[geek][politics] A how-to guide for dissident bloggers

While many here in the US feel that we're moving towards an oppressive regime (if we haven't crossed that Rubicon already), let's face it: Myanmar (Burma) or North Korea we ain't. Iran? Not even close. Belarus? No way. Still, this comes as good news:

A Paris-based media watchdog has released a free guide with tips for bloggers and dissidents to sneak past Internet censors in countries from China to Iran. Reporters Without Borders' Handbook for Bloggers and Cyber-Dissidents is partly financed by the French Foreign Ministry and includes technical advice on how to remain anonymous online. It was launched at the Apple Expo computer show in Paris on Thursday and can be downloaded in Chinese, Arabic, Persian, English and French.

You can download the guide here. The Electronic Frontier Foundation publishes a similar guide here, though their aim is geared more towards keeping your blogging butt from being fired rather than, oh, arrested and tortured. These are excellent resources for those concerned about their online privacy - and good information to spread through the blogosphere wether you fear for your safety or not, since this technology only works if people know about it. While I personally think we have much to be leery about, we do still enjoy an enormous freedom of expression here in the US. Disseminating information like this makes it easier for others to express themselves in a manner that all-to-often we take for granted.