Press 4 for information on how to register.
If you wish to end this call, please press the pound sign.
Well, we don't wish to end this call.
What do we want to hit?
No, we want to hit this call.
You must pre-register.
No, we want to hit this call.
There is no charge.
You must be a county resident.
A valid Nassau, we want to hit this call.
No, we want to hit this call, we want to hit this call.
We want to hit this call, we want to hit this call.
We want to hit this call, we want to hit this call.
Please remember to hit this call.
You want to hit this call?
Do you want to hit this call?
The combination of your leisure pass and PIN number are necessary to access the reservation service.
Please allow one week after registering for your PIN number to be made active on the computer.
Press 1 for the reservation system.
Press 2 for daily notices.
Press 3 for general golf information.
Press 4 for information on how to register.
If you wish to end this call, please press the pound sign.
General golf information?
Sure.
I think I like nothing better.
Let's hit 3.
I'm sorry, the information service is currently not available.
Oh, no.
Press 1 for the reservation system.
All right.
Press 2 for daily notices.
All right, let's try daily notices.
I'm sure we'll get something for that.
I'm sorry, the daily notice service is currently not available.
Oh, what's wrong with these people?
Press 1 for the reservation system.
You notice how when they say that, they're not so cheerful?
Press 2 for daily notices.
All right, let's try and hack into this system.
And let's see if we can reserve a course.
Reservations can only be made by Nassau County residents who have pre-registered to use this service.
Oh, boy.
Please enter your leisure pass number.
Uh, uh-oh.
We're busted.
Uh, let's see.
Uh, leisure pass number.
Okay, I got one.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.
The number you have entered is 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.
If correct, press 1.
If incorrect, press 2.
That's correct, right?
Right?
That's correct.
Yeah, okay.
1, 1.
At this time, we are only accepting new golf reservations.
Press 1 to make a new golf reservation.
All right, new golf reservation.
Whatever the hell that is.
We are now accepting reservations for Wednesday, April 10th through Tuesday, April 16th.
Please choose the day of the week you wish to play.
When do you want to tee off?
1 for Saturday.
Uh, Saturday is good.
Saturday is good.
Okay.
I'm free Saturday.
All right.
Please choose the course you wish to play.
Press 1 for 18-hole red course at Eisenhower.
Press 2 for 18-hole blue course at Eisenhower.
Please press the star sign to return to previous choices.
Well, red or blue?
I guess we're stuck with 18-hole, so red or blue?
Eh, red.
Red?
Yeah.
Please choose the number of golfers in your party.
Press 1 for a single.
Press 2 for a twosome.
Press 3 for a threesome.
Let's see.
Bring you, me, Leo, Bubba, and his wife, and the kids.
Mr. Habersham.
And, uh, oh, let's...
Thank you to foursome.
The next available tee time for a party of four golfers...
No, I went to hit 42.
3, 16, p.m.
3, 16?
Please choose the hour you wish to play by entering a number from 1 through 12.
Don't worry, we'll play through.
Please press the star sign to return to previous choices.
Okay, I'll hit 3.
I'm getting awfully confused here.
A reservation is available at 3, 16, p.m.
For a party of four golfers.
On Saturday, April 13th at the 18-hole red course at Eisenhower.
Press 1 to accept this reservation.
Press 2 to decline this reservation and choose another time.
Press the star sign to return to previous options and choose another time.
3, 16, Saturday.
Sure.
All right, no problem.
Please press the pound sign.
Here we go.
Your reservation is confirmed.
The fee for this reservation will be $16.
Please remember to check in one half hour prior to your tee time with your Nassau County Leisure Pass.
You may cancel or adjust your reservation until 6 p.m. on the day prior to play.
Failure to cancel your reservation or to check in one half hour prior to play will subject you to a no-show charge of $16.
Uh-oh.
Your reservation privileges will be revoked until this charge is paid.
At this time, we are only accepting new golf reservations.
Press 1 to make a new golf reservation.
Okay, well, now, what I don't understand is they said that you have to have a PIN and a registration number.
Please enter your choice now.
Yeah, yeah, I'm talking, okay.
At this time, we are only accepting new golf reservations.
We heard you.
Press 1 to make a new golf reservation.
How did we just make a reservation if we don't even belong to that club or anything?
I don't understand.
I handed 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.
We enter your choice now.
At this time, we are only accepting new golf reservations.
See, I can't disconnect her.
Press 1 to make a new golf reservation.
We might be stuck with her for the whole hour because it's that special turbo button on the phone.
She's on that line that you can't hang up.
You can't hang up?
I'm sorry you are experiencing difficulties.
Please call the Nassau County Administration Office for assistance.
Thank you for calling the Nassau County Golf Reservation System.
Well, they're gone.
And that's just an example of the fun you can have with touchstones these days.
I just hope we can be around at 3.16.
3.16 p.m.
What a strange time.
What if it's snowing?
What if it's raining?
What if we just play through?
And who's going to get charged this fee for not showing up or not canceling or whatnot?
Because we never even entered a PIN, so I don't even know how this system works.
I called it before just to check it out, you know.
And the way it worked then, it asked for a number.
Then it asked for a PIN.
And Ed said, sorry, that's not a valid PIN.
So I figured it would sort of do the same thing.
But, you know, in the tradition of off the hook, whenever you do something first,
it doesn't work the same way the second time you do it.
So there's absolutely no way you can guarantee it.
You used 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 last time?
Yeah, I used that earlier today and then asked for a PIN.
And I entered a PIN of, I think, 1, 2, 3, 4.
That was it.
1, 2, 3, 4.
And it didn't work.
Hmm.
So they caught me.
But apparently they have this vulnerability right now where, you know,
you can call up and reserve golf.
It's kind of interesting to see what happens Saturday, 3, 16 p.m.
I guess there'll be some empty areas there on the old golf course.
It's not bad we don't have any irons.
If you have suggestions for things that you'd like to see featured on Touchtone Fun,
mail that to us at OffTheHook, care of WBAI.
And that's 505 8th Avenue, New York, New York, 10018.
And we'll be happy to explore your particular computer system through the magic of Touchtones.
Now, we've got several other things that we want to update people on.
First, I've got a special announcement, FiberOptic.
We've got a brand-new hacker magazine that's starting up.
And this one is starting up in Holland.
Now, I remember HACTIC stopped a couple of years ago.
But now there's going to be a new one in a couple of months.
And I'd like for you to read the name of it, maybe as much of the announcement as you can.
It starts right below the dashed line there.
That's all we need, another hacker magazine.
Yeah.
Now, what's the name of that?
I don't think I can pronounce that.
Oh, yes, you can.
There's no such word as can't.
I'm having a problem because there's too many consonants in a row.
I don't know what to do with my tongue.
In Wales, they don't have that problem.
In Holland, they don't have that problem.
