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Justice Department Is Preparing To Prosecute WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange (wsj.com)

According to the Wall Street Journal, "the Justice Department is preparing to prosecute WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange (Warning: source paywalled; alternative source) and is increasingly optimistic it will be able to get him into a U.S. courtroom." From the report: Over the past year, U.S. prosecutors have discussed several types of charges they could potentially bring against Mr. Assange, the people said. Mr. Assange has lived in the Ecuadorean embassy in London since receiving political asylum from the South American country in 2012. The people familiar with the case wouldn't describe whether discussions were under way with the U.K. or Ecuador about Mr. Assange, but said they were encouraged by recent developments.

Prosecutors have considered publicly indicting Mr. Assange to try to trigger his removal from the embassy, the people said, because a detailed explanation of the evidence against Mr. Assange could give Ecuadorean authorities a reason to turn him over. The exact charges Justice Department might pursue remain unclear, but they may involve the Espionage Act, which criminalizes the disclosure of national defense-related information.

225 of 452 comments (clear)

  1. Fer Chrissakes... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    ...leave the man alone.

    1. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      Can't. He's a danger to the leading narrative

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    2. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by William+Baric · · Score: 1

      It makes me sad to see there are more and more people like you who consider exposing the truth is an atrocious crime.

    3. Re: Fer Chrissakes... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Yes, but that's committing an act on French soil. What he did was
      basically (to quote Ronald Reagan) shout "to hell with Reagan" in
      front of the Kremlin which doesn't violate any U.S. law whatsoever.

      Reagan made that statement for the sole purpose to illustrate the
      limits of U.S. law. Assange did nothing on U.S. soil and violated no
      U.S. treaty provisions. Most of Reagan's speeches were jokes and
      you can probably find a copy of this one on U-Tube.

      We have to be careful how we twist things to meet our philosophical ends...

      CAP === 'insists'

    4. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Assange quit exposing things for the sake of truth years ago. He used Wikileaks to pursue a personal agenda, and he made it very clear that he hoped to throw the US election.

      He was so eager to pillory his target that he sold himself out, not only to their domestic opponents, but to a not-exactly-friendly foreign nation as well.

      If there was ever anything to admire or respect about the man, there's precious little left of it now.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    5. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by William+Baric · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The reason why he wanted to expose the truth is completely irrelevant. The only thing relevant is that you want to crucify him only for exposing the truth. Again, it makes me sad that people like you consider exposing the truth is an atrocious crime. I can understand you may be nationalistic (although your signature in French makes me doubt that), but then you should have the honesty to say your goal is only to increase the power of the US by all means necessary. Do not try pretend to have the moral high-ground, because you really don't, at least not in my eyes.

      BTW, I'm not American. I live in Canada, and I certainly consider the US as a "not-exactly-friendly foreign nation".

    6. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by oh_my_080980980 · · Score: 1

      Oh poor little corporate shill no none of that happened but if make you sleep better at night knowing that exposing what your government does, i.e., journalism, some how threw an election, feel free to continue in your delusion.

    7. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by tbannist · · Score: 3, Insightful

      The reason why he wanted to expose the truth is completely irrelevant.

      You can claim that all you want, but that doesn't make it true.

      The only thing relevant is that you want to crucify him only for exposing the truth.

      No, the other poster clearly indicated he wants to crucify Assange for using Wikileaks for personal gain and/or vendettas.

      Again, it makes me sad that people like you consider exposing the truth is an atrocious crime.

      The problem is he didn't really expose the truth, he exposed half a truth and mislead many people. We all know that he allowed Wikileaks to be used a vehicle for propaganda and helped the Russian intelligence agencies interfere in the U.S. election. He did so because he wanted to pursue a personal vendetta against Hillary Clinton. The amusing part is that he hated Clinton because she wanted to do what the Trump administration is trying to do to him now.

      This looks like a case of being hoisted by your own petard, and I have little sympathy for someone who deliberately helped Trump get elected when they are facing the consequences of Trump having been elected.

      Do not try pretend to have the moral high-ground, because you really don't, at least not in my eyes.

      That's ok. Sometimes people just want to enjoy a little schaedenfreude.

      --
      Fanatically anti-fanatical
    8. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by Shotgun · · Score: 1, Insightful

      The problem is he didn't really expose the truth, he exposed half a truth and mislead many people. We all know that he allowed Wikileaks to be used a vehicle for propaganda and helped the Russian intelligence agencies interfere in the U.S. election. He did so because he wanted to pursue a personal vendetta against Hillary Clinton. The amusing part is that he hated Clinton because she wanted to do what the Trump administration is trying to do to him now.

      This looks like a case of being hoisted by your own petard, and I have little sympathy for someone who deliberately helped Trump get elected when they are facing the consequences of Trump having been elected.

