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Geoff Caddick / AFP - Getty Images, file
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is wanted in Sweden for questioning over allegations of rape and sexual assault.
Updated 4:42 a.m. ET: LONDON -- Britain's Supreme Court on Wednesday backed the extradition of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to Sweden where he is accused of sex crimes -- the latest chapter in the saga of the self-styled Internet whistle-blower.
Swedish prosecutors want to question Assange over claims of rape and sexual assault made by two female former WikiLeaks volunteers, and he has been fighting a lengthy legal battle against extradition since his arrest in Britain in Dec. 2010.
Seven judges at Britain's highest court rejected by a majority of 5-2 that Assange's claim that a European Arrest Warrant (EAW) under which his extradition is sought was invalid. Two lower courts have already ruled he should be extradited.
The former computer hacker gained international prominence in 2010 when WikiLeaks began releasing secret video footage and thousands of U.S. diplomatic cables about Iraq and Afghanistan, in the largest leak of classified documents in U.S. history.
That made him a hero to anti-censorship campaigners but a menace to Washington and other governments. Assange also faced widespread criticism that he had put lives at risk by blowing the cover of sources who spoke to diplomats and intelligence agents in countries where it was dangerous to do so.
WikiLeaks published intelligence firm's emails
Since then, WikiLeaks has faded from the headlines due to a dearth of scoops and a blockade by credit card companies that has made donations to the site almost impossible. Assange's personal standing has been damaged by the Swedish sex case and he has lost support from most of his celebrity backers.
Since his detention, he has mostly been living under strict bail conditions at the country mansion of a wealthy supporter in eastern England. His associates say that amounts to 540 days under house arrest without charge.
After losing his appeal against extradition to Sweden to face allegations against rape and sexual assault, The Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, says he is considering his next step, which could be an appeal to Britain's Supreme Court. ITN's Sejal Karia reports.
The flamboyant Australian's appeal hinged on a legal technicality rather than the substance of the allegations of sexual misconduct or his claims that the United States has been putting pressure on Britain and Sweden to take action against him.
His lawyers argued the EAW was invalid because it was issued by a prosecutor and not a judge or a court as required in Britain. Prosecutors acting for Sweden say different countries have different legal procedures which are allowable under the agreed EAW format.
Another appeal still possible
Assage can still take his case further, to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).
If that court agrees to hear his challenge, a decision which must be made within 14 days, he can lodge an injunction to have the extradition process put on hold, and it could be months at the very least before any conclusive verdict.
"If the ECHR declines to take the case then he will be extradited to Sweden as soon as arrangements can be made," Britain's Crown Prosecution Service said.
Should he win the case, a spokeswoman for Sweden's prosecutors said the EAW would still be valid in any other European country.
Assange's personal travails have accelerated WikiLeaks' slide toward irrelevance since its heyday.
Army is pressed on why it kept trusting Manning
The suspected source of the site's biggest and most dramatic 2010 leaks, U.S. intelligence analyst Bradley Manning, is now facing 22 criminal charges which, if he is convicted, could land him in jail for life.
Manning's predicament has not encouraged any new sources to come forward, and to compound WikiLeaks' problems the blockade by the likes of U.S. credit card firms Visa and MasterCard has starved it of cash.
Defense lawyers for Bradley Manning, the Army private accused of spilling classified secrets to WikiLeaks, say his sexual orientation plays a role in the case against him. NBC's Jim Miklaszewski reports.
Assange once enjoyed support from socialite Jemima Khan, film director Ken Loach and crusading journalist John Pilger, but most of his high-profile backers have since distanced themselves from him. Many former friends and associates have turned against Assange also, describing him as a megalomaniac.
However, he still has loyal followers and rallies are planned in several countries in the wake of the court's verdict.
Instantly recognisable with his unusual white-blond hair, Assange has appeared in an episode of "The Simpsons". He has also launched a talk show on Russia Today, a Kremlin-funded English language TV station.
Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Leave a Comment:
I wonder how long until he's finally shipped to our hemisphere... No doubt his ultimate destination is Guantanamo. Hope he has fun in Sweden 'cause he won't be there long!
I would love to waterboard this guy personally. What an arrogant prick.
Peel this fag like an apple and sit him on a fire ant hill.
Assange is a criminal along with Manning. You stole and received classified documents and then put them out for the world to see. They both put lives in great danger. The Taliban said that they were going through them for any mention of people working with the US and the Afghan government so they could kill them. If any person died because of Manning's treason and Assange's publishing, they should be put to death.
You can't go through life just obeying the laws you want to.
Bye, Bye, A*hole!
The firing squad should be enacted towards this *&$% and the soldier as well for leaking classified data that puts our decent soldiers at risk. Orientation my butt! the soldier sold out his country and should face firing squad and Assange should be right behind him....literally!
In April 2010, WikiLeaks published gunsight footage from the July 12, 2007 Baghdad airstrike in which Iraqi journalists were among those killed by an Apache helicopter, known as the Collateral Murder video.
This hurts American interests. If we cannot kill at will, wherever and whenever we want, with impunity, it just sucks. Take this moron out. Let an Apache gunship do it.
Oh, but did any of you loud mouths call for Cheney's head when he outed Valerie Plame? Of course not, that would be un-patriotic of you...
