The lawyers were
fighting hard for one thing: to keep Pad and Gandalf out of prison.
Some of the hearing was tough going for the two hackers, but not just
because of any sense of foreboding caused by the judge's imminent
decision. The problem was that Gandalf made Pad laugh, and it didn't
look at all good to laugh in the middle of your sentencing hearing.
Sitting next to Gandalf for hours on end, while lawyers from both
sides butchered the technical aspects of computer hacking which the
8lgm hackers had spent years learning, did it. Pad had only to give
Gandalf a quick sidelong glance and he quickly found himself
swallowing and clearing his throat to keep from bursting into
laughter. Gandalf's irrepressible irreverence was written all over his
face.
The stern-faced Judge Harris could send them to jail, but he still
wouldn't understand. Like the gaggle of lawyers bickering at the front
of the courtroom, the judge was--and would always be--out of the loop.
None of them had any idea what was really going on inside the heads of
the two hackers. None of them could ever understand what hacking was
all about--the thrill of stalking a quarry or of using your wits to
outsmart so-called experts; the pleasure of finally penetrating a
much-desired machine and knowing that system is yours; the deep
anti-establishment streak which served as a well-centred ballast
against the most violent storms washing in from the outside world; and
the camaraderie of the international hacking community on Altos.
Pages:
452
453
454
455
456
457
458
459
460
461
462
463
464
465
466
467
468
469
470
471
472
473
474
475
476