There's many places where they don't have that problem.
Oh, Wales is simple compared to this.
I don't know what to do with that.
Well, you better get used to it because that's a word we're going to have to be saying a lot.
Because every hacker magazine, we need to learn how to pronounce.
So you might just as well start now.
Um, well, there's a...
Nobody will laugh at you, so go ahead and give it a shot.
Let's see.
Toclafic.
How's that?
Oh, please.
You can't be serious.
That's really...
You sure you want to leave it like that?
Uh, that's the best I can do.
You've got to make one of those guttural sounds.
Otherwise, it's not Dutch.
I don't know where the guttural part goes.
Just put it in anywhere.
It'll sound good.
I believe that's a word that starts with an apostrophe.
Yeah, I don't know what to do with that.
Not many words do, you know.
But that's what you can do with a liberal language.
Hmm.
Do you want to try one more time?
I'll leave it up to you.
Okay, well, let's...
The name isn't so important.
The announcement is what's important.
Okay, it's...
Well, I can make out some of this.
The magazine for...
Uh...
Uh, something or other.
Uh, something technical.
Okay, yes.
Something technical will be coming out of Holland.
It's going to be, from what I understand,
and I didn't get it from there,
uh, what's going to be happening is
mostly telephone news.
And it's going to be moving into the computer realm
over the next couple of months, I guess.
It'll be a quarterly.
It should be starting around, uh...
Did I say March?
March has already passed.
I think May is the month I was given.
That will actually be coming out.
So, look for a new hacker magazine
coming out of Holland.
Of course, here in the United States,
not very many people know how to speak Dutch.
And in Holland, of course,
everybody knows how to speak English.
And in some cases,
they speak it better than we do here.
So, I guess there won't be that much of a market
for that magazine here.
But I just think it's good
whenever you see a new magazine coming up.
Because there was kind of a trend
towards moving away from the printed word.
And I think that's always a mistake.
Yeah, we have the internet,
we have electronic mail,
and all kinds of things like that.
But it can't replace something that you hold
in your hand
and, you know, read on the subway
and, you know, in the bathroom,
wherever you read magazines.
I don't know.
You just can't replace that
with a computer screen.
And it's just something about
the printed word
that I think will always be
intriguing to us.
Okay, Bernie S.
Is Bernie S. around tonight?
I guess, uh,
is anyone there?
Okay, you see now,
this is the thing.
Bernie S. was calling me earlier today.
It took 40 tries
before we were able to connect.
I would pick up the phone,
I would say hello,
and AT&T would hang up.
It's an AT&T system.
Although I believe it's contracted
by Bell Atlantic.
He's sitting there in prison
over in Doylestown, Pennsylvania,
using a different phone system
than when we're accustomed to.
Let's try again.
Hello?
AT&T has a collect call from
Bernie S.
at the Busk County Correctional Facility.
To receive this call, hang up.
If you accept this call,
do not use T-Way or call waiting features,
or you will be disconnected.
To accept this call, dial one now.
Thank you.
Wow.
We were pretty lucky there, Bernie.
Well, I tried reaching you earlier today.
I think it took about 11 or 12 tries
before we actually got through.
All right, I guess I was exaggerating
when I said 40,
but it was a lot.
It was a lot.
I wound up cussing
every time I picked up the phone
because I wanted to get
someone's attention,
but it just kept disconnecting.
And sometimes, you know,
we get to the point
where we hit the one,
and we hit a one,
and it would just disconnect
at that point.
So I don't know, you know,
we had these crazy systems
in all the other prisons
you've been in
run by who knows
what kind of phone company.
This is the one run by AT&T
and Bell Atlantic,
and they can't get it right.
This is the worst one
of the four that I've experienced
over the past year.
And your one-year tour
of prison phone systems,
this is the worst.
Definitely.
Well, we, uh,
a couple of people,
myself included,
saw Bernie S.
this past Sunday,
and this is the first time
I was in this particular prison.
Boy, it's an unusual place.
I cannot describe the sound
that I guess several hundred people
in a gymnasium
visiting with prisoners' mates.
It's just like this constant roar
of noise,
of human voices.
And that's, uh,
that was the meeting place.
It wasn't like the last prison
where we had to sit at a table
and, uh, you know,
you were on one side
and we were on the other.
This was more of a, um,
of an intimate gathering
where you could actually,
you know,
shake someone's hand
and talk to them
and just, uh,
it just felt like
we were having more
of a get-together.
And, of course,
there are a lot more people
there, too.
Well, I don't know.
You know, when I first walked in,
when they opened up the door,
you could hear the noise.
And it sounded like
a thousand people inside there.
But I imagine it's probably
only a couple of hundred.
Um,
But, uh, the acoustics
made it sound like a thousand.
Actually, it didn't,
it didn't surprise me at all
because it's just that loud
inside the,
you can hear the background
noise here.
It's always that loud in prison.
So it didn't,
it didn't strike me at all
as being different.
I guess,
I guess for you,
I'm used to the quiet sounds
of, uh, Manhattan.
Um,
it's a lot louder.
Well, we, uh,
we zipped right by the prison
because, of course,
they have a sign out there
for, like, the wrong thing.
It says, uh,
Juvenile Correctional Facility.
So we didn't think
that was used.
So we,
we just kept on going
into the countryside.
And eventually, uh,
when we started seeing,
like, you know,
signs for things
that were far, far away
from Doylestown,
uh,
we decided to turn around.
We actually called them,
got directions,
uh,
better directions,
and, uh,
we're able to find the place.
So we arrived there
an hour after visiting began.
But I have to say,
of all the prisons
I have been to,
that one processed us
the fastest.
We got right in.
I mean,
in Easton,
we had to wait
upwards of an hour.
Once we waited
something like an hour and a half,
we only got,
like, a 15-minute visit.
This time,
we, we got right in there.
Of course,
we had to empty
our pockets totally.
And, um,
and all kinds of other things
weren't allowed
to bring anything in.
They stamped our hand.
They stamped the other hand.
This is interesting.
I think it was the, um,
the people who visited you
the week before
had their right hand stamped.
Uh, we had our left hand stamped.
Oh, they switch around.
They switch around.
So, yeah.
They're in a random tube
so the inmate can't guess
which hand they would
want to put the forged
ultraviolet ink
on their hands with.
Well, they don't check both hands.
They only check one hand
so you can put it
on both hands, I guess.
Oh, okay.
So, yeah.
I was just wondering
on the way out,
you know,
what happens if somehow,
God forbid,
my, my,
my ink sort of wears off.
What did they do to me then?
We'd be roommates.
I guess so.
Pretty scary.
But, I don't know, you know,
how it is on the inside.
Of course, we never see
that part of it.
We only see the, the, you know,
the visiting part
and the outside.
Uh, my impression was
that this place
seems to be better run
and more of a modern facility.
