Julian Assange protest comes to Canberra

“The attack of WikiLeaks also ought to be a wake-up call for anyone who has rosy fantasies about whose side cloud computing providers are on. These are firms like Google, Flickr, Facebook, Myspace and Amazon which host your blog or store your data on their servers somewhere on the internet, or which enable you to rent “virtual” computers – again located somewhere on the net. The terms and conditions under which they provide both “free” and paid-for services will always give them grounds for dropping your content if they deem it in their interests to do so. The moral is that you should not put your faith in cloud computing – one day it will rain on your parade.”

So the footage of American soldiers gunning down unarmed civilians, including women and children, from a helicopter and laughing about it should not have been released?

It’s a sure sign of how low the US has slipped in the eyes of the world that Assagne is getting the amount of support which he is.

The leaks are also an indication of how much the US is prepared to meddle in other nations government for its own ends.

I see both good and bad in the leaks

Arbib is as much a leaker as Assagne, he should be tried..

I-filed said :

I’m inclined to wait for the outcome of any Swedish rape trial before I come out in support of Assange.

I think there’s too much potential for trendoid rentacrowd business with this protest.

Amazing, 28 comments before someone even mentioned what the trial is about. This trial that Julian Assange is involved with at the moment has nothing to do with leaking US secret documents, and everything to do with 2 rape allegations against him by 2 separate women, one of who used to be his spokeswoman and who he lived with while in Europe. This isnt just some random stranger told to make up a story by the CIA.

If you want to defend his actions of leaking secret documents, thats all well and good, but dont be blind-sided that this court case (or protest) has to do with that. The protest will no doubt focus entirely on the wikileaks side of his life, and hardly at all on the rape allegations theyre claiming to be defending him from.

How did a private get access to diplomatic cables?
SIPRNet is a US Govt system of Secret (NOFORN) or higher level access that uses a Permit All Once Access Granted, Only Deny If Requested user access architecture in response to Sept 11’s “We had it on file but nobody knew about it” problems.
Manning abused that inherent flaw.

It has a user base of three million people, and evidently confidential diplomatic cables are also filed in it.Much to the frustration of people like Kevin07 and Arbib, since it meant they weren’t actually being treated as confidentially as they seemed to expect.

Julian, I just want to know if Alians are real!

fozzy said :

2. The best summary I’ve seen of the whole discussion is that WikiLeaks is to Governments/Diplomacy/Statecraft what Napster began 10 years ago for the music and movie industries.

I thought a better comparison was that WikiLeaks is to Governments what Facebook is to the general public – neither respect the right to privacy.

Thanks for that, Skidbladnir. That’s just… wow. 3 million people with access to that much content…

(Also, I’m suddenly reminded of and amused by the thought of previous riotact articles about our local political party offices having vast databases of information on us)

Some bureaucrats and corporations just don,t get the whole Interwebs tubes thing,the more attention wikileaks get the worse it will get for them.
System admins unite.

Jungle Jim says – “Why does there need to be a derogatory ‘yankees’ statement at the bottom of “message”. Totally agree Jungle Jim – whats the dislike of 500 million people based upon their origin got to do with the issue? I don’t get how these wicked van types/hippies can be so discriminatory. I hate how IF you ever turn up to protest about an issue you end up marching under 50 other banners that you are opposed to that have got nothing to do with the issue. Its why I never go.

How did a private get access to diplomatic cables?
SIPRNet is a US Govt system of Secret (NOFORN) or higher level access that uses a Permit All Once Access Granted, Only Deny If Requested user access architecture in response to Sept 11’s “We had it on file but nobody knew about it” problems.
Manning abused that inherent flaw.

It has a user base of three million people, and evidently confidential diplomatic cables are also filed in it.Much to the frustration of people like Kevin07 and Arbib, since it meant they weren’t actually being treated as confidentially as they seemed to expect.

Chaz said :

anyone else have a feeling that this wikileaks issue will lead to net censorship?

The FCC is actually working on legislating regarding “Net Neutrality” at the moment because service providers are attempting to censor what users access. Should be interesting to see what they come up with given whatever they do will reflect on their own ability to censor sites.

I’m inclined to wait for the outcome of any Swedish rape trial before I come out in support of Assange.

I’d also like to know whether Wikileaks’ transparency extends to their financial affairs. Has Assange made serious money out of the venture? And what’s with this “no money for the leaker’s defence fund!” What the!

I have reservations about the “Assange worship” that seems to be based on his looks (though they are fading fast)

Frankly, a hack attack on the possible rape victims’ lawyer’s website was disgusting – I don’t think Assange has come out and decried that act.

I think there’s too much potential for trendoid rentacrowd business with this protest.