      He tried to manipulate an election by exposing evidence that indicated that Hillary Clinton was manipulating an election?

      THE CAD!! TO THE GALLOWS WITH HIM!!

      --
      Aah, change is good. -- Rafiki
      Yeah, but it ain't easy. -- Simba
    9. Re: Fer Chrissakes... by McPierce · · Score: 1

      Except his activities involved illegally (by US law) accessing computers (on US soil) to retrieve information without permission. That puts his crimes under US jurisdiction.

      --
      Darryl L. Pierce "What do you care what people think, Mr. Feynman?"
    10. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by nosfucious · · Score: 1

      Yeah. Two thoughts.

      Let no good dead go unpunished.

      Secondly, know your man by the quality of the enemies.

      He may (or may not) be an arse, narcissistic, rapist, etc. However, a lot of people were made very uncomfortable. Far too few of them faced the music. The only ones that I can recall being punished at all were those exposing the truth.

      --
      Q:I was listening to a CD in Grip and it sounded horrible! What's up? A:Perhaps you are listening to country music
    11. Re: Fer Chrissakes... by Type44Q · · Score: 1
      Just as soon as they've admitted their roles in'

      The sinking of the USS Maine

      The assassination of McKinley

      The establishment of the Federal Reserve

      Their collusion with Nazi and feudal/fascist interests including La Cosa Nostra and the Yakuza... before, during and after the war

      Launching a coup against a democratically-elected government in Iran and putting a fucking monarchist on the throne

      Turning a blind eye when the IDF attackd a US Navy sigint vessel to hide the fact that they were about to invade Syria under false pretenses

      Planting people within the grassroots movement known as "the Sexual Revolution" (which threatened to lower the barriers between the sexes) so as to turn it into an astroturf movement called "FemLib" !which rather than liberating females, simply drove a wedge between the sexes - "divide and conquer")

      Planting people like Farrakhan within the grassroots movement known as "Civil Rights" - which threatened to bring blacks and whites together - to turn it into an astroturf movement called "Affirmative Action" (which has driven an incredibly effective wedge between the races)

      C. O. I. N. T. E. L. P. R. O.

      King, X and Kennedies

      The Gulf of Tonkin Incident... and the list goes on

      The amazing ways that steel and concrete - with the assistance of jetfuel - are able to defy the laws of physics

      *Yeah, I realize that they weren't even known as the OSS if you go far enough back... but they were controlled by the same families, as they are today

    12. Re: Fer Chrissakes... by Type44Q · · Score: 1

      and the list goes on

      Typo; should've been appended to the paragraph after it

    13. Re: Fer Chrissakes... by Type44Q · · Score: 1

      The Ecuadoran embassy could dump him in Moscow in a heartbeat and was their hands of the whole thing.

      Yeah, maybe they could bypass MI5 by "beaming" him straight to Moscow using Chinese quantum radar...

    14. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by jeremyp · · Score: 1

      Why? He's a rapist.

      --
      All I want is a secure system where it's easy to do anything I want. Is that too much to ask ~~ Randall Munroe
    15. Re: Fer Chrissakes... by McPierce · · Score: 1

      You're comparing apples and oranges.

      For most countries, if the crime is illegal in BOTH the country where you reside AND the country affected (like in this case with Assange) then most countries are extradition agreements to allow you to be punished for that crime.

      So it doesn't matter that Assange never came to the US to illegally access any computer system. The two counties have treaties that allow for extraditing someone being indicted between countries.

      --
      Darryl L. Pierce "What do you care what people think, Mr. Feynman?"
    16. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 3, Insightful

      The reason why he wanted to expose the truth is completely irrelevant.

      False. Intent matters. Assange's intent on getting his ego stroked, and this has rather obviously coloured his actions.

      I also do not at all appreciate your blatant attempts at projection, miscategorisation, and to put words in my mouth. I never said anything remotely like I wanted to "crucify" Assange. So stop claiming that I did, or KGFY.

      You also continue to ignore—even though I've made myself pretty clear on this point—that I don't object to uncovering facts. What I object to is Assange's highly selective use of selected information as a weapon to further a very self-interested agenda, one that takes no consideration of its effects on the well-being of countless ordinary Americans (and others) who've done no-one any harm, least of all Assange.

      And just so you know, I'm a US-Swedish dual national and, yes, I do consider myself a loyal citizen of both of my countries, and, no, I see nothing wrong with that.

      When you're ready to respond to things I've actually said, get back to me.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    17. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      I'm sorry, Slashdot seems to have mangled what I'm sure began as a thoughtful and articulate response...

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    18. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      [...crickets...]

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    19. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      False. Intent matters.

      False. Intent does not matter when absolute truths are involved.

