Julian Assange “slowly dying” and “often sedated” in Belmarsh prison • Hacker News Board

Re: Julian Assange “slowly dying” and “often sedated” in Belmarsh prison

#161

Post by raindeer3 » Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 4:39 PM UTC

jacobush wrote: post #97

Synaesthesia wrote: post #82

Wikileaks has a faultless record. They’ve never had to retract a publication. Assange, like him not not, was a reporter, who reported uncomfortable facts about the military and our ruling class. He is being punished, tortured really for this “crime”. He has been endlessly and baselessly slandered. All that alleged bad behaviour while he was imprisoned in the embassy ... funny how there’s been no footage of it, despit…

We need to be very exact in these matters. The problem with the rape charges is that very, very likely he would have been convicted under Swedish law, which is very strict on what counts as rape. (If proof could be produced.) What is a farce is how the case went on and on, and how the plaintiffs didn't even seem to want to hang on the to case, and how a crime which is routinely buried in cold cases by Swedish Police…

It never became a top priority for the Swedish state. But since he fled to the Ecuadorian embassy the investigation just dragged on. This was never a high priority case other than for the press. And as soon as he could be inteterogated the investigation was closed. He is and has been mistreated in may ways, but the accusations of sexual assault in Sweden was not part of some US lead conspiracy against him.

Re: Julian Assange “slowly dying” and “often sedated” in Belmarsh prison

#162

Post by actsof » Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 4:39 PM UTC

jellicle wrote: post #108

ChrisSD wrote: post #5

> By what authority, or on what pretext, Assange is being tranquilised, and kept isolated, remains unknown I'm going to go out on a limb and say "ill health".

Which health conditions are improved by solitary confinement?

Not that it improves the condition, but psychosis leading to violent outbursts could be used to justify it. Anti-psychotics are also usually sedative in nature, which would explain the rest.

Re: Julian Assange “slowly dying” and “often sedated” in Belmarsh prison

#163

Post by wazoox » Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 4:40 PM UTC

threeseed wrote: post #13

moksly wrote: post #10

Why is the WikiLeaks foundation responsible for the content posted on their platform, when Google and Facebook aren’t? I haven’t really been following this a whole lot, but as I understand it, the US wants him extradited because his platform was used to leak sensible information that put American soldiers in danger. But why is that a thing when it isn’t for other platforms? I mean, twitter, Facebook and YouTube have…

It is alleged that Assange coordinated with Chelsea Manning and the Russian government to obtain information for Wikileaks. This would make him an active conspirator in breaking the law. Completely different from Facebook, Google, Twitter etc where they merely provide a platform for others to upload content and aren't actively involved in sourcing illegal content.

Breaking which law? Assange isn't a US citizen, nor resident. Why and how should US law apply to him?

Re: Julian Assange “slowly dying” and “often sedated” in Belmarsh prison

#164

Post by nicehat » Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 4:41 PM UTC

chillwaves wrote: post #137

nicehat wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Literally torturing him to a slow death, after doing their utmost to smear his reputation, and a decade of separating him from his family. Then there's the mysterious disappearing of his friends, and presidential candidates laughing about droning him. It sure would be nice to see the tech community challenge the worst of the disinfo and rally behind truth.

You're not doing a very good job of whatever it is you are claiming to support (why not post some information?). Julian Assange is a Russian asset and is getting what he deserves via due process in a court of law.

The information is all out there. Books have been written about it, and you are welcome to read them.

By the way, I've posted 3 substantive links in this very comment chain, and if there's ever been a single shred of evidence to support the claim that Assange is an asset, I've never seen it. You know that claim by the Guardian was shown to be a flat lie, right?

Re: Julian Assange “slowly dying” and “often sedated” in Belmarsh prison

#165

Post by gamblor956 » Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 4:43 PM UTC

Synaesthesia wrote: post #82

Wikileaks has a faultless record. They’ve never had to retract a publication. Assange, like him not not, was a reporter, who reported uncomfortable facts about the military and our ruling class. He is being punished, tortured really for this “crime”. He has been endlessly and baselessly slandered. All that alleged bad behaviour while he was imprisoned in the embassy ... funny how there’s been no footage of it, despit…

Today I learned that publishing numerous documents entirely it partially forged by Russian Intelligence counts as a faultless record.