Is that the most earth-shaking comment you could dream up, GovHater?
remember, treason's okay if it's your team doing it. At least I think that's one of the lessons here.
He just looks like a sneaky kind of perv.
You should post your picture. I wonder what stereotypical assumptions we could make from your looks.
I have plenty of earth shaking comments for you Jeff, but according to yours, you're obviously the one with nothing to contribute. Have a nice day Pot!
Valarie Plame sat behind a desk, nothing more...
Good job Freedman. All kinds of interesting stuff that I'd never know without Wikileaks. I suppose we should kill them all now, right. ;)
freedman1, you really should add a sarcasm tag to your posts though, only because I'm interested to see how many up-votes come from people who truly do believe things like:
I upvoted your post as it's sarcasm, but I fear there might be others that up-vote it cause they missed the sarcasm and genuinely believe scary crap like I quoted.
Keep up the good work :)
Gov Hater,
it wasn't Cheney it was Armitage that outed Plame,
and her own husband would frequently tell guests at dinner parties, "Yeah, my wife works at the CIA, better watch out!"
maybe so, but other CIA agents working in the field may have had interactions with her. And if the nefarious agencies and/or individuals they were infiltrating had observed Valerie Plame interact with the field agents, once they knew Plame was CIA they could easily connect the dots.
Outing Plame as a CIA agent did little to put her at personal risk (as she was state-side and likely behind a desk), but it put anyone working for the CIA who had interacted with her and wasn't stateside at tremendous risk.
Look at the world beyond your nose please...
People want to be lied to. It's our right. That's why we always pick politicians to run things.
If you girlfriend asks you if her new jeans makes her butt look big - what's your answer?
But if Assange gets ahold of your email to your buddy - "Her butt is getting really big, I mean really big! I bet her butt is bigger than the barbecue." - Then Assange should die. It is our right to be lied to. Nowhere in the Constitution are we told the government needs to tell the truth. All we ask is to have the American flag close by when lying. Wear it as a lapel pin, or drape it behind you on the wall, have several on flagpoles as good measure.
But we don't want the truth. We can't handle the truth.
he must have known hes become a serious threat to our rich overlords.this trumped crap was bound to happen
DrowningGrover ~ People who comment on Newsvine are all intelligent educated individuals who like to keep up with current events. This alone insures that adequate comprehension is pretty much universal amongst Viners.
I bet Nixon would be proud of all you guys, he wanted to get Daniel Ellsberg and the New York Times after he blew the whistle on Vietnam, except now Ellsberg is widely considered a hero and patriot for doing exactly what Assange and Manning did - revealing American wrongdoing abroad and then exposing the coverup that ensues afterwards.
Its a sad state indeed to see people so worked up over something like this - yes it put some people at risk but it is well worth it for the truth to be known - the American people need to know that we are lied to on a daily basis by our own government.
How come it's always our government that has a problem, and never Russia's or China's? It's like people like Assange are working for them or something...
I believe that don_draper (see post #1.1) says it all. The guy is an arrogant prick and a menace to women to boot. The time this has taken exposes major flaws in the European justice industry where highly paid lawyers can endlessly spin out legal cow pies for years.
In October 2010, Assange told a leading Moscow newspaper that "The Kremlin had better brace itself for a coming wave of WikiLeaks disclosures about Russia".
Russia is our ally ~ a permanent member of the UN Security council. This prick thinks he can tell tales about the Kremlin? For what purpose? Live and let live is good enough. Not for Assange however. Somebody should assassinate this clown before some backward civilization decides that the citizenry should be told the truth about everything. That would certainly spell doom for our way of life.
Still waiting...
Ah yes, I forgot about that... clearly :)
This narcissistic person has committed a sex crime, that's the bottom line. Wikileaks and anti-U.S. sentiments only served to draw attention away from his sordid paedophilia and homosexual sadism. He will eventually be hoist with own petard. In China and Russia he would have been piano wired or gently castrated.
@GovHater
Nobody's calling for President Obamas head or anyone else in his administration either for outing Shakil Afridi in their effort to brag about how tough and active against terrorism he is. I think even you would agree that situation is much worse and has far more reaching implications than someone losing their job.
WikiLeak cables, published by the Guardian newspaper, paint a picture of a corrupt Russia centred around the leadership of Mr Putin. Bribery in the political system totals an estimated $300bn (£192bn) a year, the paper says.
In one cable from January 2010, Spanish prosecutor Jose "Pepe" Grinda Gonzales claimed that in Russia, Belarus and Chechnya "one cannot differentiate between the activities of the Government and OC (organised crime) groups".
Yeah, right. Russia has a democratically elected government, Mr. Assange. Is it your personal, filthy goal to undermine the right of the people to elect whomever they choose? Somebody should cut this mans head off. Other parts too, since he engages in rape by surprise.
Was there anything about Russia's invasion of Georgia? Anything from the Chechen Wars?
His horrible , disgusting ,perverted sex crimes in Sweden, he had sex without a condom, with somebody that was not his spouse or live in girlfriend; the fiend.
A shame they don't send the scumbag here to the states and put him in a cell next to that other weasel Bradley Manning! They deserve each other. Speaking of Manning, it's funny that his defense team is using his orientation as the reason for the charges against him. They must have nothing else to use in his defense. I'm curious, since when does being gay have anything to do with his potentially treasonous acts?