      Such as publishing absolute, verifiable truth. It does not matter if Hitler himself, standing in the middle of a concentration camp were to announce that 2+2=4. It does not matter if the equation were to be used as some sort of justification of genocide. 2 and 2 still come to be 4.

      The messenger or the circumstance or the intent in no way affect the validity of the message itself.

      Cries of "intent" in respect to absolute truths are an exclusive domain those who wish to HIDE those truths for the simple reason that publishing truth impedes their malignancy. That means you.

      They wish to crucify messengers to prevent propagation of inconvenient truths. Just as you want to do. You want for truth to be regimented and controlled, rationed for the benefit of those who control access to it and you want all "unauthorized" dissemination of truth to be punished. Your, and your masters' lies on the other hand, naturally, are not to have any such restrictions.

      Also, Intent is unprovable. It would require you to have direct access to someone's thoughts.

      Yes, I know that various autocrats and totalitarians insist that it is possible for a "thought police" to function (usually by means of extrapolation, circumstantial associations and just plain guesswork) but it does not change the simple truth that until you come up with a continuous brain scan, thought reading technology you are out of luck there.

    20. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      I don't know who you think you're talking to, but it doesn't seem to be me.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    21. Re:Fer Chrissakes... by CaptainDork · · Score: 1

      I did admire Assange and Wikileaks at the outset. I like ballsy people and stuff, and whistle blowers, particularly.

      The concept of an anonymous repository for documents representing a modern Guernica, I thought, was a much needed service.

      I think Manning, Snowden and even Winner moved in that direction.

      Your points correctly expose the problems caused by ego on the part of Assange and the need for funding on the part of Wikileaks.

      My admiration turned to disgust and disrespect when the vanity kicked in.

      I hope Assange gets screwed real good, and it's not because I object in any way to his reveals of sensitive material.

      No, I just don't like the sorry asshole.

      --
      It little behooves the best of us to comment on the rest of us.
  2. Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden.

  3. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Mal-2 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Being both an asshole and paranoid didn't mean he was wrong.

    --
    How is the Riemann zeta function like Trump rallies? Both have an endless number of trivial zeros.
  4. Assange's fears were correct? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    His fears were correct that the US justice department are getting ready to indict him, and somehow bring him back to the US?

    1. Re: Assange's fears were correct? by saloomy · · Score: 3, Insightful

      It's not a crime if it's done outside the country, right? I mean.... it's a crime in many countries to depict the Prophet Mohammed, and some of those countries are international treaty signatories, but that doesn't mean they get to extradite Charlie Hebdo artists.

      Was he in the US during any of his espionage activities?

    2. Re: Assange's fears were correct? by Koby77 · · Score: 1

      It's not a crime if it's done outside the country, right?

      Probably not. If you were to hack into a bank and transfer the money into your own offshore account, then I'm certain that the country with the bank would have both some law saying that they can extradite you, as well as some treaty with a bunch of other countries that give permission for the extradition. Not that I believe it's okay to charge anyone outside of your country with anything, I'm just saying with certainty that such laws exist.

    3. Re: Assange's fears were correct? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      X = Mohammed
      C===3 = a dick
      X3 = Mohammed taking it balls deep up the ass.

      #NeverFortgetX3

         

    4. Re:Assange's fears were correct? by Megol · · Score: 1

      You messiah can see far into the future? While impressive how come he didn't see the problem before going to Sweden in the first place?

    5. Re: Assange's fears were correct? by Paxtez · · Score: 1

      Normally. But not always. If you do X drug in Country-Y where it is legal, country-Z generally can't do anything about it. But when it comes to crimes over the computer generally there will be a law saying that something to effect of: "If do something over the phone/internet to something/someone in our jurisdiction, we're going to count that it occurred here also"

      Extradition is a whole other thing, it's half "are you guys going to pay to come over here any pick this dude up?" and half "We're going to / not going to hold / help / allow you to pick this guy up." Generally they have to help you because you aren't going to have 'powers' outside of your jurisdiction and you (normally) can't go breaking into places and kidnapping people outside of where you have powers.

    6. Re: Assange's fears were correct? by the_xaqster · · Score: 1

      It's not a crime if it's done outside the country, right?

      Probably not. If you were to hack into a bank and transfer the money into your own offshore account, then I'm certain that the country with the bank would have both some law saying that they can extradite you, as well as some treaty with a bunch of other countries that give permission for the extradition. Not that I believe it's okay to charge anyone outside of your country with anything, I'm just saying with certainty that such laws exist.

      Depending on the crime and where you live, actually it is. https://publications.parliamen...

