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Yes. And why is the USA trying to take him into custody? While in the USA for a US citizen to work as a foreign agent is illegal, I fail to see why Assange, who

Yes. And why is the USA trying to take him into custody? While in the USA for a US citizen to work as a foreign agent is illegal, I fail to see why Assange, who is a citizen of Australia and mostly has resided in other countries, should be arrested by yet another country and shipped to the USA. Did Assange commit a crime in the USA? Wasn't it Manning who got the supposed "classified" info and gave it to Assange? How about a little goddamn proof? How about a valid legal case that follows the laws of the USA? This whole Assange thing is just a streaming shit-show of nonsense and a shameful attempt to drive one man to ruin and worse. Both Democrats and Republicans have other problems to worry about every day b/c they don't have their acts together. All this trouble comes b/c a cabal of jerks somewhere (probably the intelligence community) has a hard-on to fuck Assange over and is somehow tolerated. Just for comparison: would it be ethical for the USA to bushwhack and extradite a street vendor in Egypt who cries "Kill the USA!" and burns Uncle Sam in effigy? Hell No! This stuff happens all the time. The USA bureaucracy is like an information sieve. If you wanna fix it, find a better way to work. Give Assange his freedom. Drag into the sunlight those fools who are perpetuating this nonsense and terminate their employment. Brand their foreheads with a giant letter "A" so they're identifiable forever. Anything Assange has revealed is by now "water under the bridge". To use another metaphor, "the genie is out of the bottle" and you can't put it back. Grow up!

ben_w 5y ago
> How about a little goddamn proof? How about a valid legal case that follows the laws of the USA? In theory, that’d be the job of the court case he’s fighting an extradition to not face. And, to be clear where I stand, in the (unlikely) event that anyone’s secret services care what I think, they’d have to be a lot more open and honest about their mistakes for me to trust them when they say “we need X secret, trust us” — almost everything that people like me get to hear about them are their mistakes, and a whole lot of hubris to go with those mistakes; while I like to assume they can’t all be that bad, the fact is I can only form opinions by what I learn, and whatever good any of them might do is kept secret (or so vague it might as well be) and is unlearnable, while the bad stuff is writ large. (None of this is relevant to the judicial systems in any country or Assange).
ohashi 5y ago
Water under the bridge or not, they don't want people doing it again or supporting Russia. It could be as much as a message to the next potential Assange - don't even try. If you believe he's an enemy of your interests and working with your enemy to hurt you, I have a hard time seeing a calculation they would make that says leave him alone since what's done is done. They are going to make his life miserable forever and hope it's a deterrent. That's the realpolitik of the situation - morals ignored.
jollybean 5y ago
"And why is the USA trying to take him into custody? " Because Assange was ostensibly helping someone steal classified information. These allegations are well known. "How about a little goddamn proof? " They literally have text messages of him encouraging and ostensibly helping someone to steal information. This is also well known. "How about a valid legal case that follows the laws of the USA?" That's what's happening: they are extraditing him so that the evidence can be put on the table and we can see what's what. This is well known. "Give Assange his freedom. " He has his freedom. He's possibly comitted a crime, which is why he's going to court. I think your comment implies an general ignorance of the situation.
- giardini 5y ago
  He's not a US citizen, he was outside the USA. So what? If we tried to arrest every person outside the USA who is trying to do something to/in the USA we'd have to put out arrest warrants for millions of people. We'd be, and are, the laughingstock of the diplomatic world. Aside: we apparently assassinate hundreds of individuals outside the USA every year (something that Obama complained about IIRC ) with God-knows-what justification. We're well on our way down the Road to Ruin. I'm hardly a bleeding-heart, but for the USA intelligence agencies to dog Assange to death is immoral, unethical and illegal even under our legal system. Pursuing Assange is the worst of all causes: a fishing expedition, a routine overextension of international and national law, legal malpractice, and a giant fool's errand for every man involved in this. Only a psychopath would put the pursuit of Assange on their resume. Of course we likely have plenty of those working for us. Apparently they float to the top, like shit. jollybean says>"I think your comment implies an general ignorance of the situation." Nope. But your reasoning above amply demonstrates a bit of how the powers-that-be twist language, logic and reason to justify contemptible behavior and justify crushing an individual. You should write an "Anti-Declaration of Independence" for spies that outlines their grievances against free agents and how they should be able to kill/maim/wound/harm anyone, anywhere just b/c they are irritated with those agents' behavior. An honest leader would publicly fire with malice every asshole who participated in or encouraged this shitfest and make sure the government never employed them again. Of course, that would be a bit (but only a bit) similar to doing to them what is being done to Assange! Perhaps that would be justice. I'll have to think about it.

