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What a great opportunity for a lesson in fake news. Let's get to the meat of the claim in the article you link to (https://www.buzzfeed.com/jasonleopold/secret-

What a great opportunity for a lesson in fake news. Let's get to the meat of the claim in the article you link to (https://www.buzzfeed.com/jasonleopold/secret-government-report-chelsea-manning-leaks-caused-no?utm_term=.kqkOv6JJOp#.vjxzYeppzx https://www.buzzfeed.com/jasonleopold/secret-government-repo...): Regarding the hundreds of thousands of Iraq-related military documents and State Department cables provided by the Army private Chelsea Manning, the report assessed “with high confidence that disclosure of the Iraq data set will have no direct personal impact on current and former U.S. leadership in Iraq.” How strange! The article is trying to give the impression that Manning's leaks IN GENERAL harmed no one, but when they get to the heart of the matter, they only reference the situation in Iraq. Manning's leaks included information about our diplomacy around the world. Iraq-related material were only part of it. Further, it is widely believed that Manning's leaks contributed greatly to, if not sparked the flames of, the Arab "Spring", which has most certainly been a disaster for America (and the people in the region too).

unkown-unknowns 9y ago
> Arab "Spring", which has most certainly been a disaster for America (and the people in the region too) Wait, how so? Asking out of ignorance - I thought the Arab Spring was a good thing for the region.
- wildmusings 9y ago
  In Egypt, Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood was elected to power and tried to turn Egypt into an Islamist dictatorship. The military stepped back in and saved the day. So they're right back where they started, a military dictatorship that is at least not an Islamist dictatorship, PLUS years of senseless death, destruction, and economic calamity. Syria is a complete hell hole now. Since the Arab Spring started, they've suffered total societal collapse, occupation of large swaths of the country by ISIS and al-Qaeda, and a mass exodus of young men to Europe. Years later, they are still engulfed in a bloody civil war. Libya is also at civil war and is mostly ruled by roving gangs. Islamist violence is on the rise. Tunisia is the only place things have gone anywhere near well. It is also a very small country.
  - jessaustin 9y ago
    The military stepped back in and saved the day. OMG that's hilarious. The only problem USA media had with Morsi was that he wouldn't inspire as much "military aid". Also the economic calamity is entirely the creation of the previous military dictator who was so popular among the war pigs. If Mubarak hadn't taken farm land from small family farmers and given it to his cronies, Egypt would still be able to feed itself as it has for millennia. (Interesting fact: agriculture flourished in Egypt thousands of years before it did so in many other parts of the world!) The main reason Arab Spring found such fertile ground in Egypt was they were already starving under Mubarak. Still the episode was entertaining: "We really care about democracy in the Middle East! Except when we don't!" Your explanation of Syria is similarly without rational basis. ISIS was not created by the Arab Spring. It was directly created by catastrophically stupid military actions taken by USA next door in Iraq. Even after USA created them, ISIS wouldn't have menaced Syria to nearly the extent they did, if USA hadn't continually given them weapons. Also, news flash: now that the new administration has decided "Syria is boring, let's go play with DPRK!" that war is swiftly wrapping up. Assad won, USA oil shenanigans be damned. Much wailing and gnashing of teeth may be heard in the halls of power. Actually, if we're being honest, can we blame Libya's awful state on the Arab Spring either? Did the problems start when some people read a diplomatic cable, or was it rather when we jammed a bayonet up the ass of the dude who had ruled there in frequent isolated barbarity but overall relative peace? When Libyans are polled now, there is a marked nostalgia for old Muammar. In five years, does anyone really imagine life will be better in any of the nations we destroyed by killing their political class, than in Syria where we failed to do so even though we really wanted to?
    - echo_nevada1 9y ago
      > Your explanation of Syria is similarly without rational basis. ISIS was not created by the Arab Spring. It was directly created by catastrophically stupid military actions taken by USA next door in Iraq. Your rationale is as ignorant as the person you are replying to. The Arab Spring, which resulted in the rise of Syrian & Libyan revolutionaries, was absolutely a major factor in the rise of ISIS. To suggest that it was exclusively one or the other is ridiculous.

unkown-unknowns 9y ago

> Arab "Spring", which has most certainly been a disaster for America (and the people in the region too) Wait, how so? Asking out of ignorance - I thought the Arab Spring was a good thing for the region.

wildmusings 9y ago
In Egypt, Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood was elected to power and tried to turn Egypt into an Islamist dictatorship. The military stepped back in and saved the day. So they're right back where they started, a military dictatorship that is at least not an Islamist dictatorship, PLUS years of senseless death, destruction, and economic calamity. Syria is a complete hell hole now. Since the Arab Spring started, they've suffered total societal collapse, occupation of large swaths of the country by ISIS and al-Qaeda, and a mass exodus of young men to Europe. Years later, they are still engulfed in a bloody civil war. Libya is also at civil war and is mostly ruled by roving gangs. Islamist violence is on the rise. Tunisia is the only place things have gone anywhere near well. It is also a very small country.
- jessaustin 9y ago
  The military stepped back in and saved the day. OMG that's hilarious. The only problem USA media had with Morsi was that he wouldn't inspire as much "military aid". Also the economic calamity is entirely the creation of the previous military dictator who was so popular among the war pigs. If Mubarak hadn't taken farm land from small family farmers and given it to his cronies, Egypt would still be able to feed itself as it has for millennia. (Interesting fact: agriculture flourished in Egypt thousands of years before it did so in many other parts of the world!) The main reason Arab Spring found such fertile ground in Egypt was they were already starving under Mubarak. Still the episode was entertaining: "We really care about democracy in the Middle East! Except when we don't!" Your explanation of Syria is similarly without rational basis. ISIS was not created by the Arab Spring. It was directly created by catastrophically stupid military actions taken by USA next door in Iraq. Even after USA created them, ISIS wouldn't have menaced Syria to nearly the extent they did, if USA hadn't continually given them weapons. Also, news flash: now that the new administration has decided "Syria is boring, let's go play with DPRK!" that war is swiftly wrapping up. Assad won, USA oil shenanigans be damned. Much wailing and gnashing of teeth may be heard in the halls of power. Actually, if we're being honest, can we blame Libya's awful state on the Arab Spring either? Did the problems start when some people read a diplomatic cable, or was it rather when we jammed a bayonet up the ass of the dude who had ruled there in frequent isolated barbarity but overall relative peace? When Libyans are polled now, there is a marked nostalgia for old Muammar. In five years, does anyone really imagine life will be better in any of the nations we destroyed by killing their political class, than in Syria where we failed to do so even though we really wanted to?
  - echo_nevada1 9y ago
    > Your explanation of Syria is similarly without rational basis. ISIS was not created by the Arab Spring. It was directly created by catastrophically stupid military actions taken by USA next door in Iraq. Your rationale is as ignorant as the person you are replying to. The Arab Spring, which resulted in the rise of Syrian & Libyan revolutionaries, was absolutely a major factor in the rise of ISIS. To suggest that it was exclusively one or the other is ridiculous.