[Talk Host]

I've been reading (like many of you) about this guy releasing all of this national security stuff. It's frightening. In my limited understanding of the situation is seems like it goes way beyond freedom of press.

Am I missing something here, or should governments (ours included) take this guy out? This sounds like it is a very real threat to the lives of people all over the world. It also sounds like he could single handily destroy any progress that has been made toward a more stable world.

I don't understand why he can get away with it without being silenced. Or, at very least, why can't our computer whizzes don't disrupt his flow of internet information.

Also, although nearly impossible, we need to find the leaks and charge those responsible with some crime. (I don't know what crime that is specifically) Is this some kind of espionage?

JLK

[Hawkwind]

The one major problem with going after the guy is he is not a US citizen and I bet is not making travel plans to the US any time soon. He currently is wanted in 4 or 5 countries for crimes. One of the stations did a little bio of the guy and it stated he changes his location very frequently and also is a past computer hacker and knows how to change his IP address at will. I am sure Kevin Mitnick can track him down.

[brostholder]

Originally Posted by Talk Host

I've been reading (like many of you) about this guy releasing all of this national security stuff. It's frightening. In my limited understanding of the situation is seems like it goes way beyond freedom of press.

Am I missing something here, or should governments (ours included) take this guy out? This sounds like it is a very real threat to the lives of people all over the world. It also sounds like he could single handily destroy any progress that has been made toward a more stable world.

I don't understand why he can get away with it without being silenced. Or, at very least, why can't our computer whizzes don't disrupt his flow of internet information.

Also, although nearly impossible, we need to find the leaks and charge those responsible with some crime. (I don't know what crime that is specifically) Is this some kind of espionage?

JLK

I mostly agree. I have a number of concerns. 1. How in the world are we so incompetent that we let tens of thousands of classified documents fall into the wrong hands. 2. When I was in the military, being in possession of classified material (even if you had the clearance) without a right to know was a crime. Why hasn't he been arrested and extradited? (I cannot support "taking him out. Although, if his disclosures has resulted in someone's death, then he should be held accountable for that)." 3. As a broader discussion, the disclosure of the Pentagon Papers by the NY Times during the Viet Nam War was supported by many. Is this different?

[nitehawk]

Lets shoot the messenger

It is interesting the kinds of materials that the sources are giving wikileaks to put up on their website.

Is not some of the blame in all the news media who seem to make so much of the information being divulged though?

[Talk Host]

Originally Posted by nitehawk

Lets shoot the messenger

If the messenger is guilty of terrorism, yes. I think this is far different from a news reporter reporting news. This is a guy deliberately upending world order with stolen goods.

If somebody broke into your business, stole your business plan, then gave the information top this guy and he distributed it to your competition, would he be simply "the messenger?"

If this had happened during World War II, this guy would have been dining with Jimmy Hoffa a long time ago.

[nitehawk]

Originally Posted by Talk Host

If the messenger is guilty of terrorism, yes. I think this is far different from a news reporter reporting news. This is a guy deliberately upending world order with stolen goods.

If somebody broke into your business, stole your business plan, then gave the information top this guy and he distributed it to your competition, would he be simply "the messenger?"

If this had happened during World War II, this guy would have been dining with Jimmy Hoffa a long time ago.

My understanding was this guy had clearance to enter the site where the information was obtained - "along with 600,000 other people - ( this number may be wrong but it was a lot of people)so he did not brake into a business. What he did was not right. Some of the blame belongs to who??? I give up!! If you had a business with a new invention that you wanted to keep secret would you put it on a system which 600,000 people have access to. how bright is that??
This is not WWII and I hope nobody would have killed him without a trial - I thought that is what we were fighting for -and Jimmy Hoffa was my union president - i thought he was a good man- got us a lot of benefits, i would have be proud to have dinner with him when he was alive. I think we are all entitled to an opinion and this is my opinion, sorry, most people will not agree with me!!

[collie1228]

David Brooks has an excellent column in today's New York Times. In it he describes the idiot who founded WikiLeaks like this, "Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, had moved 37 times by the time he reached his 14th birthday. His mother didn’t enroll him in the local schools because, as Raffi Khatchadourian wrote in a New Yorker profile, she feared “that formal education would inculcate an unhealthy respect for authority.” Maybe Mom should go to prison along with this guy. Brooks makes the great point that the world order depends upon conversations between nations, and if those conversations become difficult or constrained, who knows what might happen. IMHO, Asange is an anarchist at best, or a terrorist at worst, choose for yourself. I have a feeling that he will simply disappear from the face of the earth in the next few weeks, and from everything I've read, not too many will miss him.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by nitehawk

My understanding was this guy had clearance to enter the site where the information was obtained - "along with 600,000 other people - ( this number may be wrong but it was a lot of people)so he did not brake into a business. What he did was not right. Some of the blame belongs to who??? I give up!! If you had a business with a new invention that you wanted to keep secret would you put it on a system which 600,000 people have access to. how bright is that??
This is not WWII and I hope nobody would have killed him without a trial - I thought that is what we were fighting for -and Jimmy Hoffa was my union president - i thought he was a good man- got us a lot of benefits, i would have be proud to have dinner with him when he was alive. I think we are all entitled to an opinion and this is my opinion, sorry, most people will not agree with me!!