      --
      I'm just here to regulate Funkyness
    7. Re:Assange's fears were correct? by squiggleslash · · Score: 1

      I would say that if the DoJ is considering starting the process of putting together charges, then he wasn't correct, no. If the DoJ is considering charges now, then, at the time Assange said "Ooo I'm going to hide in an embassy and it's not because I've done anything that violates Swedish law it's because of the Americans honest" then we can be sure of two things:

      1. There were no US charges against Assange at the time.
      2. Because of (1) there was no chance of Assange being extradited to the US at the time.

      Everyone here posting "This means Assange was right!" has got this completely backwards. The announcement today means that Assange was completely 100% wrong. (And, to be honest, I suspect he know the excuses were false at the time anyway.)

      --
      You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
    8. Re: Assange's fears were correct? by radarskiy · · Score: 1

      "It's not a crime if it's done outside the country, right?"

      Where does the Internet happen?

    9. Re: Assange's fears were correct? by yuriklastalov · · Score: 1

      some of those countries are international treaty signatories, but that doesn't mean they get to extradite Charlie Hebdo artists.

      No, they just brought the Muslim extremists to the artists! If you can't deport, you must import!

    10. Re: Assange's fears were correct? by psiclops · · Score: 1

      wouldn't CX be Mhammed taking it balls deep up the ass.
      X3 appears to be Mohammed regurgitating cock.

      --
      i spent five minutes thinking and all i got was this crappy sig
    11. Re:Assange's fears were correct? by Uberbah · · Score: 1

      The announcement today means that Assange was completely 100% wrong.

      Forget this week - the 2001 case of Sweden handing people over to the CIA to be tortured makes all of Assange's fears entirely reasonable. Anyone who claims otherwise is either woefully ignorant of relevant events or is purposely turning their brain off, and accept more BS from the same sort of people that lied you into Iraq. That one example of shenanigans is more than enough, but there are plenty more where that came from. And each one doubles the willful ignorance involved, like that old story about a kid getting a grain of rice from a greedy king, except each day that grain of rice would double:

      • There's the fact that Assange was questioned and cleared to leave Sweden by investigators, only for another, more politically motivated prosecutor to step in. And get an INTERPOL warrant. For a couple of women who asked for an STD test.

        There's the fact that Sweden has refused for years to either interview Assange remotely, or to send investigators to interview him in London - as they've done dozens of other times since Assange took refuge in the embassy.

        There's the fact that Sweden has refused Assange's offer to return to Sweden if they promise not to hand him over to the United States. A promise that would be easy to make, given America's fondness for torture. Speaking off...

        There's the fact that Obama had Chelsea Manning tortured with a year and a half of solitary confinement.

        There's the fact that the UK has spent millions of pounds to watch one person for...jumping bail. And pressured Sweden to keep up the investigation instead of dropping it.

        Then there's the fact that Sweden went to great lengths to nab a founder of the Pirate Bay from a non-extradition country - and as soon as he was on Swedish soil, interrogated him at length without a lawyer for an alleged crime in another country. Which meant it was their plan to do so all along. And as soon as his Swedish sentence was up, deported him to said other country (Denmark).

      And that's off the top of my head, there's probably some more I'm forgetting. But you're already at an entire kingdom's worth of willful dumbfuckery, based facts that have been readily available for years.

  5. Matt Whittaker by PopeRatzo · · Score: 5, Informative

    Just remember, the head of the Justice Department is Trump's new appointee Matthew Whittaker, who was a patent troll whose company was shut down for fraud and whose claim to fame was a toilet designed for guys with really big dicks and a time-traveling bitcoin-based commodity..

    I did not make that up.

    https://boingboing.net/2018/11...

    https://theslot.jezebel.com/th...

    So if you have a problem with Julian Assange being prosecuted, take it up with Hair Furor.

    --
    You are welcome on my lawn.
    1. Re:Matt Whittaker by PopeRatzo · · Score: 5, Informative

      "Whitaker, a former U.S. attorney, served on the firm’s advisory board "

      Really doesn't sound like "His Company"

      It was enough Whittaker's company that he made promotional videos for them and wrote threatening letters to customers who complained about the fraud. He was apparently very involved with the company.

      https://www.wsj.com/articles/d...

      https://www.wsj.com/articles/w...

      https://www.washingtonpost.com...

      --
      You are welcome on my lawn.
    2. Re:Matt Whittaker by Crashmarik · · Score: 1

      Well the WSJ articles are behind paywalls, so it's hard to comment on them

      But the WaPo had this on him "Whitaker was not named in the FTC complaint.( against world patent marketing)"

    3. Re:Matt Whittaker by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Just remember, the head of the Justice Department is Trump's new appointee Matthew Whittaker, who was a patent troll whose company was shut down for fraud...

      Somehow we have defined down what we demand of the leader of the free world.

      The guy just made up an illegal alien invasion and used the troops as a prop to help win an election. Then to follow it up he appoints someone clearly incompetent to lead the Justice department. Jeff Sessions may have been the next thing to evil, particularly with kids in cages and such, but at least he was apparently competent.

