What is your opinion on the Wikileaks guy

[ziggy]

Is he a patriot or a criminal?

[teej]

Is he a patriot or a criminal?

Neither. I'm sure he's technically a criminal, but I believe in freedom of speech. But I also know from a familial fatality that if too much information is known, it's not going end well for those serving our country, or any other country affected by these leaks. Quite often the government is secretive not because they have information that they want to hide from everyone, but rather because a little nugget here and a little tidbit there, and you've given the wrong people a lot of information.

[Chef]

he is a non-citizen who wants to see the US in a weaker position. the PFC who stole the materials and gave it to him is a treasonous criminal who should be publicly shot by military firing squad. assange is not a criminal anymore than you are a criminal for owning a stolen dvd player. however, if this was any year between 1950 and 1990 he would have had a bullet put in his head before he could even think about leaking those documents or he would have been forced to turn them back over when his entire extended family was kidnapped and held hostage by special forces. we have gotten soft since the end of the cold war and everyone knows it.

[teej]

he is a non-citizen who wants to see the US in a weaker position. the PFC who stole the materials and gave it to him is a treasonous criminal who should be publicly shot by military firing squad. assange is not a criminal anymore than you are a criminal for owning a stolen dvd player. however, if this was any year between 1950 and 1990 he would have had a bullet put in his head before he could even think about leaking those documents or he would have been forced to turn them back over when his entire extended family was kidnapped and held hostage by special forces. we have gotten soft since the end of the cold war and everyone knows it.

Don't know if I'd go that far. Muckrakers are essential to a society, he's just gone too far with it.

[Chef]

Don't know if I'd go that far. Muckrakers are essential to a society, he's just gone too far with it.

i am not saying whether or not releasing the documents was good or bad, i am saying our government would have never let a foreigner (or citizen) taunt us and ultimately leak sensitive and stolen secret materials.

[teej]

i am not saying whether or not releasing the documents was good or bad, i am saying our government would have never let a foreigner (or citizen) taunt us and ultimately leak sensitive and stolen secret materials.

Oh I know that for sure. I have a cousin who took care of those type of jobs way back when. I've read and heard about it all, but I don't know if it's so much being soft now as it is not wanting the political fallout that comes with the modern media and instant, hell-with-the-facts-lets-break-the-news cycle.

[BigMike]

Unless the information is strategically significant or pertains to current and active troop location, then it is good for the government to get intellectually punched in the nose every once in a while.
As far as i am concerned the fact that a private sitting at a desk in Iraq had access to the documents is a much larger level of concern then the fact that our ambassador described the chancellor of Germany as a wuss.

[ziggy]

I'm very interested to see what he has to say about the one of the large banks that he is supposed to be leaking info about soon.

[BigMike]

I'm very interested to see what he has to say about the one of the large banks that he is supposed to be leaking info about soon.

If it is BofA then it wont hurt them at all. Even if it is down right illegal activity, it is the SEC that is going to be put to the coals to find out how they could let such things happen.