To me, the odd thing about the public’s reaction to the information now coming out on wikileaks is that everybody seemed to ‘believe’ that the behavior contained in the leaked documents went on behind the scenes anyway… they just didn’t want to have ‘know’ that it actually does go on.

Let’s face it, in a an ideal world, a lot of that ‘classified’ information would not have been written because it is nasty gossip, but in this world it is passed off as intelligence and kept secret (until now).

On the other hand – outing Arbib as an American patsy may have done us all a favour.

I tend to come down on the side of those who say if Asange has done the wrong thing, then so have all the media he has co-opted into publishing the material as well.

UPDATE: The Register is now drawing attention to the fact that Bradley Manning’s defence fund has not had one red cent out of Wikileaks.

I’m sure I read last week that wikileaks is going broke since it doesn’t actually have any sort of income (eg advertising) other than donations. Can’t recall where now…

Also, I’m still confused as to how a mere Private in the US Army could gain access to and leak diplomatic cables. Why would the military have access to those?

Some meta thoughts:

1. I think the points listed above are helpful and well balanced, with one caveat, about security clearances. Engaging in public protests does not (IANAL) someone getting clearance. Only if you go further than a peaceful protest may that not be the case.
2. The best summary I’ve seen of the whole discussion is that WikiLeaks is to Governments/Diplomacy/Statecraft what Napster began 10 years ago for the music and movie industries. They are still hanging onto their old business models rather than re-inventing themselves. Will it also take governments 10+ years to figure out what it means to live in a digital age?
3. As has been said, none of the leaks are particularly revelatory for any News junkie. But the overall meta-analysis has been great, particularly Guy Rundle’s pieces in Crikey.

Deref said :

Skidbladnir said :

In other news, the US State Department took a break from pursuing Wikileaks only for long enough to announce World Press Freedom Day.

Here’s a challenge to all RiotACTers – find a greater example of hypocrisy.

This reminds me of a bit from the movie Mars Attacks, where the aliens are running through the streets shooting everyone they can see while at the same time carrying a machine which says “we come in peace” (or words to that effect).

johnboy said :

I hope you’re not suggesting there’s anything wrong with having one night stands with groupies.

I’m jeleaous, I don’t have groupies 😉

I just hope it isn’t a criterion by which one is considered ‘a real man’ and I can’t really figure out what other claims to being ‘a real man’ this guy could possibly have.

I guess one should ask the van owner what the criteria are for being ‘a real man’.

joller said :

Also the rest of the statement ‘my kind of man – a real man’ – what is that supposed to mean? the rest of us are what, not real? you’re only a real man if you leak secrets and have one night stands with groupies, whether consensual or not?

I hope you’re not suggesting there’s anything wrong with having one night stands with groupies.

Jungle Jim said :

Why does there need to be a derogatory ‘yankees’ statement at the bottom of “message”?

It’s ‘Yankies’ written on the Van by the way.

Also the rest of the statement ‘my kind of man – a real man’ – what is that supposed to mean? the rest of us are what, not real? you’re only a real man if you leak secrets and have one night stands with groupies, whether consensual or not?

Deref said :

Skidbladnir said :

In other news, the US State Department took a break from pursuing Wikileaks only for long enough to announce World Press Freedom Day.

Here’s a challenge to all RiotACTers – find a greater example of hypocrisy.

So freedom of press means they should be allowed to publish classified information?
Do you realize there’s a reason why information gets classified, and the reason is usually not ‘to mislead the public’?

Say if you’re coca cola, and someone steals your secret formula for mixing the popular drink, as an example. You’d be OK with this getting publish, for ‘freedom of press’?

Freedom of press means press should be allowed to publicize current event news without being blocked by the government, without ‘taboo’ subjects that they are unable to discuss due to fear of censorship or repercussions from the government.

Releasing information you know is classified can still be a criminal offence, and has no relation to freedom of press.

When you consider that they realize the person who delivered the information has commited a crime, they’re no better then a typical ‘fence’ who deals in stolen merchandise, and considering WikiLeaks, possibly much worse.

Sigh. *the “message”.

Why does there need to be a derogatory ‘yankees’ statement at the bottom of “message”?

Why anyone would support Asange is beyond me.
Do you know what they used to publish before all the cool war documents came into their hands?

Questions for different tests for IT certifications, among other things.

Can you tell me what ethical reason they might have had for that? For publishing certification questions, so everyone can pass without preparing properly?

This guy will publish anything he can get his hands on, just because it’s secret.
It’s the old hacker mind set he has.

“You have something you want to keep secret, I got my hands on it, and I published it, I win”.