ben_w 5y ago

> How about a little goddamn proof? How about a valid legal case that follows the laws of the USA? In theory, that’d be the job of the court case he’s fighting an extradition to not face. And, to be clear where I stand, in the (unlikely) event that anyone’s secret services care what I think, they’d have to be a lot more open and honest about their mistakes for me to trust them when they say “we need X secret, trust us” — almost everything that people like me get to hear about them are their mistakes, and a whole lot of hubris to go with those mistakes; while I like to assume they can’t all be that bad, the fact is I can only form opinions by what I learn, and whatever good any of them might do is kept secret (or so vague it might as well be) and is unlearnable, while the bad stuff is writ large. (None of this is relevant to the judicial systems in any country or Assange).

ohashi 5y ago

Water under the bridge or not, they don't want people doing it again or supporting Russia. It could be as much as a message to the next potential Assange - don't even try. If you believe he's an enemy of your interests and working with your enemy to hurt you, I have a hard time seeing a calculation they would make that says leave him alone since what's done is done. They are going to make his life miserable forever and hope it's a deterrent. That's the realpolitik of the situation - morals ignored.

jollybean 5y ago

"And why is the USA trying to take him into custody? " Because Assange was ostensibly helping someone steal classified information. These allegations are well known. "How about a little goddamn proof? " They literally have text messages of him encouraging and ostensibly helping someone to steal information. This is also well known. "How about a valid legal case that follows the laws of the USA?" That's what's happening: they are extraditing him so that the evidence can be put on the table and we can see what's what. This is well known. "Give Assange his freedom. " He has his freedom. He's possibly comitted a crime, which is why he's going to court. I think your comment implies an general ignorance of the situation.

giardini 5y ago
He's not a US citizen, he was outside the USA. So what? If we tried to arrest every person outside the USA who is trying to do something to/in the USA we'd have to put out arrest warrants for millions of people. We'd be, and are, the laughingstock of the diplomatic world. Aside: we apparently assassinate hundreds of individuals outside the USA every year (something that Obama complained about IIRC ) with God-knows-what justification. We're well on our way down the Road to Ruin. I'm hardly a bleeding-heart, but for the USA intelligence agencies to dog Assange to death is immoral, unethical and illegal even under our legal system. Pursuing Assange is the worst of all causes: a fishing expedition, a routine overextension of international and national law, legal malpractice, and a giant fool's errand for every man involved in this. Only a psychopath would put the pursuit of Assange on their resume. Of course we likely have plenty of those working for us. Apparently they float to the top, like shit. jollybean says>"I think your comment implies an general ignorance of the situation." Nope. But your reasoning above amply demonstrates a bit of how the powers-that-be twist language, logic and reason to justify contemptible behavior and justify crushing an individual. You should write an "Anti-Declaration of Independence" for spies that outlines their grievances against free agents and how they should be able to kill/maim/wound/harm anyone, anywhere just b/c they are irritated with those agents' behavior. An honest leader would publicly fire with malice every asshole who participated in or encouraged this shitfest and make sure the government never employed them again. Of course, that would be a bit (but only a bit) similar to doing to them what is being done to Assange! Perhaps that would be justice. I'll have to think about it.