Of course, you know,
I don't know
what goes on behind.
Well, the other place, uh,
that I was just transferred here
from, uh,
three weeks ago
in Easton, Pennsylvania
was built in 1867.
It was, uh,
very much, uh,
seemed like you were just, uh,
going to a time machine
and going to a prison
and was built
after the Civil War.
Some, some of the parts
inside were,
looked like they hadn't
had any, uh,
improvements since 1867.
The food was also, uh,
Civil War cuisine.
But, uh,
this place is only
about 11 years old
and it's run much more
like a military, um, operation.
The guards kind of walk around
in lockstep
and, uh,
they just bark orders at you.
Whereas up in Easton,
for some reason, uh,
the guards were, uh,
a lot more laid back
and not as, uh,
not as angry.
So I'm not sure
why that difference is.
But, um,
it's tolerable here.
There's much better medical care.
And, uh,
that's, that was my main concern.
One of the interesting things
here, though,
is that, uh,
I brought it up
to a friend who visited
me last weekend.
The, uh,
the laundry situation
is, is a lot different.
Um, up in, uh,
Northampton County, uh,
you're issued, uh,
clean socks and underwear
on a regular basis
before you could buy your own
and just wash it yourself
or have someone else
wash it for you.
Down here,
you're issued
two clean socks a week
and two, uh,
two underwear shorts a week.
And at the end of that week,
um,
you throw them in a big pile
and everything is washed
together on moss.
And then you get back
somebody else's socks
and underwear.
Um, you never get back
the same pair twice.
So we could have been
worn by a hundred inmates
before you.
That's, uh,
that's most incredible
to think of that.
Is there a way you could
maybe, uh,
write something in
indelible ink there
and sort of pass a message
along to other people?
You're not going to get
it back anyway.
It could go to any one
of a thousand prisoners.
So, you know,
the odds of you getting
the same pair of shorts
or socks back
are pretty slim.
Is there a coveted pair
that, uh,
sometimes one person gets
and that's like the
prized pair of shorts?
Um,
if there is,
I haven't seen them.
Uh-huh.
So, uh,
fortunately,
some, uh,
some kind people
were able to send me,
uh,
a few dollars
and I was able to buy
clean boxer shorts
and socks
so I'm now reveling
in clean underwear
and socks
which is quite a luxury,
believe me.
I imagine.
That's, uh,
that's something.
You know,
when you get out of there,
hopefully May 30th
is the day we're looking at.
Um,
I guess all this
will seem really strange.
I mean,
it seems strange to me
every time I go through
something like this.
To you,
it probably is becoming
part of normal life
which is, uh,
I think a sad thing.
But, um,
once you...
Nothing won't surprise me
in life anymore.
Yeah, I know, I know.
It's beginning to feel
the same way.
Uh, we have some updates
on stories that were
coming out of Philadelphia
and St. Louis.
Uh, that was involving
a hacker we mentioned
last week
who, uh,
well, according to,
uh, the Philadelphia
Daily News,
uh,
this was dated
March 30th,
they say that
FBI agents
tracked down and arrested
a 19-year-old
computer genius
from Missouri.
Now, keep in mind
that to the Philadelphia
Daily News,
anyone who, uh,
can use a computer,
turn one on
and turn one off
again successfully
is probably known
as a computer genius.
Um,
and, uh,
they were the ones
who said that
Southwestern Bell
which, um,
is the phone company
for the Midwest
and Texas
spent more than
$500,000
to fix their
security breach.
One has to wonder,
uh, what it is
that they did
to spend $500,000.
One also has to wonder
how much they spent
on, um,
security in the first place.
I mean,
if they,
if they spent nothing,
okay, that explains something.
If they spent $500,000,
where, where did that go?
And, uh,
is their system secure?
Now, also,
what exactly is it
that they're saying
this person did?
Again, we're not
getting any answers.
One thing, though,
that was, uh,
clear from this story
was that bail
was set at $150,000.
Now, I just heard
a story today
on the radio
about this guy
who was, uh,
convicted of rape
and then it turned out
that he was, um,
he, he,
the DNA,
DNA proved
that he didn't do it.
However,
over the last week,
he was, uh,
he was caught
impersonating a police officer
and he, he, uh,
he caught, uh,
he caught up to some woman
in a car
and, uh,
raped her,
threatened to kill her,
impersonated a police officer
and the bail for him
was $25,000.
$25,000 for that.
And,
this guy
is being held
for $150,000.
You were held
on $250,000.
You have to wonder,
where is the priority
in this particular, uh,
in this particular case?
Unfortunately,
that, uh,
that particular defendant
is no longer, uh,
able to get bail.
I just read an article today
that was in Saturday's
Philadelphia Inquirer.
His bail was revoked.
It was set at $150,000.
But apparently, uh,
his prison cellmate,
um,
who was about to be sentenced,
uh,
made a deal
with prosecutors
and told them
that this guy,
the alleged computer hacker,
told him
that he was planning
to run away
if he got out on bail.
And, uh,
this, this cellmate
told this to prosecutors,
got a lesser sentence.
You have to wonder
about the, uh,
motivations there.
And, uh,
the judge revoked
this, uh,
this person's opportunity
to get bail.
So he is now
currently in a federal prison,
I believe,
in the St. Louis area,
without bail,
just like I was last year.
That's right.
Yeah, in fact,
you beat me to it.
You get some updates there.
That's pretty impressive.
Uh, he was, um,
initially there was a story
on April 5th
that said that he was
given house arrest
while awaiting trial.
Uh, they,
they put out a story
and everything
saying that, uh,
uh, the,
the 19-year-old
St. Louis computer whiz
who was arrested
by the FBI
was released
to his parents yesterday
and placed under
house arrest
but only on condition
that he not be allowed
near a computer
or even talk about
computers on the telephone.
Uh, then,
the day after that,
there was another story
saying that, uh,
that had all been rescinded,
uh, because, uh,
because, as you say,
his, uh,
his cellmate said
that he was about to, uh,
or planned on escaping.
Um, it was all based
on testimony
from that cellmate
and, uh,
he denies having said
that he was going to escape.
You have to wonder,
I mean, how stupid
can somebody be
if they were planning
on escaping?
You, you tell, like,
the one person
that would have contact
with the people
that could, uh,
could lock you up.
It doesn't seem like
something a computer genius
would, uh, would do.
It does seem like
something they would use
to keep him locked up
indefinitely
and without any bail.
His parents would have, uh,
lost their house, too,
to the government
if, uh,
because they were going
to sign their house over
in lieu of this
$150,000 bail.
So I think it's unlikely
that, uh,
he's going to run away
and cause his parents
to become homeless.
That just doesn't seem
to make a lot of sense to me.
Now, as far as what
this person is accused
of doing,
he is accused of being
part of the Internet
Liberation Front.
