[quote name='Shippou' timestamp='1345125421' post='4970170']
... though I never bother paying attention to political drama any more.

This is actually kind of a big part of the problem, right here. I don't know the truth regarding Assange one way or the other, but the thing is, from where I sit it seems as if we are letting certain people act with impunity and do whatever the hell they want, simply because we as a nation can't be arsed to pay attention, give issues the proper impartial coverage they require, or hold those certain people accountable for their actions. We, simply, don't give a shit, and giving a shit is the only way that the rules of due process and the preservation of civil rights and liberties will be fairly observed by those in power.

Please, people, start giving a shit.
[/quote]

Name something that can be done, that actually WORKS .

Voting? - Nope, both parties don't care about anything but power
Protest? - Waste of time
Blogging? - No one cares about blogs any more
Talking About It ? - Waste of air
Communicating To Politicians? - ha Ha Ha Ha Ha


So I reaffirm my stance of not caring about political drama any more.

Well I have noticed that this man and his wikileaks often leak US/western secrets but not Russian/eastern knowledge/secrects. How come? I mean why not treat all nations like this and leak all of it?

Have you noticed this from reading wikileaks.org, or by reading about wikileaks in American-owned media? Check out the countries index, there's a lot of countries with leaked info in there. Regarding 'the east', wikileaks has been credited by some with setting off the 2010/2011 Tunisian revolution, which turned into the "Arab Spring", spreading democracy across the middle-east...
Yes, the US is a popular target, mainly because Bradley Manning (allegedly) gave them the mother of all leaks in 2010, which they're still sifting through -- they said they could continue publishing for 20 years just from that one leak.

Name something that can be done, that actually WORKS .

Voting? - Nope, both parties don't care about anything but power
Protest? - Waste of time
Blogging? - No one cares about blogs any more
Talking About It ? - Waste of air
Communicating To Politicians? - ha Ha Ha Ha Ha


So I reaffirm my stance of not caring about political drama any more.

Hey guys, this is too hard. We should just give up.

We had a shooting at a Batman theater from a kid who was superior in school. Got a full ride + 20K each year in spending from a college. Anyone can look good on paper and in the spotlight. There is no question that Assange could have done something stupid, the guy just seems weird.

[quote name='Dwarf King' timestamp='1345126642' post='4970182']Well I have noticed that this man and his wikileaks often leak US/western secrets but not Russian/eastern knowledge/secrects. How come? I mean why not treat all nations like this and leak all of it?

Have you noticed this from reading wikileaks.org, or by reading about wikileaks in American-owned media? Check out the countries index, there's a lot of countries with leaked info in there. Regarding 'the east', wikileaks has been credited by some with setting off the 2010/2011 Tunisian revolution, which turned into the "Arab Spring", spreading democracy across the middle-east...
Yes, the US is a popular target, mainly because Bradley Manning (allegedly) gave them the mother of all leaks in 2010, which they're still sifting through -- they said they could continue publishing for 20 years just from that one leak.
[/quote]

Still don't get why they wanna do this. So a bunch of people decides to make most of the governments angry on them and expect to get away with it. I mean this is not common sense. Sure now we know that many govs are bad, but back then in the old viking nation their was a saying which still counts, "good persons do not a good king make".

We all knew that something would happen as soon as they leaked all these documents. The reactions wikileak met was expected by all. In China or Russia he would have been shot now. At least the man is still alive(ya I know he will end up in jail for a long time). And yes I have read some here and there as many documents was shown in original on many of our news websites. Still he knew this was coming and he did it so a far as I know he took his choice and must live with it.

Also I am not found of our western nations secrets getting leaked so we stand worse doing negotiations. I do also think about our children's future after all...

So should I say he is a hero or a traitor? I shall call him none of the names and instead deem him a naive man without the skills to analyze the results of his own actions.

Also I am not found of our western nations secrets getting leaked so we stand worse doing negotiations. I do also think about our children's future after all...

Isn't that like a husband being caught cheating on his wife, but then getting angry at the person who caught him, instead of apologising for his actions and changing his evil behaviour for good?
Assange is not American; he has no reason to care about your patriotism. If as a hypothetical example, China v USA negotiations are now slightly more fair for China, then logically that is a good thing, as more "children's futures" have been benefited.

So a bunch of people decides to make most of the governments angry on them and expect to get away with it. I mean this is not common sense.

Does the name Elsberg mean anything to you? He was the 70's version of Bradley Manning. Again, the New York Times published his leak (as journalists are constitutionally protected in doing), which began the end of the Vietnam War, and also led to the downfall of Nixon.
Democracy can't function without truth.

Look we are talking international relations here. No nation play by the rule. Just get over it. All that matters here is know how, resources, money and military power and then democracy. I dream about the last would be the most important but it ain't and we all know why.

How is this being reported in your country? Who is the bad guy, according to your TV?

Both my local papers have just reported it as a list of facts, with no slant.

Nation Paper did the same: http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/08/16/britain-says-julian-assanges-ecuador-asylum-wouldnt-change-a-thing-may-revoke-diplomatic-status/ (Canada)

So, an Australian journalist, subject to a smear campaign, has just been granted asylum to protect him from a conspiracy by the United States to persecute/imprison/kill him for his publications.

Is there any evidence that the US has the intention to extradite him from Sweden? It seems like it's something that's possible, but I've only heard people being alarmist saying that the US would do that without any confirmation that it's the US's intention. The only thing we know for certain is that he is avoiding being tried on charges of rape regardless of how guilty he might be.

That's why Bradley Manning is being tortured while awaiting trial, right - he's the one that allegedly stole the documents? This is also why Wikileaks asked for the US government's help in redacting the files before publishing them, but had to do it themselves after the US refused to help redact sensitive life-and-death information. The New York times also published Manning's stolen files -- are they being painted as a bad guy by your media? Also, the US government was forced to admit that they haven't yet found a case where these documents have resulted in anyone coming to harm...[/quote]
He hasn't been tortured. He's been put in solitary confinement for a very long time, but he's also caused one of the largest intelligence leaks in US history. I don't see how you could expect anything different. The espionage act is serious business, and if he didn't know what he was getting himself into he shouldn't have leaked it.

[quote name='FLeBlanc' timestamp='1345126563' post='4970180']
[quote name='Shippou' timestamp='1345125421' post='4970170']
... though I never bother paying attention to political drama any more.

This is actually kind of a big part of the problem, right here. I don't know the truth regarding Assange one way or the other, but the thing is, from where I sit it seems as if we are letting certain people act with impunity and do whatever the hell they want, simply because we as a nation can't be arsed to pay attention, give issues the proper impartial coverage they require, or hold those certain people accountable for their actions. We, simply, don't give a shit, and giving a shit is the only way that the rules of due process and the preservation of civil rights and liberties will be fairly observed by those in power.

Please, people, start giving a shit.
[/quote]

Name something that can be done, that actually WORKS .

Voting? - Nope, both parties don't care about anything but power
Protest? - Waste of time
Blogging? - No one cares about blogs any more
Talking About It ? - Waste of air
Communicating To Politicians? - ha Ha Ha Ha Ha


So I reaffirm my stance of not caring about political drama any more.
[/quote]

This is why we need to re-invent our system, we have the technology now for every person to vote on every issue, for mass information to be distributed near instantly, yet we still rely on a 300 year old system where we give away our capability to just a very small minority.