For all of you wanting to crucify him because his only "crime" has been to tell the world the truth, it's a reminder of another man 2,000 years ago murdered when people felt threatened over His truth.
@Debi-1314897
Give me a break, you'd want to crucify him also if it were YOUR secrets that he revealed to the world.
Assange must be guilty of something if he fights so hard to stay in England. as for the Manning thing I hate to see the developmentof a gay card that can be thrown into the picture suggesting hes not responsible for his actions because of his confusion about his sexual orientation, regardless of your orientation if your not right in the head you don't belong. this argument the defense has dreamt up is the opposite of what the gay community has been saying. so what needs to be done is we need to send him before a civilian court because the UCMJ will be to stressful for poor little Manny, in order for him to get a fair trial we need to have a gay jury, and it needs to have all members of the LGBT & don't forget the boogers they have a say in this as well. we know now that its the big bad straight people that made him do it. $hits just going to keep getting worse isn't it. some of you want to make these two into some sort of hero, some of you see them for the scum they are, what happened to the days when we simply said there is no excuse for what you did. there is no reason we should forgive you, may God have mercy on your soul because we are sending you back to where you came from.
Backcountry: Were they YOUR personal secrets he revealed? Please explain how his truth harmed you.
The Romans also felt the truth Jesus spoke of was a threat to their government and their way of life and silenced him.
You sound just like those people in the crowd shouting "crucify him! crucify him!".
Oh the humanity...
You are equating Assange and Manning to Jesus?
What "Truth" has he told us?
"Oh the humanity...."
Debi, your attempt to justify Asange's actions just does not fly. Altruism had nothing to do with it. Humanity had nothing to do with it! Telling the truth had nothing to do with it. Asange is a narcissistic megalomaniac and nothing more. Crucify him? You're darn right I hope they crucify him! You just do not get it that there are secrets that you or I just do not need to know about. This fool released documents that either directly or indirectly had the potential to endanger our troops overseas. Some may very well have gotten our people injured or killed. To those defending Asange's and Manning's actions, I hope your consciences can live with that. I would have trouble doing so.
David: Which "he" are you referring to?
Ed-NavDoc: People are still grappling much harder with their consciences about the needless murder of a man whose truth threatened them 2,000 years ago, than with the truth he told.
There is no comparison to these two jokers and Christ, where are you coming from? grow a brain.
@Debi you are really quite lost in this aren't you! may your new prophet's smile upon you, are you aware that one of your holly men is sexually confused and the other is a rapist. both these people are of questionable integrity.
Debi, the only people still grappling are those like yourself who are confused with religious fervor. As D Buck said, there is no comparison between Christ and Assange and Manning. Religious fanatic forums are three doors down the hall on the left. Please take it down there.
@Debi-1314897
I'm a citizen of the United States therefore they were MY secrets being reveled regardless of how personal they were. You obviously don't hold being a citizen (assuming you are one) in as high of regard as I do. That's your choice, don't assume everyone cares as little as you do.
How very self-centered of you. Why should I care if the secrets didn't harm me personally if they did or could harm a fellow citizen or an ally?
And you sound like a revisionist making a ridiculous comparison, after all it wasn't Roman citizens in the crowd shouting. If you have such little regard for the country you (presumably) live in as to compare it to the Roman occupation of Israel I can't help but wonder why you still live here.
@Ed-NavDoc
Actually I think they are three doors down the hall on the right. It's the fanatic atheist forums that are on the left. lol
Ed-NavDoc, Backcountry164 and D Buck:
"If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment." Marcus Aurelius
Backcountry, good catch. I wondered how many would see that. I actually had right on there but decided to change it to left at the last second so as not to make it too obvious. Thanks for the laugh!
@Debi-1314897
First you criticize the Romans and now you're quoting one, have a little trouble making up your mind?
Aside from that we get it, you don't give a rat's ass about anything that doesn't affect you personally. As for people who are less selfish, we see the pain that this can and has caused OTHERS which is why so many oppose it. You go ahead and "revoke" the pain that is "external" to you but please don't criticize us for caring about more than just ourselves.
I almost feel bad for what the gov't has yet to put him through... Sweden is only stop number one...
Yeah, I almost feel bad that he is still sucking oxygen....almost...well a little more than almost...
Governments should be accountable for their illegal and dishonest activities. The guy deserves a medal for revealing the truth to the tax payers. All you right wingers are like flies hovering around a bucket of @!$%#.
It would not have required an enormous amount of forethought in order to predict the current state of Mr. Assange's affairs. It is quite possible that matters are proceeding quite as he wishes them to do. Mr. Assange seems to possess a great desire to become a martyr in the eyes of the world.
"Governments should be accountable for their illegal and dishonest activities." ...
I agree, but tell that to the Afghani, Iraqi, and other international informants who's names were revealed to the enemy. The US promised security to these people, and instead one of our own, pfc Bradley Manning, betrays that trust and reveals their identities to the world. Combine this with the flop on US citizenship for informants, and I can guarantee you that we have discouraged a large number of potential information sources from stepping forward. Directly or not, Manning and Assange are enemies of the US, and should be tried for treason and espionage, respectively.
Screw WikiLeaks for trying to use our own rules against us. Several Supreme Court cases have previously established that the American constitution protects the re-publication of illegally gained information provided the publishers did not themselves break any laws in acquiring it.