Wow, that's, uh,
that's really scary.
Those are the people
that, uh,
those are the people
that, uh,
I, don't,
don't mock them.
They'll, they'll come
and they'll, uh,
they'll do all kinds
of horrible computer cybercrime.
Uh, they, they supposedly
issued a manifesto
and, uh, and, you know,
they threatened violence.
Yeah, that was the thing.
Uh, what is it
in this, in this particular story?
Something about
a violent computer hacker.
That's what they called him.
Um, because he threatened,
um, he threatened to,
to smash someone's computer
or something,
or, or that's what the,
the, um,
uh, the manifesto
said at one point.
Uh, utter absurdity
like that.
He was also accused
of, um, of roaming
computer systems
at Southwestern Bell
and other corporations.
All of this happened
while he was living
in Missouri,
which he has not lived in
for quite some time.
Uh, you have to wonder,
you know,
what is it exactly
that they are after?
They, they won't say
what the crime is.
They will, however,
lock somebody up
without any kind of bail.
Uh, I mean, years ago,
this kind of thing
happened in much
the same way.
They would never think
of putting somebody
in prison for it,
though.
It's just, uh,
it's just utterly absurd.
He's going to be placed
on this, this, uh,
19-year-old, uh,
if he was going
to be released on bail,
not only did he not,
uh, have access
to any computer
while he was on bail
on house arrest,
but did he also
not have any contact
with his girlfriend
who lives in Broomall,
Pennsylvania,
who I happen to know
and I think he's met also.
Mm-hmm.
Uh, yeah, it's, um,
we're living in a society
that is putting
all kinds of,
of crazy restrictions
on people like us
because they don't
understand what it is
that we are doing
in the first place
and I think that's
pretty apparent
from reading these stories
from listening to,
I mean, the prosecutor
wants to remain anonymous.
Uh, she's so worried
about what these
computer hackers can do
that she will not
give out her name.
So you have people
going around
locking us up
and we don't even know
who they are doing this
and we don't know
what it is they're
charged with.
It's, it's just
the most incredible
witch hunt
that I've, I think
we've seen in the past,
uh, at least a decade,
if not more.
So, uh, it's, it's,
it's very worrisome
and of course, uh,
Bernie, you're,
you're a prime example
of that fiber optic.
You're another example
of that.
Um, you, you had
sort of a witch hunt
mentality during,
during your, uh,
tribulations.
Is that right?
No, definitely so.
Mm-hmm.
So it just continues
and it seems to be
getting all the more
encompassing.
Well, um,
speaking of
Southwestern Bell,
now, they're involved
in something this, uh,
this week,
something we, we are
allowed to talk about.
Yeah, actually,
they're, uh,
they're actually
striking up a deal
with Pacific Telesis
and, uh,
from what I hear,
they're gonna be
keeping the name
of, uh,
SBC,
which they're now called
since they, uh,
consolidated their holdings.
Right, they're SBC.
Yeah.
Okay, hold on.
I mean, I don't want
to be dumb here,
but they're Southwestern
Bell Corporation.
Okay, but they're
not SWB,
they're SBC?
They used to be
known as SWBT,
Southwestern Bell Telephone.
Oh, hang on, hang on.
Let me just catch up here.
They used to be SWBT.
Right.
Okay.
Or SWB.
But now they're SBC.
Right.
But they're gonna merge
with Pacific Telesis.
Yeah.
Okay, but what are they
gonna be called after
they merge with Pacific Telesis?
They're still gonna be SBC,
as is Pacific Telesis.
So Pacific Telesis
isn't gonna exist anymore.
They're gonna be SBT.
SBC.
SBC, I'm sorry.
Okay.
So they'll be SBC.
Right.
All right, and before that,
all right, let's just
get rid of Pacific Telesis first.
Before Pacific Telesis
was Pacific Telesis,
they were part of
the old AT&T, right?
Yeah, sure.
Okay, and that's it?
Yeah, that's all.
Now let's go back
to Southwestern Bell.
Before they were SBC,
they were SWBT.
Right.
And before that,
I guess they were known
as Southwestern Bell.
Well, they were always known
as SWBT.
That was their abbreviation
for Southwestern Bell Telephone.
They had abbreviations back, uh...
Yeah, sure.
Okay, fine.
I thought that they were
kind of new.
Well, now, okay,
they were part of AT&T too, right?
Right.
All right.
But they were a region
known as Southwestern Bell
of AT&T.
Right.
Now, Southwestern Bell
didn't have little tiny rocks as well.
Never did.
Like, for instance,
New York Telephone
was just New York,
but Southwestern Bell
was all of Texas and...
Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri,
and so on.
Yeah, so it wasn't
like an Oklahoma Bell.
No, they never split up the names.
I see.
Now, Pacific Telesis,
if I can go back to that
for a second.
Right.
They weren't known
as Pacific Telesis
back in the AT&T days
when they were part of AT&T.
What were they known as?
They were...
In the Bell System days,
they were known
as Pacific Telephone
and Telegraph.
Pacific Telephone
and Telegraph?
Yep.
But not to be confused
with Pac-Bell.
No, Pac-Bell
is part of Pacific Telesis.
Wait a minute.
Pac-Bell...
Wait a minute.
...and Nevada Bell
make up Pacific Telesis.
So Pac-Bell...
Right.
...and Nevada Bell
make Pacific Telesis.
Right.
Okay.
All right.
And they used to be
part of AT&T.
Right, but in the old days...
Now, is there a Pac-Bell
and is there a Nevada Bell now
or is it all known
as Pacific Telesis?
No, they still use the names
Pacific Bell, Pac-Bell,
and Nevada Bell.
Whereas Southwestern Bell
doesn't have anything below it.
No, they never did.
Okay.
Why is this important?
Um, I don't know.
Well, actually...
It's not really.
We're just trying
to kill some time here.
As far as Southwestern Bell
goes, if you lived in Missouri,
it would be Southwestern Bell
of Missouri.
Southwestern Bell of Missouri
and Southwestern Bell of Texas
and Southwestern Bell of whatnot.
Right.
They didn't have separate names
for each state.
So, okay, now you have 9X
thinking of merging
with Bell Atlantic.
Right.
Is that still going
as far as you know?
I haven't heard
anything otherwise.
Okay.
And now you have
Southwestern Bell
going with Pacific Telesis.
Do you think it's going
to keep getting bigger and bigger?
Maybe one day AT&T will reform
and be a competitor to itself?
Yeah.
Seems that way.
Bernie, have you heard
anything about this?
Bernie, are you there?
Uh-oh.
Hello?
Yeah, this phone system,
which, by the way,
is run by AT&T
and Bell Atlantic,
somehow, for some reason,
it's like talking
on a speaker phone
where, you know,
you talk to somebody
and then it sort of
mutes out for a few seconds
while something happens.