Re: Julian Assange “slowly dying” and “often sedated” in Belmarsh prison

#166

Post by fenomas » Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 4:44 PM UTC

Synaesthesia wrote: post #82

Wikileaks has a faultless record. They’ve never had to retract a publication. Assange, like him not not, was a reporter, who reported uncomfortable facts about the military and our ruling class. He is being punished, tortured really for this “crime”. He has been endlessly and baselessly slandered. All that alleged bad behaviour while he was imprisoned in the embassy ... funny how there’s been no footage of it, despit…

The most detailed, nuanced account of Assange I've seen is this one[0] by Andrew O'Hagan (an author hired to ghostwrite Assange's autobiography who spent a year or so in and out of his orbit). And it's hard to square that account with the image of Assange as a journalist who's being persecuted for the truths he's shared.

Though O'Hagan is sympathetic in many ways he doesn't sugarcoat anything, and I came away with the impression that Assange is the author of a great deal of his own woes. (Among other things, much of the account involves Assange lying pretty incessantly, even to his closest allies about petty dramas, so I now find it hard to take anything he's said at face value.)

[0] https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v36/n05/andrew-o-hagan/ghost...

----

Edit to add: there's a quoted exchange in the account, which now springs to mind every time I hear about Assange.

> There are few subjects on which Julian would be reluctant to take what you might call a paternalistic position, but over Snowden, whom he’s never met but has chatted with and feels largely responsible for, he expressed a kind of irritable admiration. "Just how good is he?" I asked.

> "He’s number nine," he said.

> "In the world? Among computer hackers? And where are you?"

> "I’m number three."

Re: Julian Assange “slowly dying” and “often sedated” in Belmarsh prison

#167

Post by prepend » Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 4:44 PM UTC

foldr wrote: post #139

prepend wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So if I buy something from a Saudi Arabian e-commerce site am I at risk for extradition from Ireland to Saudi Arabia for the capital offense of being gay? Clearly I was gay while doing stuff online on a Saudi Arabian server.

No, you couldn't be extradited from Ireland for being gay because it's not illegal to be gay in Ireland. It has to be a crime in both countries. But in general, questions of jurisdiction are complicated. They're settled by courts, not by what people say on the internet.

If it was illegal in both countries, I wouldn’t need to be extradited since I was gay in Ireland too.

Assange isn’t being accused of things that are criminal in the UK.

Re: Julian Assange “slowly dying” and “often sedated” in Belmarsh prison

#168

Post by tehjoker » Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 4:44 PM UTC

chillwaves wrote: post #137

nicehat wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Literally torturing him to a slow death, after doing their utmost to smear his reputation, and a decade of separating him from his family. Then there's the mysterious disappearing of his friends, and presidential candidates laughing about droning him. It sure would be nice to see the tech community challenge the worst of the disinfo and rally behind truth.

You're not doing a very good job of whatever it is you are claiming to support (why not post some information?). Julian Assange is a Russian asset and is getting what he deserves via due process in a court of law.

I wish these paranoid conspiracies about Russia would die. Even if he got info from Russia, so what? Nation states publishing derogatory information on each other is great for the people so we can know what the hell our government is actually doing.

Re: Julian Assange “slowly dying” and “often sedated” in Belmarsh prison

#169

Post by Y-Bopinator » Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 4:47 PM UTC

Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time

Re: Julian Assange “slowly dying” and “often sedated” in Belmarsh prison

#170

Post by sysbin » Sat, Dec 28, 2019, 4:50 PM UTC

jibcage wrote: post #120

sokoloff wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Genuine question: what is the most correct protocol on name and pronoun usage to describe past events, when the author wants to keep the focus on the fact of the accomplishment rather than the personal life of the actor? Is it: 1. Bruce Jenner won his gold medal in the Men’s Decathlon at the 1976 Olympics. 2. Bruce Jenner won her gold medal in the Men’s Decathlon at the 1976 Olympics. 3. Caitlyn Jenner won her gold m…

“Caitlyn Jenner, then known as Bruce, won her gold medal in the Men’s Decathlon at the 1976 Olympics.”

This kind of topic comes up in transgender communities and what you're proposing is offensive. People get really offended when the name assigned at birth (matching one's birth sex which doesn't align with one's identity) is kept attached to their life as a constant reminder.