryptologists has already secured a method for "factoring" that they intend to employ once widespread adoption of the "Cryptography" movement is achieved. It is not certain that the Cryptologist movement can decipher all of the methods they are advocating, but since they have a motive to keep that knowledge to themselves, it is probably safe to assume the worst. What can you do to protect your information? Simple:

1. Keep your secrets to yourself.
2. Resist Cryptologism in all it's forms: at work, at home, and in your local government.
3. If someone urges you to transmit or "encode" your secrets in "Cryptographic" format, politely but firmly remind them that you prefer to keep your information safe. If this individual persists, consider contacting the authorities.

If enough Americans reject the Cryptologists, they will never gain the keys to our most vital information. Imagine a day when everyone's financial record was public knowledge, when a select group of mathematicians knew all of our governments secrets - a day when all Information was Free to cause havoc across the globe. This day can be averted only through education and vigilance.

The closely guarded secret of the Mirrors of Murano kept Italy at the height of economic prosperity throughout the Renaissance. But Knowledge Containment predates almost everything. Far before Jesus Christ was born, The Jewish Tribe knew from it's inception that it's very existence was tied to keeping it's inner workings a secret. That's why the Jewish punishment for teaching the Talmud (the 12,000 page Jewish Code of Law) to a gentile (non-Jew) is death. Are we so ready to throw away this wisdom? To abandon the security methods that have allowed civilization to advance this far? Surely not. We must keep America safe & secure. We must reject "Cryptography", and keep our secrets to ourselves.

* Reproduced with Permission. All Rights Reserved. "The Road Ahead" is a registered Trademark of Microsoft Corporation.