But, Bernie,
are you there with us now?
Yes, can you hear me?
Yes, I can hear you fine.
All right.
I can remember
there was a lot of speculation
a few months ago
when a lot of regulatory
restrictions were listed
on these regional
bill operating companies
that they can now buy
into other companies
and merge and so forth.
And I was of the opinion
then that they were all
going to start merging
and eventually it'll be
one big company again
like AT&T.
And that seems to be
starting now.
Whether the trend's
going to stop here
or whether they're going
to just continue to merge
and be one big,
giant monopoly again
is anybody's guess.
But it looks like that trend
just starting all over again now.
It sure does.
Now, speaking of exploration
and figuring things out
and playing with
some big phone companies,
Farber, you and me
had a little adventure
over the weekend
where we took the 2600 van
over to Chinatown.
Chinatown, yeah.
And we parked right smack
on Mott Street,
right where we're not
supposed to park
because everybody else,
you know,
taking the chickens
and the fish
and all those things
out of the vans
were doing that
just that hour
which was about
7 in the morning.
And we were attacked
by tourists.
Oh, boy.
I mean,
there were thousands
of tourists down there.
I didn't even know
what they were doing.
They were coming,
they were speaking
all kinds of languages
and they're walking
down the street
looking at things
that we look at every day
as if it's like
something amazing.
And, of course,
we were being looked at
as well
because we look
like phone people.
For some reason,
everybody thinks
the 2600 van
is a phone van
and they treat us
like phone people,
I guess,
which is okay.
I don't mind being
treated like a phone person.
But as it turns out,
as it turns out,
we happen to be
playing with phone systems,
playing with new
9X pay phones.
Now,
this was your first
run-in with one
of those new phones
that doesn't,
they don't allow
additional dialing.
Bernie,
have you ever heard
of anything like this?
I've run into
a few co-cuts
or customer-owned
coin-operated phones
like that,
but never a phone
that's been operated
by the regional
Bell phone company.
Well,
this is a brand-new thing.
It is like a co-cut.
In fact,
we labeled it a no-cut
because it's 9X owned.
But I think it's worse
than any co-cut
I've ever seen.
It acts the same way.
It disallows dialing.
You can't make a 9X
calling card call,
can you?
Well,
we found ways
around that,
didn't we?
We found a few ways.
Now,
here's the problem.
When you dial a 950,
when you dial any number
on that thing,
you get that recording
that says,
thank you for using 9X,
which you don't usually get
only from those phones.
It comes from
within the phone,
right?
Right.
So,
we had to figure out
a way to get around that.
So,
what did we do?
We simply prefixed it
with a valid carrier
access code.
That's all we had to do.
Yep.
10-XXX
or 1-0-1-0-XXXX.
And we simply dialed
the seven-digit number
after that,
which,
like,
1-0-2-8-8-9-5-0,
whatever.
Right.
And that went through
without giving
the particular
thank you for using 9X
greeting.
And then we were able
to enter all the touch tones
we wanted.
Another way around that
that we found
was by calling
the payphone itself
and picking up,
having someone hang up
and getting a dial tone
that way.
In fact,
on one occasion,
and we don't know
why this happened,
but on one occasion
we got an unrestricted
dial tone.
In other words,
I didn't even think
it was a payphone.
Just let a free call
go through.
I mean,
you have 9X
falling victim
to the most basic
cocot problems,
such as unrestricted
dial tones.
Obviously,
they haven't learned much
from the cocot companies.
And they certainly
haven't been putting
much effort
into customer convenience.
Cutting off touch tones
is one of the things
that you never thought
9X would wind up doing.
But they are doing it
in Chinatown.
They're doing it
on Canal Street.
And we have to figure out
ways around that.
We also have to do
something about those
damn yellow phones.
They are so annoying.
They cut you off
after 10 minutes
no matter what you're doing.
And you can't call them.
You can't call 950s on them.
You can't make calls
in normal ways at all.
So, I mean,
yeah, I have no problem
with chip cards
and with that kind
of technology.
But there's a way
of implementing it
so it doesn't
inconvenience everybody.
And right now,
you have a situation
where everyone's
waiting in line
to use the 9X phone,
which is usually
broken anyway.
And then next to that,
you have the yellow
9X phone,
which nobody's using
because nobody wants
to deal with cards
and there's no other
use for it.
You can call
800 numbers, I think.
That's about it.
It used to be
when they first
introduced those things,
you couldn't even
call 800 numbers.
But they still have
950s blocked,
which is no good reason
for it.
There's also no good
reason to block
incoming calls,
which we've noticed
9X doing increasingly.
That's the war on drugs.
Apparently, yeah.
Everything has to do
with the war on drugs.
But I think we should
start a counter-war,
a war on stupidity.
And hopefully,
we'll make some progress
in that.
Because I think people,
you know,
will wind up using drugs
no matter what you do
with their touchstones
or beepers
or ringbacks
or whatnot.
That's not the answer.
The answer is not
to inconvenience people.
And, you know,
I think there's a hidden
agenda here on 9X's part
because they tend
to make more money
when people aren't
calling payphones
because, obviously,
you can't put money
in a payphone
if you're taking
an incoming call on it.
You can't make much
money on a payphone
if you let people
use additional carriers
and bill it
to other carriers.
So everything they do,
I think,
has that in mind.
So we need to be able
to challenge that
whenever possible.
There may be
an FCC angle
around this
because I think
there's an FCC ruling
that stated
that the operating
companies,
public telephones,
were required
to provide
equal access.
Isn't that right?
They are required
to provide
equal access,
yes.
But how that is
interpreted,
that's the sticky part.
You know,
10XX,
yeah,
they allow that.
Is that the,
you know,
fulfilling the entire
regulation or not?
There's nothing in there
that says they can't
cut off touchtones.
See,
that's the sticky part.
And that's what's
so annoying.
I mean,
as a regulation says
they can't charge money
for 800 numbers,
okay,
great.
That's real progress there.
But as far as,
I mean,
you know,
you could get around
all this.
If we had a touchtone pad,
right,
that would get around this,
wouldn't it?
As long as they don't
shut off the mouthpiece.
Uh-huh.
Do you think they did?
On these particular
9X co-cuts,
no,
they didn't.
Okay.
And we heard,
we heard the original dial tone.
When you pick up,
you hear the original dial tone?
For a split second,
you hear the real dial tone.
Then you get the fake dial tone
cuts in.
Very interesting.
So if people have had
any kind of experiences
with those pay phones,
please let us know
because we'd like to
play around with them some more.
It was great,
though,
because we had to,
occasionally people
would be using the phone,
so it was kind of hard.
And of course,
the phone next to it
didn't work,
so we weren't able
to call it from that phone.
We had to call
from a block away,
and we had to station
somebody in between both phones
would give hand signals
as to when the phone was free,
and it was like
we were up to something.