I can't quite follow your discussion, so I am not sure whether I agree or disagree but I will fight to the death for your right to say it.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by collie1228

David Brooks has an excellent column in today's New York Times. In it he describes the idiot who founded WikiLeaks like this, "Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, had moved 37 times by the time he reached his 14th birthday. His mother didn’t enroll him in the local schools because, as Raffi Khatchadourian wrote in a New Yorker profile, she feared “that formal education would inculcate an unhealthy respect for authority.” Maybe Mom should go to prison along with this guy. Brooks makes the great point that the world order depends upon conversations between nations, and if those conversations become difficult or constrained, who knows what might happen. IMHO, Asange is an anarchist at best, or a terrorist at worst, choose for yourself. I have a feeling that he will simply disappear from the face of the earth in the next few weeks, and from everything I've read, not too many will miss him.

Disappear? 007? What do you make of all this?? The plot thickens.........

[redwitch]

I honestly think the PFC who stole the information and gave it to WikiLeaks should be tried for treason, regardless of his motive. He was working for this government. He knew these documents were top secret. He deliberately snuck them out of a secure facility and then handed them to an entity known for publishing secret documents. Sounds like treason to me.

Sadly, I'm with those who say or imply that Assange will never be tried for posting the information. The man is like Bin Laden -- hides in too many places and too many consider him a hero.

I really don't care that opinions of other leaders was published. Hopefully, it was taken with a large grain of salt -- I'm sure if we could see documents from other nations (even allies), we'd see some pretty derogatory comments about our leaders (past and present). That it might interfere with diplomacy is too bad. If our government didn't want it repeated, they shouldn't have put it into words. Don't know about you, but I was taught to keep my private thoughts private and if I chose to say something about someone else, it was expected that they would get back to that person somehow.

However, to publish the names of people living in foreign nations working for the U.S. is inexcusable. Assange knew that he was jeopardizing their lives. He didn't care. To me, Assange is a murderer. Nothing more, nothing less.

[Jim007]

Originally Posted by Talk Host

I've been reading (like many of you) about this guy releasing all of this national security stuff. It's frightening. In my limited understanding of the situation is seems like it goes way beyond freedom of press.

Am I missing something here, or should governments (ours included) take this guy out? This sounds like it is a very real threat to the lives of people all over the world. It also sounds like he could single handily destroy any progress that has been made toward a more stable world.

I don't understand why he can get away with it without being silenced. Or, at very least, why can't our computer whizzes don't disrupt his flow of internet information.

Also, although nearly impossible, we need to find the leaks and charge those responsible with some crime. (I don't know what crime that is specifically) Is this some kind of espionage?

JLK

I agree one hundred percent. I would think, if it is an American citizen doing this, the crime would be high treason punishable by death. If it is a foreign entity, then it would be an act of espionage also punishable by death. We should pursue the individuals where ever they did this and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law. It is not freedom of the press to print classified documents. We could shut this guy down in a minute, but can you imagine what all the talking heads would say on the television.

[pauld315]

Originally Posted by redwitch

I honestly think the PFC who stole the information and gave it to WikiLeaks should be tried for treason, regardless of his motive. He was working for this government. He knew these documents were top secret. He deliberately snuck them out of a secure facility and then handed them to an entity known for publishing secret documents. Sounds like treason to me.

Well put and I agree totally. They know who the PFC is who took the information and gave it to wikileaks and there still has been no charges levied against him. I don't understand that at all.

[bkcunningham1]

Pfc. Bradley Manning, 22, the openly gay man who has duel citizenship with the US and Great Britain, was charged on July 5 "with four specifications under Article 92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for violating Army Regulation 25-2 (Information Assurance Policy), and eight specifications under Article 134 for violating federal statutes related to the receipt of classified information (18 U.S.C. 793) and wrongful access of a government computer (18 U.S.C. 1030)."

http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/20...radley-manning

[Pturner]

Originally Posted by bkcunningham1

Pfc. Bradley Manning, 22, the openly gay man who has duel citizenship with the US and Great Britain, was charged on July 5 "with four specifications under Article 92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for violating Army Regulation 25-2 (Information Assurance Policy), and eight specifications under Article 134 for violating federal statutes related to the receipt of classified information (18 U.S.C. 793) and wrongful access of a government computer (18 U.S.C. 1030)."

http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/20...radley-manning

As it should be.