If this man thinks our laws are his personal playthings - then he should be taken out.
freedman1, earlier you said:
and now you say:
I believe I can sense the sarcasm dripping from your post, and if this is the case, then you and I agree very much on this issue.
Personally, I think Assange is a kind of a creep, but neither he nor wikileaks have broken any laws really (they've just pissed a bunch of people off, but that's not a crime). This 'sex crimes' accusation in Sweden sounds an awful lot like the international powers that be getting Al Capone on tax evasion charges...
Sweden is simply trying to protect women's rights, that's all. Just because a woman gives sexual consent at 1:00am, doesn't mean you can roll over and do it again at 6:00am. That's rape by surprise.
I feel more transparency in government as well as in the judicial system in our country would benifit everyone... Also all people around the world would be better off...
However, the truth must be the end result... No matter where that truth is found... As we see, every day, lies being told on just about every subject from local police force to the halls of congress... America is losing ground from lies being told to it's citizens... And it's only getting worse...
@Terry-Ca
That's because you've never been fcked over when someone found out something they had no need to know. Look at what happened to Shakil Afridi just because someone decided the people needed to know we used DNA to verify Bin Ladens whereabouts. All transparency does is allow your enemies to see exactly what you're doing.
Exactly, Backcountry164. Whether anyone likes it or not, all governments, past and present, rely on secrecy and treachery to further their aims. Transparency is all well and good, but it only works if all governments are transparent, something that Assange distinctly failed to do by focusing almost exclusively on the US's actions (that Assange, ostensibly a forthright defender of human rights, was given a TV show by Russia's state-run news network should tell you something.)
An appreciation of nuance on the part of Wikileaks-boosters would go a long way...
There is no excuse for what these sickos have done and they need to pay, and pay heavy. I don't care what they go to prison for as long as they stay their. lock them in the same cell Manning would like that.
DrowningGrover: You are wrong. By its very activities, WikiLeaks has violated Articles 793 and 794 of Title 18, US Codes. These articles deal with compromising national defense information. Article 794 deals with doing so to the benefit of a foreign power. Sounds like espionage, to me. Manning was briefed on these little facets of law, and the consequences of violating them, when he got his initial briefing for his clearance. His sexual orientation has nothing to do with this. The laws do not speak to citizenship; they speak to "any person who ...".
Wiki leaks founder is going DOWN!
Annonmus will be next on the chopping block.
Bunch of egotistical morons. They took on the system but never addressed their own hypocrisy.
All they did was stir the nest! Remember LulzSec? How's that for Lulz? None of these guys have done anything substantial aside from building federal cases against themselves. These guys are lucky to be facing a judge instead of a single-car accident!
Assange is not only guilty of screwing the United States, he has no morals, and screws other people as well. WikiLeaks posted a document in December 2006, showing a decision to assassinate government officials signed by Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys. The Sheikh - a Somali political figure who was added to the U.S. government's list of terrorists in 2001 - has every right to make a kill list without having some spineless Assange creature letting everybody know about it.
Im sure he will enjoy our hotel like prison system here. Hell, he will even get internet access and cable tv in his room. It will be like he never left Britain, except with better looking women.....err opps, maybe that's what got him in this situation to being with!
Don't kid yourself. Nobody has been raped yet in respect to Assange. He is being cleverly directed towards the US where he can be tried for espionage and aiding the enemy. There can only be one punishment for such crimes. Rape has nothing to do with anything here.
Prison is too good for this jerk Assange. In August 2007, The Guardian published a story about corruption by the family of the former Kenyan leader Daniel arap Moi based on information provided via WikiLeaks. If Kenyan leaders want to pillage the national treasury, so what? They're not the first ones to do that. Guess what? Assange never paid a dime in Kenyan taxes, so it was none of his business in the first place.
again, good posts freedman1 (assuming you're being sarcastic, which seems likely).
--Redacted--
Beyond Reasoning ***** Both of the women charging him with rape did, in fact, consent to intercourse. Both openly admit that! However, later on during the night, in each case, he forced himelf onto (or should I say "into?) the ladies without a condom, thus exposing them to an unwanted pregnancy and/or an STD. The law CLEARLY calls that rape.
Condom or no condom, you should not put your tally wacker where it is not invited.
Seriously! Does this man not have a right hand?
AmeriSwede, let's hope Assange gets a 300 lb cellmate named Bubba who is looking for a new girlfriend!
I think it sucks. We need people like him to keep ours and other Gov. somewhat in check. Just knowing he's out there watching might help keep these double standard good ole' boys bureaucrats nervous enough to be honest.
Opps did I say that "honest". LOL
Anyway since 2010? Really? just like chicks to yell rape when things don't go there way!!!
If it is true I hope he rots in prison, if not, I hope they name the girls and there shamed for life.
How many people did this guy put in jeopardy by releasing confidential information? Given to him by a freakin traitor punk ass. We are at war and this kid aided the enemy by taking data that he had no right too. Knowing that Assange still released this info. He is just as guilty as this soldier.
good question.
How many?
All types of people have been put in jeopardy by this crazed man. In January 2009, WikiLeaks released 86 telephone intercept recordings of Peruvian politicians and businessmen involved in the 2008 Peru oil scandal. This scandal led to the resignation of Prime Minister Jorge del Castillo. And why? If the Peruvian government wants to make secret deals with the petroleum industry, that is called capitalism. We don't need another communist do-gooder in this world. Assange needs to go.