You know,
it was like we were doing
something really,
really illegal,
but all we were doing
was seeing if a phone
would ring
and what it would do
when it picked up.
But I can imagine...
Oh, we should add about
the,
it doesn't ring,
but if you pick up
at the right time,
the other person
will be there.
That's right.
Yeah.
I mean,
it takes some coming calls,
but there's no bell.
Right.
So that was pretty amusing
as well.
Do these phones
provide free
director assistance
or local director
assistance calls?
You know,
we didn't try that,
but I think they're
required to.
Yeah.
Why?
Do you have a theory?
Okay.
50 cents for local
director assistance calls
from public telephones.
Okay.
All we got from you
was 50 cents
for something.
No.
Darn Atlantic phone.
Keep putting me off.
There was just an article
in the Philadelphia Fire
a couple of weeks ago
that stated that
Bell Atlantic
would be charging
50 cents
for local
director assistance calls
in the
greater Philadelphia
area from now on.
Well,
you know,
that's interesting.
In Pennsylvania,
you have to pay
for directory assistance
when you actually
call from a pay phone,
unlike here in New York.
Of course,
you have to pay
to call directory assistance
in other states
and other parts of 9X,
but local directory assistance,
914-516-212.
It's all free
from pay phones.
So that's kind of
something we consider
a convenience,
but, you know,
it used to be that
information was free
everywhere.
Now, you know,
sometimes,
most of the time,
it costs more
to call information
than to make
the phone call itself,
so you have to wonder
where exactly
these people's heads are.
We were able
to get a hold
of the book
we were talking
about last couple
of weeks,
thanks to Scott
and Dave
for coming through
with us for us
on that.
And, Fiber,
you've got a copy of it.
It's a book
on the Secret Service,
Inside the White House?
Yep.
Okay.
Sure is.
Sure is.
Okay, what do you got?
You got some
interesting quotes there?
Well, I'm looking
at a particular section
where it turns out
that despite
Jimmy Carter's
nice big smile,
he was a pretty nasty guy.
He was.
You know,
I always thought that.
I always thought
he was hiding something.
What do they say
about him there?
Oh, all kinds of stuff.
I know this book
goes into great detail
as to what they eat,
like what each president
liked and what was,
you know,
their various
likes and dislikes.
You were saying
Bush had a broccoli
ban from the White House,
right?
Bush had broccoli
ban, yeah.
He used his executive
powers to do that.
That's funny.
It's incredible.
Are there any
good quotes in there?
Oh, let's see.
Talking about
Air Force One,
Jimmy Carter
came into the cockpit
once in the two years
I was on with him,
said one particular agent.
Said,
but Reagan never
got on or off
without sticking his
head in the cockpit
and saying,
thanks, fellas,
or have a nice day.
Reagan was just
as personable in person
as he came across
to the public.
And they imposed
that rule banning
presidents from going
into the cockpit
right after that,
I believe,
didn't they?
Did they really?
I don't know.
I know it would
annoy me to have
Reagan sticking his
head in and saying,
thanks a lot, guys.
Thanks a lot, fellas.
Yeah.
I don't know if I
can handle that.
Ooh, the Carters
were the biggest
liars in the world.
Now, who is it
that wrote this book?
Who would say
something like that?
No, this is a quote
from another agent.
Wow.
So this is what
Secret Service agents
are getting.
They're getting all
this information
about presidents
and leaking it
to people like us.
Well, what a threat
to national security
that is.
There's an interesting
part in that book
that describes
the current
administration's
interest in
upgrading the
computer systems
in the White House.
Did you come across
that section fiber?
No, not yet.
I mean, there's...
If you look in the
index in the back
under, I think,
under Apple Computer,
it tells you a page
that part is on.
And it said that
they were trying
to solicit free
donations.
The current
administration was
trying to solicit
free donations
from various companies
for free computer
equipment.
And the kind of
stuff they got
was just sort of
this incompatible
mix of equipment.
And then they got
it all together
and they couldn't
make it work
because some of it
wasn't compatible.
It's just a big mess.
Wow.
We're going to be
perusing this thing
over the next
couple of weeks.
I'm sure there's
all kinds of
interesting little
tidbits we'll find.
We're looking in
the index now,
so we'll see what
we come up with
as far as
computer systems.
I did read in
there, though,
that they said
the Clinton
administration was
comprised of all
these people that
had no experience
dealing with the
press or with
government in any
sense.
They were some
of the rudest
people ever to
have found
themselves in
that position.
I thought that
was kind of a
funny way to
look at all
this.
Of course,
they're more
technically savvy
for reasons like
that, I guess.
That's why we have
things like digital
telephony and the
Exxon Amendment.
It probably is a
good thing for
people in power
not to be
technically savvy
because then they
won't know what's
going on.
It's probably best
that way.
It probably can
extend to a whole
lot of other
things, too.
Our phone number
is 212-279-3400
if you'd like to
call us and share
any kind of
technical telephonic
or computer type
of exploit or
story or anything
like that.
Farber, you have
something?
Just laughing in
general.
I'm just laughing
in general.
You found a funny
quote or something.
Amy Carter was a
mess.
Amy Carter was a
mess?
Yeah, that was
a particular quote.
I was just talking
about a little
spat she had with
her father and
crumbled crackers on
the carpet on
purpose.
She didn't.
Yeah, she did.
Crumbled crackers on
the carpet.
Wow.
Soda crackers.
I always thought
she was no good.
What's she up to
now?
Probably crumbling
crackers all over
the place.
All right.
212-279-3400.
Good evening.
You're on the air.
Okay.
They're no longer
on the air.
Good evening.
You're on the air.
Good evening.
Yes, sir.
I got a tickle out
of your talking
about the charges
for domestic
long-distance calls.
If you want a real
treat, dial your
double-O long-distance
operator at any of
the big three and
then zero at the
prompt.
And last time I
checked, there are
like $4.99 and
$5 for overseas
directory nowadays,
which from all
these years until
about two or
three years ago
was free even as
our domestic had
extended over the
whole country.
You know, I have
to say, I think I
might be the one
responsible for
them starting to
charge for that
service.
Back a couple of
years ago, I
would have another
radio show on a
different radio
station.
Every week, I
would call a
different country
and have fun with
the information
operators of that
country.
I'll never forget
the screaming
operator of
Bhutan.
There were some
really incredible
people that I
came in contact
with over the
course of that
little adventure
because it was
always free.
You could always
call someone
anywhere in the
world and they
would speak in
their native
language, they
would speak on
their native
phone system, and
it was just so
much fun and it
didn't cost
anything.
And I guess
people at the
phone company
heard that and
said, you know,
this can't go on
like this because
we have to somehow
recoup all the
losses that this
one person is
causing us.
And who knows
how many other
people inspired to
do just that.