      What happens if all our key agencies are led by toadying morons and we face a real threat? Seriously he has flat out said he will use the powers he has and the powers the republican senators have to directly attack his political enemies, not because there is a legitimate thing to investigate, but as flat out political attacks.

      What the hell does it take to get republicans to wake up and say, "Um, we may have a problem?" Do we wait till the gross incompetence costs a few thousand lives? There are countless ways they can manage it. Hell the shear destruction of the EPA alone will likely cause that over time.

    4. Re:Matt Whittaker by bmimatt · · Score: 1

      Hey, he provided legit links sto back up his story, why the downmods, peeps?

    5. Re:Matt Whittaker by rtb61 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      What they will be trying to prosecute, is that it is illegal for a foreign citizen in a foreign nation to report the criminal espionage activity of the United States government in those and other nations, interesting idea. So here I am in Australia, if I see an CIA agent murder an Australian in Australia, the US government wants to be able to prosecute me for the crime of espionage if I publicly report their crime, keeping in mind it is a crime to fail to report a crime, accessory after the fact. So the US government is attempting to demand that citizens all over the world, betray their own countries laws, to keep secret the criminal activities of the US government, in those countries.

      Perhaps some of you can grasp why this would be an extremely hard sell, for anything but an entirely corrupt third world nation, a puppet state of the US deep state. He was reporting on US criminal activities outside of the US, as a foreign citizen, in a foreign land. Now the US wants to make it illegal and global law, that the US is able to break any countries laws for any reason and that no citizen of any country, NO CITIZEN, is allowed to report those crimes and should they do so, be subject to prosecution and obviously illegal detention and probably torture. Go fuck yourself USA. So will the UK buckle, probably not, not matter how much the US extorts them with the bullshit white helmets and the theft of 200 million US dollars, even after the poms were forced to buy more crappy F35 Flying Pigs as a result.

      It would also be extremely poorly received in Australia and possibly result in a boycott of US goods, expect Breaker Morant https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... messaging. Want to extradite Assange, do it from Australia, else face a major backlash and many Australians doing much worse than Julian Assange.

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    6. Re: Matt Whittaker by TimMD909 · · Score: 1

      "Hair Furor"?! You're someone I'm likely to disagree with, yet... GODDAMMIT. You're entertaining. Thanks for the post, turdle wrinkle.

    7. Re: Matt Whittaker by TimMD909 · · Score: 1

      I'm beginning to think PR isn't as malevolent as once assumed. If I frame him as a South Park caricature, he's rather benign.

    8. Re: Matt Whittaker by PopeRatzo · · Score: 1

      "Hair Furor"?! You're someone I'm likely to disagree with, yet... GODDAMMIT. You're entertaining. Thanks for the post, turdle wrinkle.

      It's nice to be appreciated. Most of my jokes are just casting pearl necklaces before swine, but it's gratifying when somebody gets one.

      --
      You are welcome on my lawn.
    9. Re:Matt Whittaker by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      PR offers facts, and you offer nothing but feels. Otherwise we'd see you refuting him rather than asking for cheese to go with your whine.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    10. Re: Matt Whittaker by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      Please explain why Trump keeps axing his most competent aides, then...?

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    11. Re:Matt Whittaker by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      Again, no refutation, just more attempts to distract.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    12. Re: Matt Whittaker by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      The wrong in your post is in every sentence so no point in refuting any of it. It would take way too long.

      Excuses, excuses. Ante up or GTFO.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    13. Re:Matt Whittaker by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      Assange committed NO CRIME. He is NOT under the jurisdiction of the US. It doesn't fucking matter what he did to piss off the US government.

    14. Re:Matt Whittaker by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      The projection is strong in this one.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    15. Re:Matt Whittaker by Tough+Love · · Score: 1

      Don't forget Puerto Rico, more thousands.

      --
      When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
    16. Re:Matt Whittaker by MrKaos · · Score: 1

      So here I am in Australia, if I see an CIA agent murder an Australian in Australia, the US government wants to be able to prosecute me for the crime of espionage if I publicly report their crime, keeping in mind it is a crime to fail to report a crime, accessory after the fact.

      Under the witnessing laws passed in the 2001 Australian Anti-Terrorism Act you would be subject to a mandatory prison sentence of 5 years. Proof of your innocence would be taken from you at the same time burden of proof placed upon you.

      So the US government is attempting to demand that citizens all over the world, betray their own countries laws, to keep secret the criminal activities of the US government, in those countries.

      Yep

      Now the US wants to make it illegal and global law, that the US is able to break any countries laws for any reason and that no citizen of any country, NO CITIZEN, is allowed to report those crimes and should they do so, be subject to prosecution and obviously illegal detention and probably torture.

