From: utzoo!decvax!harpo!duke!bcw
Newsgroups: net.space
Title: Re: Microprocessors for Russian Shuttle, etc
Article-I.D.: duke.2260
Posted: Tue Jun 22 18:56:12 1982
Received: Sun Jun 27 03:20:14 1982


Re:	Microprocessors for Russian shuttle, etc.
From:	Bruce C. Wright @ Duke University

It wouldn't be too difficult at all to smuggle microprocessors
out of the country.  The problem which Ken Thompson ran into
was that he was trying to ship his chess machine (Belle) out to
the conference *legally*, and this wouldn't bother someone who
was trying to smuggle something out.

How do you think we get so much heroin in here?  It isn't made
here (to an appreciable extent), and the authorities are QUITE
hostile to it (no flames about libertarianism and so forth,
the topic has probably already been exhausted for as much good
as it will do).

In addition, there is the enormous area of Canada;  there are
very few customs checks between the US and Canada (and even if
there were, it would still be trivial to buy the microprocessors
there and smuggle them out of the (much harder to police) country.

And we haven't even discussed Europe yet...

			Bruce C. Wright @ Duke University