To be honest he didnt put anyone in jeopardy...list 1 person killed by his actions?? What noone ok then...the video that was released regarding the apache gunnign the journalists down...yeah the video was showing camera men getting mowed down and civilians trying to run away also getting mowed down then the pilots laughing there tushes off hysterically.
How many of our people in government or the service have been killed because of any information released? Give me the figures, because I keep hearing this, but all I keep seeing is a bunch of bullsh!t.
You know god damn well you're full of it.
This guy, for one.
Exactly right, Armando. Majid Jamali Fashi, was executed in Tehran for assassinating an Iranian nuclear scientist in 2010.
Assassination is a right. Screw Iran for hanging a guy that murdered a scientist. Only a muslim would think of such a thing.
We should set things right and execute Assange. That's the way to teach those cats a lesson.
My point is that, contra Ranman87, Wikileaks has in fact put assets in jeopardy. Unless, of course, you're cool with racist, sexist, homophobic, Holocaust-denying theocrats who casually joke about exterminating Americans and Jews having the Bomb...
Probably why none of these people have been killed yet is the Taliban is a little short handed and busy. I'm sure that once they are little less stressed that they will do what they say.
L82ski It is "their"! I don't care about wikileaks, it's things like this that drives me nuts.
Their he goes to post there stuff. You're stuff is not as important because your loved here.
People who make disparaging remarks about this case are either monsters or wholly uninformed. Go back to your TV folks, you are clueless.
That's right. That is exactly why we have governments. It is the governments job to worry about stuff, not some albino pansy. In July 2009, WikiLeaks released a report relating to a serious nuclear accident that had occurred at the Iranian Natanz nuclear facility. Right. Iran would have let us know eventually. This man continuously butts his nose into other peoples affairs. I think that's against the bible.
yes bow down to your gov. freedom man, eat the crap that they feed you and worship it accordingly. Assange attempts to brak the veil and show air the dirty laundry and paint a more accurate picture of what is actually happening.
I think freedman1 is being sarcastic. If you read all his posts in this thread they're all kinda hilarious stuff like:
etc. I believe he's just highlighting all the bull@!$%# that goes on that wikileaks has uncovered (and we all should be thankful for that), but doing it in a sarcastic tone to sound like the bloodthirsty morons who cheer when governments straight up lie to us.
@DrowningGrover
Hilarious? How about annoying. If you've got something to say come out and say it. Spamming the board with countless sarcastic comments without any attempt at an actual point is called trolling. The very fact that you "think" he is being sarcastic is proof of that.
This is just all a political beat-up, pure and simple!
You bet it's political. Who does this WikiLeaks moron think he is?
In September 2009, internal documents from Kaupthing Bank were leaked, from shortly before the collapse of Iceland's banking sector, which led to the 2008–2012 Icelandic financial crisis. The document shows that suspiciously large sums of money were loaned to various owners of the bank, and large debts written off.
This man has no business revealing secrets of bankers, who try hard to make sure money is available to all. Assange is a dirty liberal, and needs to take a hike.
Of course not freedom, no business showing mafia style rule of the populations at all.
0taylor0 banned. Nothing but personal attacks. Flame out.
Move out, slimebag....That's a 0 for the world's anarchists....
So sorry, old chap....get along....!
Thank you Bob. We need order, and who is in the best position to provide it? During 2008 and 2009, WikiLeaks published the alleged lists of forbidden or illegal web addresses for Australia, Denmark and Thailand. These were originally created to prevent access to child pornography and terrorism, but the leaks revealed that other sites covering unrelated subjects were also listed.
If the government doesn't want a web site, they know best. They don't need a reason. Assange tries to make good guys look bad, when all they really want is to protect you and me. Does WikiLeaks care about you and me? Hell no - they are goons that think government has some type of responsibility to be truthful. Bleeding heart anarchists have no place in the real world. Take him out.
Great job with the sarcasm. Sounds like Assange in disquise. Been an enjoyable read. No one wants to hear the truth, lies are so much more reassuring.
...also an informative read.
This man is a moron putting so many countries and lives at stake and instigating HATE. Is this what JOURNALISM is all about?
They should take him back to Australia and feed him to the CROCS.
Julian Saussage..spending time in the pokey...learn to sleep with one eye open , Euro-phag.
otayloro...you must be secretly in love with...tools.
Dont think Ive ever seen someone use the word tool so many times in such a short time period. Is it the word of the day on your calander or something?
Seriously though...your love affair with Assange...er I mean tools, isnt very healthy and wont make you many friends.
He didn't put anyone at risk, these charges are a load of BS, He is being demonized because he had the balls to show American hypocrisies and revealed the BS which is the war on terrorism. Americans live in a dream world created by mass media , totally misinformed and deranged public.
Nicely stated Will. It would be interesting to read the comments by age group or other demographics and see where we all believe at that point. This sex scandal, is just a means of diverting the attention from the information we now have and the fingers pointed to the true hypocrites. Yes, information can be uncomfortable. Yes, it can be dangerous. Still, it is necessary to know all the information to make worthy decisions - even the peon voters. Sorry this offends all the sheep just voting as they always have.
"Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus." and he doesn't like little boys and girls who think they have the right to put innocent men and women who tried to help and fight against the likes of the Taliban and other monsters most foul in danger or who gets them killed by revealing who they are.
We should send Assange to Afghanistan and let him get to know the Taliban whom he was eager to aid by providing them with information that revealed confidential sources in the process of supposedly helping make government more "transparent".
By their fruits ye shall known them and you reap what you sow. Hopefully, sooner rather than later, Assange and Pvt. Manning will now reap the full, bitter harvest of consequences their despicable acts of betrayal justly warrant they receive as small recompense for the havoc and horror they wrought by their self-righteous, sanctimonious actions.
Well said friend. If more people really had a clue of what needs to go on in the world. Sometimes we have to do things that are not that nice for national security. This idiot exposed things that were not to be known to the general public for national security. These people sit on their ass's at home and protest while good men are protecting their right to protest by dieing for freedom. Is there any thanks? By some yes, but not from these people who want to stir up trouble. This was treason. They knew the price before they acted.
Thank you Alex.
I am very glad that I am not in the military these days - not that I ever was, but if I were in now I believe I would be doing everything I could to extricate myself from said employment and career.
First because I feel the nation is being run by a majority of ingrates who are by their attitude toward the military, the C. I. A. and all who are doing their damnedest to protect us with little public support, that these ingrates are helping move us each day closer and closer to a truly horrific event like NYC or Washington D. C. going up in a mushroom cloud, while the likes of Iran dances gleefully on the graves of the innocent.
Secondly, because if I were in the military I might be asked by our current Commander in Chief to risk my life and I would know that (given what happened to the Dr. in Pakistan who now has 33 years to reflect on his stupidity for trusting the U. S. and those who organized bin Laden's demise) here was an administration that really doesn't know what it is doing; doesn't know how to look out for the little guy they so proudly and often say they are fighting for but rather, is more interested in making political hay while the media sun shines on their great triumph - paid for with my life and the happiness of all who love me.
Let us hope, let us pray, that the coming Presidential election truly, finally actually does bring "Change we can count on"; a new broom sweeps clean!
The only ones making Iran " a threat" are you reich wing bone heads who are never happy unless there is ANOTHER WAR to start and taxes to CUT TO CUT WHILE DOING IT. Romney. Bush the second as he wants starts another war based on lies, cut taxes even DEEPER this time to create jobs even though after ten friggin years they did'nt do crap to create jobs but they sure created a giant DEFICIT and created plenty of jobs in foreign countries, deregulate Wall St, corporations and the banks AGAIN because that worked so well BEFORE as 2008 clearly showed and we taxpayers bailed their butts while WE GOT ROYALLY SCREWED and the Great Recession followed which we're still trying to get out of, no help from the party of no, no, no, except abortion bills, repeal the ACA, block the American Jobs Act, keep taxpayer subsidies for OIL COMPANIES but cut, cut, cut other programs to help WORKING Americans, roll back women's rights, mess around with gay marriage, more abortion crap, ram christian this and christian nation that down our throats as a war is waged against BIRTH CONTROL in health policies and watch as the public sector sheds jobs by the THOUSANDS as state and local governments are forced to fire teachers, police, firefighter, postal workers, city workers but to his credit Obama has created plenty of jobs in the private sector and the economy has seen a slow steady growth in job numbers in spite of the worst obstruction by an opposing party and record abuse of the filibuster in history.
But put that pathological liar ROMNEY in charge who is a total rerun of Bush policies and even wants to fill his potential cabinet with former Bush people who had positions in FOREIGN RELATIONS of all places and he's been consorting with DICK CHENEY-"war crimminal numero UNO"!!!! Oh and turn his back completely on form of energy except total dependency on polluting, reckless FOSSIL fuels as Robme plans on having the Exxon-Mobils of the world mine, drill and frack the crap out of the country and install that crap, mess boondoggle environmental time bomb called tar sands pipeline which creates very few "jobs" but sure will make a crap pile of money for the OIL COMPANIES, their lobbyists and the smarmy poiliticians who have personal investment in it and can't wait to make big tiem RETURNS on that investment eh BOEHNER, Ihhofe, Barton, DeMint, Manchin, Cantor, McConnell, Coburn, Perry, Charles and David Koch for starters? Lather, rinse, repeat is the conservative in "action" you're all so brainlessly predicitable and stupid. New broom swipes clean my A**!!!!!!
Yep, can't wait for President Bush, er, I mean Romney, to restore America to her former glory!
@ Alex Cat "If more people really had a clue of what needs to go on in the world. Sometimes we have to do things that are not that nice for national security. This idiot exposed things that were not to be known to the general public for national security."
So you like to live with your head in the sand? This is why other countries hate us - its not because we are "western" its because we do effed up things to other countries and then hide it from our people. The reason Iran hates us has very little to do with anything that happened recently - it has to do with us going in and taking out their democratically elected leader in the 1950's and putting in a theocratic regime in instead.
@Mr. E Nigma..I worked in Tehran for a U.S. Co. in the early 70's & the Shah was still there!
Wow Theresa - I think very highly of you too, Jeez! lol
If you want to believe as you believe and continue to follow Mr. Pied Piper Obama down the road and over the cliff he has charted for all of us, be my guest.
