WikiLeaks about to hit the fan

@Eorl,

You're not telling me anything, Eorl.
I'm just gobsmacked by all of this!
Still, far better to know than not to know ....

1 Reply

@msolga,

for example, do you think any independents might rethink their support tonight?

1 Reply

@Eorl,

I think they'll be reeling at this news, too, Eorl.
It has far bigger implications than just the current parliament.

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Well ... now we know how come the Americans we so on the ball in their assessment of Kevin Rudd, don't we?

Quote:

Rudd stung by the WikiLeaks whip
By Barrie Cassidy
Updated 9 hours 41 minutes ago

In the wake of the WikiLeaks cables, the problem for Kevin Rudd is not embarrassment but credibility. (ABC News: Jeremy Thompson)

You have to hand it to the Americans. They were on to Kevin Rudd long before most of his colleagues and most of the media.

So many of the observations made so sharply by former US ambassador, Robert McCallum, from November 2009, didn't occur more generally in Australia until much later.

The cables did refer to "control freak" tendencies and "persistent criticism from senior civil servants, journalists and parliamentarians that Rudd is a micro manager obsessed with managing the media cycle rather than engaging in collaborative decision making". ... <cont>

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/12/08/3088164.htm?site=thedrum

1 Reply

@msolga,

It is going to be an extremely sticky day in Canberra when people wake up to the headlines this morning, that's for sure.
There are going to be quite a few people wanting some answers to some very serious questions.
And ... without a doubt, there are going to be quite a few more leaks to come yet.
I doubt all will concern the Labor government.
So much for Australian government independence, hey? Neutral

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@msolga,

Quote:

What does the leadership of the Australian Labor government & its internal workings have to do with the US?

It might be the vulnerability of 22 million people in an isolated region of the earth needing powerful friends.

1 Reply

@spendius,

Of course that's an important concern.
But that wasn't what I was on about ...

1 Reply

@msolga,

You could have fooled me then Olga. You did ask "What does the leadership of the Australian Labor government & its internal workings have to do with the US?" The idea that Australia is independent is a bit fanciful.

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@msolga,

Quote:

US State department spokesman PJ Crowley said last night. You can see those comments on a new Guardian video. It also shows Crowley claiming that the US did not take a position on the arrest of Assange. He said this was a matter between the UK and Sweden.

It really hasn't taken this latest Wiki situation for any sane person to realize that there's a high probability that anything that comes from the mouth of a government spokesman is false.

From here on in, in the interests of accuracy, the media should report,

US State department shill PJ Crowley said last night.

or

US State department dedicated liar PJ Crowley said last night.

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@msolga,

Quote:

I think that Julia Gillard's Labor government might well be on the skids.

Is there any provision for a recall in Australia? Other measures?

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@msolga,

Quote:

FEDERAL Labor powerbroker Mark Arbib has been outed as a key source of intelligence on government and internal party machinations to the US embassy.

What constitutes treason in Australia? You say that he is a senator. Is that an elected or appointed position in Australia?

Correct me if I'm wrong but I would have thought that the job of a senator would be to serve the interests of the people, dare I say, of their country?

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Interesting opinion column in today's New York Times:
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/07/julian-assange-neocon-tool/

It goes back and forth and back and forth about pros and cons re wikileaks.

3 Replies

@ossobuco,

But, there are massive numbers of pros and cons. I may never be able to definitively come down on either side of this issue.

1 Reply

@ossobuco,

From osso's link:

Quote:

From where I stand — a position of emphatic anti-Bushism — this is a pretty serious charge: aiding and abetting anti-anti-Bushism. But, from this same standpoint, there’s a defense of Assange to be made.

aiding and abetting anti-anti-Bushism Mr. Green

There's nothing about this thing that's simple and straight forward.

1 Reply

@JPB,

Quote:

There's nothing about this thing that's simple and straight forward.

That's largely because of the massive disinformation policies of the US and its partners in crime, JPB.

It's simple and straightforward that the US and its allies have committed war crimes by illegally invading two sovereign nations.

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@ossobuco,

Quote:

If our government took this guidance, and quit keeping explosive secrets about what it’s doing abroad, then what it’s doing abroad would change. If our troops’ presence in Pakistan was going to be visible, Pakistan might not let them into the country. And the Yemeni government might veto transparently American drone strikes.

This would mean killing fewer terrorists in the short run, but it would probably mean creating way fewer of them in the long run.

ya think?

2 Replies

This whole dustup concerning wikileaks and the govt makes me wonder...do I really want my medical records online?

3 Replies

@mysteryman,

Quote:

...do I really want my medical records online?

You don't if it matters to you if your employer or potential employer knows your health situation, knowing full well that your employability will depend upon what these records say.

WikiLeaks about to hit the fan

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