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The US Is Preparing to Prosecute Julian Assange

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Re: The US Is Preparing to Prosecute Julian Assange

#291

Post by kevin_thibedeau »

thanosnose wrote: post #277
wallace_f wrote: post #237

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Like the Iraq Warlogs, or DWS scandal. Even leaks like the Stratfor files are certainly in the best interests of the "little guy," if anyone actually gives a shit about them. But if "all a man is, is what others say of him," then by watching the news, Assange is just a Russian agent.

> But if "all a man is, is what others say of him," then by watching the news, Assange is just a Russian agent. One of the most interesting aspect of the assange story is how the news industry celebrated assange in the early part of the 2010s and then started to demonize him in the past few years. It was all so sudden as if someone flipped a switch and everyone got on the same message. It's also interesting how sexua…

W trained the press not to ask hard questions and keep to the provided script.

Re: The US Is Preparing to Prosecute Julian Assange

#292

Post by coretx »

eeks wrote: post #32
Apocryphon wrote: post #4

So much for WikiLeaks thinking there was a lesser evil back in 2016

Wikileaks believed at the time that Clinton was ready to send a drone to get rid of Assange. Between due process and a drone attack, I take due process any day.

Close but not quite. The exact ( back then ) secretary of state's expression was "Can't we just drone that guy". The context of this quote being dialog with her staff who had a hard time convincing her that it's a bad idea.

Re: The US Is Preparing to Prosecute Julian Assange

#293

Post by AnaniasAnanas »

midniteslayr wrote: post #5
gbumakefan wrote: post #3

Wow. Freedom of the press is dead.

I don't think Freedom of the Press is dead. WikiLeaks isn't a news organization, especially when they released campaign emails during the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election. They have been to be a known tool for the Russian government, even going as far as creating a show for Julian Assange on the state-backed RT TV Network.

True, they are not a news organisation in the common sense, they are a leaks organisation which comes pretty close however.

> especially when they released campaign emails during the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election

As a leaks organisation this is what their job is about: leaking information, emails this time.

Was Wikileaks biased on what they released? Probably, but to my knowledge they did not release anything false - this would be similar to prosecuting say the guardian people for publishing the Snowden leaks, after all some would consider them "left wing" and "biased". I believe that especially America that was founded on the principle of freedom should take the principle of free speech more seriously.

Re: The US Is Preparing to Prosecute Julian Assange

#294

Post by onetimemanytime »

CryptoPunk wrote: post #231

What someone's motivation is (in relation to the still unsubstantiated allegation that Assange is a "Russian asset" trying advance Russian foreign policy objectives) should be completely irrelevant to the legality of an action. Is publishing leaked documents protected under the First Amendment? Is publishing "propaganda" protected under the First Amendment? I would say the answer to both of these questions is yes.

All these questions his attorneys can try to answer during the trial. That he was /is a Russian asset, I think we pretty much know. Maybe he needed a bear hug in light of everyone behind against him...or maybe Russia had dirt on the country he wanted to hurt?

Re: The US Is Preparing to Prosecute Julian Assange

#295

Post by nl »

cronix wrote: post #286
nl wrote: post #273

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He's always been free to go, just that he'd likely to be arrested. Unclear what article you are referring to in the 'staying for attention' reference.

Yes, but the UN effectively say he's being detained, which I tend to agree with. It's like me standing there with a gun to your head saying if you take one more step, I'll shoot. Technically, you're "free to leave at any time," but that's not really the effective reality. > February 2016 - A UN panel rules that Mr Assange has been "arbitrarily detained" by UK and Swedish authorities since 2010 https://www.bbc.com/new…

Yeah, fair. But are there any claims otherwise?

The OP's claim was that people are saying he is free to leave. I'm saying that is technically true, but I agree it isn't in reality.

But I dont't think any sensible commentator has ever made the claim the OP is referring to.

Re: The US Is Preparing to Prosecute Julian Assange

#296

Post by kevin_thibedeau »

paulie_a wrote: post #213
resters wrote: post #204

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> essentially a Russian asset This is a bit of a stretch in my opinion. Obviously a platform like Wikileaks can be "weaponized" by any party against another party. I think it's a question of what is the most relevant aspect of the leak overall, not who leaked it or why. For instance, suppose someone had leaked detailed information about the misconduct of Jerry Sandusky several years before it became widely known. Wou…

I think he is too dumb to realize he was used as a Russian asset. The attention whoring he is known for blinded him. While dumb, I don't think he has specifically kept secrets about Trump. His actions show a definite agenda. Act two, he just doesn't realize that it is someone else's agenda.

The attention whoring is insurance against being disappeared.

Re: The US Is Preparing to Prosecute Julian Assange

#297

Post by AnaniasAnanas »

hackinthebochs wrote: post #244
nailer wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The ones where it was revealed the Clinton campaign was running the DNC and Sanders never stood a chance. Whether your support that or not I don't think anyone disputes that this was revealed by Wikileaks

Plenty of people dispute this narrative, myself included. The DNC never took any action against the Sanders campaign, despite some disgruntled emails by some DNC staffers venting about Sanders.

I don't really know about that, there are many accounts such as https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vf5ZkGKk9SM that claim otherwise, though I do not know how reliable these are.

Re: The US Is Preparing to Prosecute Julian Assange

#298

Post by rdtsc »

thanosnose wrote: post #277
wallace_f wrote: post #237

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Like the Iraq Warlogs, or DWS scandal. Even leaks like the Stratfor files are certainly in the best interests of the "little guy," if anyone actually gives a shit about them. But if "all a man is, is what others say of him," then by watching the news, Assange is just a Russian agent.

> But if "all a man is, is what others say of him," then by watching the news, Assange is just a Russian agent. One of the most interesting aspect of the assange story is how the news industry celebrated assange in the early part of the 2010s and then started to demonize him in the past few years. It was all so sudden as if someone flipped a switch and everyone got on the same message. It's also interesting how sexua…

I think his case will be closely studied for years.

And it is how propaganda works. There is no coordination between the 5 or 6 or however many media outlets but it seems as if there is turn almost based on how quickly he went from a martir to Russian puppet in just a year or less.

Same thing kind of happened to Greenwald though to a lesser degree.

Re: The US Is Preparing to Prosecute Julian Assange

#299

Post by kevin_thibedeau »

jMyles wrote: post #249
kuwze wrote: post #190

If he had kept his promise after Obama pardoned Chelsea Manning I would care.

What a silly point on which to turn your concerns about government misconduct, especially when it involves the 1st amendment. > Obama pardoned Chelsea Manning First of all, that never happened. You are drastically exaggerating the relief offered by the government. The government tortured this person for years and then, even after offering this (in the great scheme of things, small) gesture of commuting her sentence,…

> ostensibly for administrative reasons

Manning took an oath to keep secrets and violated that oath fully understanding that it can lead to incarceration.

Re: The US Is Preparing to Prosecute Julian Assange

#300

Post by kjeetgill »

cwkoss wrote: post #248
vel0city wrote: post #217

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do we know that Wikileaks has always released full documents and data sets, or do we just take their website at face value that he's truly never been selective on what to publish?

Anyone who wishes to discredit Wikileaks has a strong incentive to release documents which could cast doubt on the authenticity of a Wikileaks release, and in turn the organization as a whole. Many people wish to discredit Wikileaks. So far no one has provided evidence that Wikileaks has ever doctored, edited or manufactured anything in their releases. I think that indicates something, but it's certainly not conclusi…

Vel0 only questioned whether WL was selective, not if they were doctoring documents. You've missed the point.

And they are, by their own admission.

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