Also, threats to release unedited documents if he gets convicted? Yeah, that’s going to do everyone plenty of good.

Boo… He’s an ideological terrorist. To the stocks with him.

Here’s a challenge to all RiotACTers – find a greater example of hypocrisy.

The only thing that would come close is Chris Mitchell suing Julie Posetti.

I need a ‘like’ button

Diggety said :

I like the idea of WikiLeaks.

What I worry about is that Julian or anyone else who leaks, may have a political agenda other than the ‘transparency’ stance.

i don’t think mr assange is doing the leaking. and even if there is a political agenda to the leaks, the scale of leaked docs that allegedly exist (my understanding is wikileaks has only published a fraction of what mr manning provided) would suggest that this is beyond a political agenda…

Here’s a challenge to all RiotACTers – find a greater example of hypocrisy.

The only thing that would come close is Chris Mitchell suing Julie Posetti.

Skidbladnir said :

In other news, the US State Department took a break from pursuing Wikileaks only for long enough to announce World Press Freedom Day.

Here’s a challenge to all RiotACTers – find a greater example of hypocrisy.

I’ll be there in the background taking photos of CIA and ASIO agents. Maybe follw a couple home.

In other news, the US State Department took a break from pursuing Wikileaks only for long enough to announce World Press Freedom Day.

Philip J. Crowley
Assistant Secretary
Daily Press Briefing
1124hrs Washington, DC December 7, 2010

MR. CROWLEY:… Just to start off, the United States is pleased to announce that we’ll host UNESCO’s World Press Freedom Day in 2011 from May 1 to May 3 here in Washington, D.C. UNESCO is the only UN agency with a mandate to promote freedom of expression, and its corollary, freedom of the press. The theme for this commemoration will be 21st Century Media: New Frontiers, New Barriers. Obviously, we decided upon this before the latest round of news.

The United States places technology and innovation at the forefront of its diplomatic and development efforts. There certainly is an irony here. New media has empowered citizens around the world to report on their circumstances, express opinions on world events, and exchange information in environments sometimes hostile to the exercise of freedom of – for the right of freedom of expression. At the same time, we are concerned about the determination of some governments to censor or silence individuals and to restrict the free flow of information. We mark events such as World Press Freedom Day in the context of our enduring commitment to support and expand press freedom and the free flow of information in this digital age.

Source transcript
Video (The above snippet occurs between 0:46 and 2:07)
His sheer awkwardness under scrutiny once he recognises the absurdity of his situation truly is a sight to behold.

JessicaNumber +1

Half the crowd who turn up will just be ‘rent a mob’ who don’t know the slightest thing about wikileaks other than that it’s flavour of the week.

Wow.

And it’s all walled-up in BookFace.

I think there’s a special kind of irony in that. No sir, I shall not be attending, it will be only fractionally more productive that launching a cyber attack against credit-card companies.

I was talking to an old guy the other day, who told me that Julian Assange and wikileaks had totally fucked over Australia and should be hunted down and shot as a terrorist.

Cold war fear of the red peril dies hard it seems.

The whole Wikileaks saga has served to show how little humans have evolved from our primitive beginnings, in that the behaviours we share with chimps of lying and deceitfulness, and the toleration of and expectation that those around of us will be dishonest and more than happy to lie as a matter of course.

Perhaps, in some future generations, when we start to mature as a species, lying will be the exception rather than the rule. My only regrtet is that I was born into a society that views lying and cheating, dishonesty and half-truths, as perfectly acceptable.

Wkileaks won’t change a thing, but it certainly shows up the deficiencies we all accept.

anyone else have a feeling that this wikileaks issue will lead to net censorship?

I like the idea of WikiLeaks.

What I worry about is that Julian or anyone else who leaks, may have a political agenda other than the ‘transparency’ stance.

I’m also a fan of the Assange Love Van but Wikileaks lost its cool this year. For 10 years everyone was glad that there was a place to share secrets anonymously. Then came the paywall and the media storm.

I don’t think it’s possible to easily classify Assange as either a hero or a villain. What this whole Wikileaks saga appears to be morphing into is a realisation in the importance of democratizing information – i.e., sharing information in a way that allows citizens to actually know what their tax dollars are being spent on.

If none of this information has revealed anything that wasn’t already known, then why was it classified as secret in the first instance? Clearly there is a small subset of information that should be kept secret, information that may actually harm an individual or a state, but everything else should be in the public domain. Further, it is great that the internet community can now place pressure on companies in the same way that governments can.

For mine, I’ll attend the protest if it focuses on the right of an Australian citizen to be presumed innocent until proven guilty and the right to receive consular assistance. I will not attend if it simply designed to glorify Assange as a martyr.