Thanks for calling,
thanks for bringing
that memory up.
It's kind of hard
to think of no
longer being able to
do that.
495.
Can you imagine
that?
495 for a call
just to get a
number.
Good evening,
you're on the
air.
Oh, hello?
Yes.
Yes, this is
Emmanuel Goldstein?
This is he.
Yes, listen, I
rented a movie from
the video store
last weekend, and
it was a really
neat movie, and
guess who one of
the characters was
named?
I don't think I
could guess if I
started now and
kept going to the
year 2000.
The only thing, I
don't think that
you have four
braids.
Oh, yes, you're
talking about the
movie, what was it
called again?
Hackers.
Hackers, yeah,
how could I forget?
Hackers, yes.
You don't know
how many times
people accuse me
of taking my
name from the
name of the
character in that
film.
What would you
think of the
film in general?
Well, you know,
like, well, okay,
for, you know, a
technical person, I
think I would have
liked to have seen
more, you know,
technical details
of hacking.
But I can
understand, like,
to make it, you
know, a
patable to a
general audience,
they did, like,
this stylized thing
with the neat
kind of graphics
coming out of the
screen and numbers
floating in space.
Yeah, and
unfortunately, that's
exactly the reason
why they have to
do that, to cater
to the mass
audience.
But yes, I'm
with you on that.
Technically, it
should have been a
lot more accurate,
and I think it
could be still
entertaining to the
general populace
without losing that.
For instance, you
know, taking out the
real red box tones,
I thought, was a
big mistake.
They were going to
put those in
originally, I guess
they got some
sort of pressure
not to.
You know,
attention to detail,
that way it's both
entertaining and
accurate.
Yeah, that's, I
guess, the one
criticism I would
have had, and
also any of the
other silly stuff
like skateboarding
and roller skating
and stuff, you
know.
Yeah, rollerblading.
Well, we all
rollerblade.
A little secret has
been let out, I
guess.
They had to make it
exciting to, like,
people, and, you
know, actually, you
know, like, you
know, kids and
non-technical people
and stuff, you
know, sort of, you
know, because I, you
know, I had it as a
video, so I had it
for a few days, and I
showed it to friends
and my kids and
stuff, and, you
know, they all
really liked it, so,
you know, I guess it
serves some good
purposes.
Okay, well, thanks
for calling.
Okay, take it easy.
Bernie, did you
ever see that film?
I did, as a matter
of fact, when I was
up at Northampton
County Prison, one of
the other inmates
had a color TV in
his cell, I didn't
have one, but had I
wanted to shell out
$300 to the prison
store, I could have
bought one.
You had to buy it
from that prison at
the time.
These, you can have,
this prison, you
can have a shipped
in, but they had
cable there in the
prison, and that
movie was piped in
one night, and I was
able to watch it in
the adjoining cell by
holding a mirror, a
small plastic mirror
that I bought at the
prison store outside
of the bars in my
cell, and I could
look at the
reflection of his
screen.
through the mirror,
so I saw the movie,
but everything was
backwards.
You saw hackers
through a mirror?
Yeah.
Were you able to
hear it?
I could have
posted it.
Actually, we
didn't hear you.
Were you able to
hear the film?
Okay.
The dialogue was
drowned out by
other prisoners
screaming.
Okay, so I take
it you didn't hear
it very well, then?
No, but I could
appreciate it anyway.
Uh-huh.
That's interesting.
I wonder what they
had there, because
that, has that even
been on pay-per-view?
I haven't seen it
on pay-per-view.
I think it just
came out on video.
You know what?
Now I remember what
it was.
It was on the
weekend, on Saturday
night, the guards
would put a, hook up
a VCR to the in-house
cable system and play
a tape to the whole
prison, which is
interesting, because
at the beginning of
the movie, there was
that, you know, the
typical FBI warning
saying it's federal
crime to, with the
FBI logo saying it's
federal crime to show
this in a group
setting kind of
situation for private
home view and
only, and I
thought, well, gee,
this is in violation
of federal law that
all we inmates are
watching this courtesy
of the prison, who's
killing us in a
non-private household
situation.
Now, Fiber, didn't
you have just that
exact problem when
you were in prison?
Oh, yeah, same
thing.
Now, didn't they
stop showing it or
something because of
that concern?
Uh, they stopped
for a time, and then
we had to sort of
show movies on the
sneak.
But what were you
supposed to do?
I mean, you know,
in prison, you
know?
Yeah.
How did they expect
people to work that
out?
Uh, they don't.
I mean, we kind of
started it up on our
own organization, and
then once the
administration found
out, they tried to
put a stump to it.
Now, I believe in
your case, people from
outside were able to
send videotapes in.
Yeah, actually, it was
really funny.
We had to get the
movie sent in through
the minister.
Through the minister?
Yeah, which I
couldn't really
understand.
Interesting.
Bernie, do you
know if people can
send films to you?
No, unfortunately.
They only can send
me books or
magazines.
I just found out a
new thing this past
week.
Some people were
very generous and
sent me numerous
books and magazines.
Unfortunately, they
didn't all get in
because the prison
apparently won't let
in a quantity of
more than five at a
time.
So one person sent
me a box of 18
magazines, and they're
all held at the
prison intake room,
and I don't have
access to them because
they weren't broken
down into sets of
five, and they won't
suppose I'm up in
the sets of five.
So I have to, at my
expense, send them
back to the person
who sent them to me
so they can send
them back to me in
increments of five
books or magazines
at a time.
Well, let me ask you
what might be a
stupid question.
How do you send
something back to
somebody when it's
never given to you
in the first place?
Well, I got a
slip handed to me
by one of the
guards saying,
this property was
seized at the
front door, and it's
not going to be
given to you.
If you want to
have it sent out to
the person who sent
it and want to pay
the postage for it,
which will be taken
off your books,
then you can do
that.
Otherwise, in 14
days, it'll be
destroyed or given
to a charity of the
prison's choosing.
I see.
I mean, what kind of
charities prisons
choose to donate to?
Good question.
Interesting.
Well, you can also
take heart in the
fact that there are
lots of letters
headed your way.
A couple of days
ago, we sent out
a lot of mail that
has been accumulating.
Actually, we've been
a bit remiss in not
sending it out on a
regular basis.
We're going to try to
do that on a
weekly basis now,
but you're getting
two big packages
filled with what
must be a couple
hundred pages of
mail.
Oh, man, that's
great.
The past week has
been phenomenal.
I've gotten a lot
of magazines and
books and letters
from people all
over who've read
about my case on
the Internet and
heard about it at
WBAI.
Yeah, I think
there's been a lot
more publicity going
out.
We had something on
a bunch of radio
stations around the
country.
I think it's the
Lazlo Technophile,
something like that.
I don't know if I
got the title exactly
right, but that was
a really good piece.
We also had something
in Long Island Newsday.
