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Here's a PDF of the original: http://cryptome.org/0002/ja-conspiracies.pdf http://cryptome.org/0002/ja-conspiracies.pdf Assange quotes Teddy Roosevelt, in what

by panarky 16y ago

Here's a PDF of the original: http://cryptome.org/0002/ja-conspiracies.pdf http://cryptome.org/0002/ja-conspiracies.pdf Assange quotes Teddy Roosevelt, in what appears to be the main justification for his actions: "Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people. To destroy this invisible government, to befoul this unholy alliance between corrupt business and corrupt politics is the ﬁrst task of statesmanship."

nkurz 16y ago
To me the most interesting part of the article was the means of befouling: the idea that the release of information does not need to have a direct effect, rather that the process of leaking will cause the targeted organization to change its own behaviour from within. I had not previously considered these secondary effects. If an organization (government, corporate, scientific) thinks that its actions will be scrutinized and that the walls have ears, and if internally it realizes that its methods are questionable and embarrassing, it will become paralyzed with fear of discovery and less able to act effectively. Like an allergic reaction, the leaks themselves are not the point --- it's the body's autoimmune response to the leaks that can be life threatening.
- panarky 16y ago
  Right. It's not about the cables themselves, it's about driving the government apparatus to degrade its own effectiveness by tightening security, increasing compartmentalization and reducing collaboration. The genius of this approach is its asymmetry. In response to Bin Laden's 'investment' of $100,000 and 19 lives, the US sacrificed thousands of soldiers, spent trillions of dollars and destroyed a reputation and moral authority that took generations to build. The US did most of the damage itself. Similarly, in response to Wikileaks' disclosures that mostly confirm what's already well known, the US is already overreacting. Looks the US is well on its way to multiplying Wikileaks' investment untold thousands of times.

by panarky 16y ago

nkurz 16y ago

To me the most interesting part of the article was the means of befouling: the idea that the release of information does not need to have a direct effect, rather that the process of leaking will cause the targeted organization to change its own behaviour from within. I had not previously considered these secondary effects. If an organization (government, corporate, scientific) thinks that its actions will be scrutinized and that the walls have ears, and if internally it realizes that its methods are questionable and embarrassing, it will become paralyzed with fear of discovery and less able to act effectively. Like an allergic reaction, the leaks themselves are not the point --- it's the body's autoimmune response to the leaks that can be life threatening.

panarky 16y ago
Right. It's not about the cables themselves, it's about driving the government apparatus to degrade its own effectiveness by tightening security, increasing compartmentalization and reducing collaboration. The genius of this approach is its asymmetry. In response to Bin Laden's 'investment' of $100,000 and 19 lives, the US sacrificed thousands of soldiers, spent trillions of dollars and destroyed a reputation and moral authority that took generations to build. The US did most of the damage itself. Similarly, in response to Wikileaks' disclosures that mostly confirm what's already well known, the US is already overreacting. Looks the US is well on its way to multiplying Wikileaks' investment untold thousands of times.