      Yep

      Go fuck yourself USA.

      Yep

      Want to extradite Assange, do it from Australia, else face a major backlash and many Australians doing much worse than Julian Assange.

      Yep

      --
      My ism, it's full of beliefs.
    17. Re:Matt Whittaker by Zontar_Thing_From_Ve · · Score: 1

      What they will be trying to prosecute, is that it is illegal for a foreign citizen in a foreign nation to report the criminal espionage activity of the United States government in those and other nations, interesting idea. So here I am in Australia, if I see an CIA agent murder an Australian in Australia, the US government wants to be able to prosecute me for the crime of espionage if I publicly report their crime, keeping in mind it is a crime to fail to report a crime, accessory after the fact. So the US government is attempting to demand that citizens all over the world, betray their own countries laws, to keep secret the criminal activities of the US government, in those countries.

      No, that's not it at all. Imagine that you are driving a car and reading and writing SMS messages ("text messages" for us US and Canada people) because you aren't paying attention you kill a pedestrian. And now you're crying about looking at 10+ years in jail because "the government doesn't want me to use my phone in the car". No, you're in trouble for killing someone through carelessness.

      The problem is not that it's a "crime to report a crime" as you basically claim. The problem is that the documents Wikileaks obtained were classified and they didn't have the US legal right to access them at all, let alone make them available to the world. Also, in the interesting catch 22 situation you came up with, I would hope that the Oz government would recognize your dilemma and not extradite you for obeying their law, but whether they would or not in your scenario is your problem with your government. Stating that the US government is angry about foreign nationals reporting illegal activities is a glib distraction from the real issue, which was illegally accessing classified documents and making them available to the world. The fact that Wikileaks was given the documents doesn't mean that they didn't break the law by having them in the first place when they weren't supposed to. Note that Wikileaks's one attempt to not face legal problems was to contact the US government and say "Hey. Some idiot gave us these classified docs." They didn't. They published them instead.

  6. Prosecute him for? by Zurkeyon3733 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What? Telling the Truth? Out loud? Without a Permit? I love how the people he EXPOSED are still FREE AS BIRDS, but this guy just HAS To be "Prosecuted"

    1. Re:Prosecute him for? by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 2

      "Prostituted." Other countries are being turned into the prostitutes of the US, told to harass Assange while the US comes up with a plan.

  7. Jurisdiction? by rally2xs · · Score: 5, Insightful

    How do we get the right to prosecute a foreign national doing things in a foreign country that are protected by our own first amendment? Really don't understand this.

    1. Re:Jurisdiction? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Same way a thug on the street has the "right" to take your wallet. Try and stop him.

    2. Re:Jurisdiction? by ArchieBunker · · Score: 1

      They prosecute him in the USA and send extradition orders to whatever country he resides.

      --
      Only the State obtains its revenue by coercion. - Murray Rothbard
    3. Re:Jurisdiction? by phantomfive · · Score: 2

      They don't have a clear way to do it. If they did, they would have already done it, instead of doing nothing but making noise for the past two years.

      --
      "First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
    4. Re:Jurisdiction? by phantomfive · · Score: 5, Insightful

      If you support leaking when it hurts the other party but not your own party, you are the problem. Fix your own party so you don't have to worry about leaking (and personally I'd be happy if both parties collapse. They don't represent the majority of the people, anyway).

      --
      "First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
    5. Re:Jurisdiction? by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 5, Insightful

      You can't be a spy unless you're an insider. You can't be a traitor unless you owe allegiance to a government. He was in neither situation with respect to the Untied States of Dumberica.

    6. Re:Jurisdiction? by Bradac_55 · · Score: 1

      Non-USA citizens are only protected by a partial 5th amendment and the measures given by the executive branch that changes every 4 or 8 years.

      It's amazing how little people know/understand US law around here.

    7. Re:Jurisdiction? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      There is zero evidence that a "foreign adversary" leaked Hillary's emails to Assange (or any other data). Assange himself denies it. Those emails were "hacked" as a result of Podesta falling for an email phishing scam and giving his password away to a bogus email. Easily detectable/traceable methods are not the hallmark of a foreign intelligence service with unlimited resources.

    8. Re: Jurisdiction? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Yes you did. You said that you want Assange tried for harming your party. We all can see it in the chat log.

    9. Re:Jurisdiction? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      It was when he started working with foreign against a single political party that he might have run afoul of some laws that might still apply even there.

      If Julian Assange worked for Mi6 would you be saying the same thing? What if the leaks applied to China? Do you think the UK would hand over one of its agents to China for espionage? No? Yea, this is all utter bullshit where the only reason this is even pursued is that Wikileaks isn't a country and the UK and many other western countries are subservient to the whim of the US.