We've had things
showing up in
various places, and
of course, the
website has been
spreading the word
quite a bit.
You can write to
Bernie S. on the
Internet if you don't
want to send him
mail yourself for
whatever reason,
although if you do
send mail either to
the Internet or to
him in person and
you include a return
address, he will
write back to you.
So that's up to you
if you would like to
get a letter from
him.
You can mail to
Bernie S.
B-E-R-N-I-E-S at
2600.com.
That's 2600.com.
And just say
whatever you want
to say.
You'll get back an
update as to what
exactly has been
going on.
Actually, the update is
not quite updated yet.
It will be in the
next day or so.
And Bernie, why
don't you give out
your real address in
case people want to
send something to
you.
And again, tell them
what they cannot
send.
Oh, yeah, you
cannot send me any
weapons or metal
files or even cakes
or metal files or
anything, any food.
A lot of people make
that mistake.
Like that?
A lot of people make
that mistake, I would
imagine.
You wouldn't believe
how many cakes or
files came in.
And some of them
look like they're
very good cakes, too,
but I wasn't allowed
to have them.
Anyway, via snail mail,
I can have stuff sent
to me as far as
reading material only to
Bucks County Prison.
B as in boy, not
D as in Ducks County
Prison at 1730 South
Easton Road.
That's E-A-S-T-O-N
Road.
Number is D13.
Again, that's D as
David this time.
That's my cell number.
And that's in Doylestown.
D as David, O-Y-L-E-S-T-O-W-N
P-A-1-8-9-0-1.
And at the bottom,
they can put attention
at Cummings.
And the only thing
you can send me
are letters, cards,
books and magazines.
And if you're sending
me books or magazines,
please write on the
outside of the package
reading materials.
Otherwise, it'll just
be rejected out of hand
because they'll think
it's some, you know,
letter bomb or something.
You know, they've got
the Unabomber now, I guess.
But still, write reading
materials on the outside
and I'll be assured
of getting it then.
And please, less than
five books or magazines
at a time.
Okay, and I want to thank
everybody who has been
writing and just showing
support in whatever way
and spreading the word
around.
I know we've been focusing
on this story now for
quite some time.
It might seem like we're
just not leaving this
topic.
But, you know, it works
that way where something
continuously drags on.
You just can't forget
about the people who are
suffering as a result of
ill-conceived laws or
injustices of various sorts.
So I want to thank
people who have stuck
with us on this.
And hopefully, in the
next month and a half
or so, we will see this
thing come to an end
finally.
And Bernie will be back
in the real world.
But then again, you
never know what the
Secret Service will
pull next.
You also don't know
who's going to be next.
If there's going to be
more cases like this,
just never stops an
ongoing thing.
All right, let's take
a couple more phone
calls in the time we
have left.
Good evening.
You're on the air.
Okay.
Good evening.
You're on the air.
Speak up.
Okay, you've got to go
faster than that, folks.
Good evening.
You're on the air.
Hello.
Yes, go ahead.
How are you tonight?
I'm pretty good.
How are you?
Okay.
On my caller ID
just the other day,
I got a NPA of 002.
002?
Yeah.
I would give out the
rest of the number,
but I don't think I
should do that.
Well, no, I mean,
is it a number that
don't hit touchstones?
Not me.
That's not me.
Bernie, was that you?
Okay, I don't know
who that was.
Okay, why don't you
tell us what the number
is, unless...
Okay, no, I'll give it
to you.
Okay.
I call every variation
of it, and I only got
one residence.
Okay.
It was 002-921-1771.
I'm sorry, 1777.
Okay.
Now, I know 921 is
9X in Manhattan.
Well, I tried everything
and I got nothing.
Obviously, I couldn't
get a 002.
I don't know what
that could have been.
I do know that in the past,
I have gotten stuff from 9X,
and it comes from a weird area code,
one that didn't exist.
The number was like a regular
phone number, but the area code
was something.
This was before the area code
situation changed, so you didn't
have to dial a 1 in 516.
So we had some...
Actually, it was the exchange
that was weird.
That's right.
The exchange was 215, an impossible
exchange in an area code where you
don't have to dial 1.
So I asked that to a 9X person
who actually understood what it was
I was talking about, and they said,
yeah, that shows up.
It's a console ID from 9X.
So it's possible that 002 is an
extension of that, but we'll look
into it.
We'll see if anybody else has
gotten something like that.
It could also just be something
weird in a caller ID box.
That happens, too.
Bernie, are you still there?
I think he is.
There he is.
Boy, I thought I lost you.
No, you didn't lose us.
What happened that time was we had
somehow we wound up with two
people online, and one of them
was being a joker, so we had to
dump them both.
I heard their tones.
Yeah.
Those were the tones.
I thought it was going to be
cut off.
First, I heard touch tones, then
I heard it sounded like
pulling deposit tones.
Yeah.
I heard that, too.
It sounded like somebody put a
quarter in the phone, and maybe
they did.
Who knows?
Good evening.
You're on the air.
Yeah, hi.
How are you doing?
Okay.
Are you guys on the air with
Bernie?
Yes, and you have about 30
seconds.
Okay, really quick.
Can you guys look in the
crystal ball and tell me what's
going to happen to the
internet?
The internet.
What is going to happen to the
internet?
Oh, that's a good question.
Fiber, what do you think is
going to happen to the
internet?
Fire, brimstone, destruction,
chaos, anarchy.
No kidding, but what else is
going to happen?
Yeah, people are going to do
all kinds of crazy things, but...
I predict regulation and
censorship.
I predict regulation and
censorship, but I also predict
failure for each of those,
because the internet is
something that cannot be
controlled.
I said that in Time
Magazine last week.
Really?
Yeah, I said that, and I was
reading these quotes, they had
me debating Senator Exxon of
all people, and they made it
sound like we were saying
sort of the same thing, where
the internet is something that
can't really be controlled.
I hate to be put in that
position where I'm saying
something similar to
Senator Exxon, but believe me,
I feel pretty strongly about
this, and some of the things
that he's responsible for I
think are pretty shameful, but
that's a topic for another
show.
So, we're out of time here.
Bernie S., thanks very much
for calling us this week, and
we'll talk to you again next
week.
Thank you, and thanks to
everybody who sent me mail.
Okay, and we'll keep updating
people on your case.
Fiber, thanks for coming by.
We'll see you next week as well.
And this is Emmanuel Goldstein.
I'll be back again for another
edition of Off the Hook
exactly one week from now.
Until then, take care.
See you later.
See you later.
The telephone keeps ringing
So I ripped it off the wall
I cut myself while shaving
Now I can't make a call
It couldn't get much worse
But if I could, they would
Oh, did you bump, but the best
Expect the worst
I hope that fun is good
But didn't it go?
Thank you.
And you're tuned to listener sponsor WBAI.