What you will find - soon - when his lease on the White House is not renewed and he is evicted by the America people for lack of payment on promises made, is that he can fool some of the people some of the time, but not enough of the people a second time to let him continue to wreck havoc on the economy as well as the nation in virtually every other respect.
Time for change we can really count on. And besides, he said it himself when he said, "If I don't have this done (the economy fixed) in three years then its going to be a one term proposition."
Of course, given all the other promises he made, which he never kept, we shouldn't be the least surprised that this one too turned out - most sadly of all - to be another he isn't going to live up to because it has become politically inconvenient, should we?
http://mrctv.org/videos/obama-2009-if-economy-isnt-fixed-3-years-there-will-be-1-term-proposition
You see, one can be definite in expressing oneself - without ranting and raving like a lunatic.
The only real reason Julian doesn't want to go to Sweden if fear of the USA, not the rape case. Even if he loses the rape care it will be a short lived event, possibly made longer for making them have to go through all this. In the scheme of things, he made several powerful countries very angry... from that point on, his day-to-day existance is run by fear because he want to be hi profile to do what has been doing.
By definition, his days are numbered as a free man from THAT bigger issue, and he knows it.
His days are numbered as a live man. Considering our nation's recent policy change on summery executions, he is a prime target. Manning should not have 22 charges and be facing life in prison. He should have one charge of Aiding The Enemy and when convicted should be facing a firing squad.
10 USC § 904 (UCMJ) - Art. 104.
10. Punitive Articles
Any person who–
shall suffer death or such other punishment as a court-martial or military commission may direct.
The Chinese are more obvious and direct in how they shut someone down. The Americans, being the politically correct beings that they are, resort to all this subterfuge and agents, such as Wikileaks volunteers accusing him of rape (Give me a break.) or the financial system (in making it impossible to receive donations) to do their dirty work.
It seems ironic that now after a US military guy gave out this information because he didn't think the Iraq war was justified.
Then some of the biggest news media go along and print it on there front pages for ratings, and sales.
Then we have Bush which lied all about the WOMD in Iraq, but still invaded the country then left it in the hands of even worse rebels.
Then you have Obama who invades a sovereign countries like Libya without any congressional approval thus handing over to the extremist murdering brotherhood.
Then some hooker from Sweden says he didn't use a bloody condom before having sex which I think is just pure BS yet they want to extradite this guy for showing the real truth on how the military love too shoot, and kill innocent reporters, and children then laugh about it like it's some f---king video game.
Now you tell me who the f---k is the real criminal here?
Ya maybe he went a bit to far with some cables, but I don't see or hear of anyone getting killed over it yet, and the wars are still going on.
Later.
So in your view people with whom you agree politically should be able to commit crimes you deem minor? The hooker lied? You have no proof, but of course she lied because people with whom you agree with politically always tell the truth? No wonder Obama gets votes.
Your an idiot. The same liberties you exercise to write; was not only provided by the Constitution; BUT BY REAL MEN AND WOMEN WHO BATTLED IN COMBAT SO EVERY AMERICAN, SUCH AS YOU CAN LIVE THE DREAM. YOUR TRULY AN IDIOT; YOU SHOULD BE HIS PRISON MATE; your truly an ASS
Yes, invading foreign countries to show how big our balls are as a nation is really what the forefathers had in mind when they invented America.
invented America?....Geeezs!
You betcha, Jefferson invented it with the writing of the constitution - it was a novel idea at the time - the invention of a "free" (we can play the slave sematics about this if you want) democratic republic truly one of the greatest inventions ever.
Oh, you meant the United States of America!
this guy needs a saver bitch slapping
And every person he betray by blowing their cover is smiling right now.
Don't drop the soap backstabber.
I admit his only real reason for getting into all this trouble is in part because of his arrogant way of flaunting the leaks.
The real question we should be asking, and be angry about, is why the f----k did we invade 2 countries that were not at war with us?
Then there is the vast poppy fields of Afghanistan which is the only real reason we are over there since OSBL was killed again, and with no body to prove it.
This whole Afgan BS is too protect not us from the bad guys, but control the flow of lithium minerals, and poppy trades so they can make a killing in drug money.
This is the real crime, not this little fish.
Your an idiot. The same liberties you exercise to write; was not only provided by the Constitution; BUT BY REAL MEN AND WOMEN WHO BATTLED IN COMBAT SO EVERY AMERICAN, SUCH AS YOU CAN LIVE THE DREAM. YOUR TRULY AN IDIOT; YOU SHOULD BE HIS PRISON MATE; your truly an ASS
Oh Bob please rant more - we love to hear how the truth kills the American dream, wake up and smell the dead innocents. Governments need to be accountable for their actions - and the US killing innocent people and trying to cover it up is on the top of my list of things I want to know about.
Whether one agrees with the mission of WikiLeaks or not, It's disturbing to see private corporations, Visa and Mastercard, holding back donations to WikiLeaks on behalf of a foreign government. It shows how entrenched government is with big business. If can happen to WikiLeaks why not anyone else? It's a form of control. It's a good thing we still have paper money. I've seen numerous media articles pushing to abolish physical currency and just have credit cards. And here is a good case against that. When all your wealth is locked up in a banks data base and you don't have physical control over it, Is it your money at that point? If banks can just shut you off from your cash flow for whatever reason they want, won't they have full control over you? Should I be concerned by this slippery slope or am I being paranoid?