      Seriously, either get your head out of your ass.

    10. Re: Jurisdiction? by wolf12886 · · Score: 2

      Fucking this. The hypocrisy from the anti-Assange crowd is unbearable.

    11. Re:Jurisdiction? by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      They don't represent the majority of the people, anyway

      I'm sorry, what? Over 96% of the people that vote voted for them. Sounds like a pretty big majority to me...

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    12. Re:Jurisdiction? by phantomfive · · Score: 1

      People don't always vote for the party that represents them.

      --
      "First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
    13. Re:Jurisdiction? by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

      That's not the party's fault.

      --
      “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
    14. Re: Jurisdiction? by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      He didn't say it was his party. And you should exercise more care when copying/pasting. "Chat log" LOL.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    15. Re:Jurisdiction? by KeensMustard · · Score: 1
      OT extradite him his crime has to be pretty much illegal in the country where he is resident. Leaking US classified information isn't illegal anywhere but the US - then you are reliant on other nations wanting to co-operate with the US, Which they might have wanted to do a few years ago, but whatever motivation they had to do so has now gone.

      Trump reportedly screamed at May over the phone the other day and his public spat with Macron and Macron's response show quite clearly that not even the US's closest allies care about staying on good terms with his administration.

    16. Re:Jurisdiction? by Wizardess · · Score: 1

      The only thing, in a just world, for which Assange can be prosecuted for in and by the US is a copyright violation. Nothing else, such as the espionage act, matters. He is not a US citizen. So far as I am aware he is not and was not in the US when he received or released the data. But, he did pirate copyrighted data. And international copyright conventions makes him liable for prosecution.

      {^_^}

    17. Re:Jurisdiction? by quantaman · · Score: 1

      How do we get the right to prosecute a foreign national doing things in a foreign country that are protected by our own first amendment? Really don't understand this.

      1) The first amendment covers you if you're given secret documents and republish them, it doesn't cover you if you solicit those documents and aid in their extraction. Assange did both of those things. This came up a while back when a journalist (I think Maddow) asked viewers to send her Trumps tax returns (not the partial return she published). The fact she solicited the documents meant she could have been charged if someone sent her the tax returns and she published them, while another journalist would have been in the clear.

      2) If you fire a missile at Ecuador from the US then Ecuador will certainly try to extradite you, similarly if you hack into their military database and steal a bunch of their classified intel. Just because you're not in a country doesn't mean you can't commit a crime against that country and have them try to charge and extradite you.

      Heck, if you insult the King of Thailand online they could presumably charge you and try to extradite, of course no other country is going to honour that extradition request. And it's not certain that Sweden or London would honour the US's extradition request if Assange ended up in one of those nations.

      --
      I stole this Sig
    18. Re: Jurisdiction? by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      Countries have the right to defend themselves against attacks from other countries, idiot.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    19. Re:Jurisdiction? by elrous0 · · Score: 1

      How do we get the right to prosecute a foreign national doing things in a foreign country that are protected by our own first amendment? Really don't understand this.

      Having a military force that's 5x larger than the next-nearest country probably helps.

      --
      SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
    20. Re: Jurisdiction? by Shotgun · · Score: 1

      You forgot: What if only one side is stupid enough to hire John Podesta or people like him that will fall for phishing scams?

      --
      Aah, change is good. -- Rafiki
      Yeah, but it ain't easy. -- Simba
    21. Re:Jurisdiction? by F.Ultra · · Score: 1

      In fact Sweden wouldn't even be able to consider extradite him to the US since the UK extradited him (before he ran to the Ecuadorian embassy) with conditions that he would only stand trail for the rape case or be returned to the UK.

  8. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by NicknameUnavailable · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's not paranoia when they're actually out to get you.

  9. Time to dig out the really interesting stuff by nehumanuscrede · · Score: 1

    Here's hoping Assange ( or another of our favorite whistle blowers currently residing in Russia ) held back some seriously juicy documents for the world to ponder over in the event something like this ever becomes a reality.

    That's a really nice $illegal_as_hell_with_a_silly_operation_name Surveillance System you have there . . . . would be a shame if something happened to it. . . . . .

  10. In court? by ElizabethGreene · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Mr. Assange's platform has shrunk dramatically during his internment. If we had the audacity to put him on trial he'd become more powerful than he has ever been.

    That would not be permitted. There would be a Jack Ruby. I'd wager a pint on it.

  11. He's not a US citizen... by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 4, Interesting

    He's not a US citizen, he owes no fucking allegiance to the US. He has no duty to protect US secrets or to the US government. Screw the US for presuming that they can bully the world for publishing information they don't like.

    1. Re:He's not a US citizen... by speederaser · · Score: 5, Informative

      He's not a US citizen, he owes no fucking allegiance to the US. He has no duty to protect US secrets or to the US government.

