Thomas Jefferson and Apple versus the FBI
<p><pre><code>    In 1977 the Institute of Electrical and Electronics     
    Engineers (IEEE) scheduled a symposium at which several 
    important papers on cryptography were to be presented. 
    Research had established a basis for developing powerful 
    new encryption schemes, using fundamental concepts of 
    computer science, and examples of these schemes were 
    included in the papers. Prior to the symposium, however, a 
    letter arrived at IEEE headquarters warning that the 
    presentations might subject the authors and the IEEE to 
    prosecution under the Arms Export Control Act of 1976. The 
    letter was signed by an IEEE member, Joseph Meyer, who gave 
    only his home address, but who turned out to be an employee 
    of the National Security Agency (NSA).
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40 years later, we still repeat the same arguments and make the same mistakes.