You're not being paranoid at all. I used to write checks for everything and now try finding a place that takes a check anymore and if they do, it's all that automatic cancel/void your check right away crap at the cash so I pretty much HAVE to use my debit card anyway as my check is given back to me. It doesn't go in the cash register drawer. We live in a "plastic world" and that bothers ME big time.
You may live in a plastic world, some of us don't. The reason it's hard to cash a check nowadays is because small businesses can't afford the loss or the hassle of even one bad transaction. I foresee the day when my children will use only plastic though and we will be using dollars to wipe our ass.
The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Washington are what is corrupt and American taxpayers have been virtually bankrupted by these wars and those who in government who started them and keep them going for the "war profiteers", prop up corrupt regimes for the their damn oil, wage this joke we'll never win called "the war on terror" and people like Assange had the guts to expose the lies to the world as did Manning who was held for months sleep deprived, interrogated, inable to have decent legal council while he was being detained in those conditions, now that his trial is coming up that will determine if he gets life imprisonment, most of the evidence that will be most valuble to his case, his council can't use in his defense of course. No wonder cowards like your kind slam people like Assange and Manning because they did the unthinkable-ratted on the GOVERNMENT and told people like you and me about it. But I LIKED IT!!! Too bad our corporate owned media is not as reliable as people like them which is why they're "jailed and silenced" right away.
But then again, "waterboarding is what REALLY got OBL eh?" And when Bush jumped on that aircraft carrier decked out in a friggin flight suit, it WAS "Mission Accomplished" to you as well! Can't say I'm real thrilled about Barack hanging around Afghanistan for another TEN years after we call it over in 2014 as I just want to get out and STAY out!!! As a matter of fact, it STINKS!!!
Your an idiot. The same liberties you exercise to write; was not only provided by the Constitution; BUT BY REAL MEN AND WOMEN WHO BATTLED IN COMBAT SO EVERY AMERICAN, SUCH AS YOU CAN LIVE THE DREAM. YOUR TRULY AN IDIOT; YOU SHOULD BE HIS PRISON MATE; your truly an ASS
I believe you are being extremely naive; all the things that you mention are being done now (by other government officials in other lands), have been done in the past, and will probably be done in the future. There is no such thing as a 'transparent' government....and never will be. Its impossible.
Unfortunately, that secretive manner also shields the good and the bad equally. There's just no way to get around it.
Now....people like A$$ange, are simply using the 'transparency' card to further his own dreams for power and prestige. Actually, he seems to think that every single government on the planet should be exactly how HE wishes them to be. Those that blindly follow his lead should really go back to sitting around a campfire singing 'Kumbaya' or giving out flowers in airports.
A$$ange's idea of 'utopia' is very strange indeed......
So you don't think Governments should be accountable for their illegal actions Jet?
I guess we should have just let those former Nazi concentration camp officials just fade away because the truth is on a "need to know" basis, right?
You leftist loons are either totally delusional or you're simply pathological liars.
The reason Bush wore a flight suit was because it's REQUIRED for passengers and personnel flying in Navy aircraft over the ocean.
And the Bush people didn't put up the "mission accomplished" banner. That was put up by the ship's officers to congratulate THEIR personnel for successfully completing THEIR mission.
But, of course, people like you would NEVER tell the truth if a LIE suits your agenda.
I'll give you credit Otaylor0 because you got me to comment, but why have you been wasting your life for the past hour saying nothing? Lol you stupid stupid troll. tool.
Lets see he is being set up by these courts too punish him in the USA because he and Bradley Manning exposed war crimes and lies about our governments support for some of the worlds horrible dictatorships along with other crimes against humanity that many governments around the world violate human rights. Someone needed to expose the liars and criminals that kill men women and children to make some money. Lets hope Anonymous launches a cyber attack on all who would harm this hero of freedom of thought.
Your an idiot. The same liberties you exercise to write; was not only provided by the Constitution; BUT BY REAL MEN AND WOMEN WHO BATTLED IN COMBAT SO EVERY AMERICAN, SUCH AS YOU CAN LIVE THE DREAM. YOUR TRULY AN IDIOT; YOU SHOULD BE HIS PRISON MATE; your truly an ASS
riffraf002:
You really need to go back to wearing red robes and giving out flowers in airports.
What the world really doesn't need is more mindless robot minions blindly following some megalomaniac.
If public companies choose NOT to do business with the likes of A$$ange and/or Wikileaks, that is their choice to do so. Remember.....its simply an updating of 'no shirt, no shoes, no business'....
First thing that comes to mind...EuroPussyPhag.
Add an R to his last name and you get AssAnger...After Bubba is done with him.
He will need a proctologist.
Stephen Sargent. Is a hate-mongering piece of garbage. Just what one would expect to see in response to an accused rapist and batterer facing charges.
While I find him to be an arrogant prick, and the theft of internal documents more a self aggrandizing prank by computer geeks, aka hackers, than an illuminating expose of corruption, I think this sex prosecution is a sham. Why would a guy who is rich, intelligent, fairly attractive, and god like to his followers, need to "rape" worshipping volunteers? I'm sure the list of "volunteers" to be his sex partner is nearly as long as those who believe his work has value. It sounds like they are either plants, or former "volunteers" who could be convinced for any of a variety of reasons to make these allegations. It's just too convenient to be credible.