      52 U.S. Code  30121 is a Federal law that makes it a felony for any foreign national to attempt to influence a U.S. election, and a felony for any U.S. citizen to help them do it.

      The DOJ appears to be trying to get Assange for conspiracy with Russians or Americans to influence the 2016 U.S. election. There is public information that Roger Stone, a long-time Trump associate, was in contact with Assange during the campaign, discussing how to handle the stolen DNC emails. Maybe that plays out, maybe it doesn't. In any case we'll know more when Mueller wraps things up.

    2. Re:He's not a US citizen... by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 1

      The only thing that might apply there is the section on electioneering communications, but the law defines such a communication so narrowly that it probably doesn't.

    3. Re:He's not a US citizen... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      And like all federal laws, it applies to anyone within US jurisdiction. That's what "jurisdiction" fucking means. Assange isn't, and wasn't when he did - whatever it's alleged he did.

      At a time when Trump is apparently arguing that foreign nationals in the US aren't "subject to its jurisdiction", it seems even more than ordinarily hypocritical for his own justice department to be simultaneously arguing that foreign nationals outside it are.

    4. Re: He's not a US citizen... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      That's not how extradition works. The country from which the subject is extradited must agree that the subject's actions constituted a crime. I'm pretty sure that interfering in elections is also a crime in the UK.

      Additional restrictions may apply. For example, many countries that have abolished capital punishment will not extradite to a country that has the death penalty unless that country promises not to execute the subject.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    5. Re:He's not a US citizen... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      On the contrary, most Australians are decent and honest and hardworking people.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    6. Re:He's not a US citizen... by Raenex · · Score: 1

      a Federal law that makes it a felony for any foreign national to attempt to influence a U.S. election, and a felony for any U.S. citizen to help them do it

      So when are they going to indict and extradite these Australians for helping Bernie Sanders?

      When are they going to indict and extradite Christopher Steele, the "ex" MI6 agent that supposedly contacted Russians to compile his "salacious and unverified" Trump dossier? When are they going to prosecute those involved from the DNC, the Clinton campaign, the Department of Justice, and the FBI?

      It's funny, we're going on two years of this "Trump-Russia collusion" business, but the bulk of the evidence points to a criminal conspiracy to help the Democrats.

    7. Re:He's not a US citizen... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      You realise that anyone saying this is immediately identifiable as someone who's not an actual US citizen who's actually lived overseas, don't you?

      To start, I suggest you have a chat with the IRS, because they have a rather different take on things than you do.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    8. Re:He's not a US citizen... by cascadingstylesheet · · Score: 1

      He's not a US citizen, he owes no fucking allegiance to the US. He has no duty to protect US secrets or to the US government.

      52 U.S. Code  30121 is a Federal law that makes it a felony for any foreign national to attempt to influence a U.S. election, and a felony for any U.S. citizen to help them do it.

      The DOJ appears to be trying to get Assange for conspiracy with Russians or Americans to influence the 2016 U.S. election. There is public information that Roger Stone, a long-time Trump associate, was in contact with Assange during the campaign, discussing how to handle the stolen DNC emails. Maybe that plays out, maybe it doesn't. In any case we'll know more when Mueller wraps things up.

      Uh oh, left wing dilemma here then ... did Assange "collude"??

      Prepare for heads to explode like a 60s sci fi robot caught in a contradiction!

    9. Re: He's not a US citizen... by CaptainDork · · Score: 1

      Another reality is that Assange and Wikileaks did not harm just the US.

      In the back channels, the Allies are asking each other, "Who wants to step up and get this creep and set an example for all of us that espionage ain't cool?"

      The US is very willing to take Assange on.

      Look at it:

      Sweden don't like him. Australia don't like him. UK don't like him. Ecuador don't like him. Europe don't like him.

      Hell, CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC would likely fund BOTH sides of the plaintiff/defense circus to get the advertising dollars.

      --
      It little behooves the best of us to comment on the rest of us.
  12. "Insurance" files by poity · · Score: 1

    Wonder if they're legit. That's his last resort.

    --
    your thin skin doesn't make me a troll
  13. Assange is Australian by DMJC · · Score: 5, Informative

    And Fuck the Australian government for not protecting one of our own. Vote Independant next Federal election and turf these assholes out. Labor is making deals with China's Belt and Road and the Liberals are just scum. None of them deserve government.

    1. Re:Assange is Australian by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 2

      Better China than the US. China treats its own citizens like crap, but doesn't push countries outside their immediate vicinity around militarily. The US has been a worldwide bully since the end of WW2.

    2. Re:Assange is Australian by s4080326 · · Score: 1

      Better China than the US. China treats its own citizens like crap, but doesn't push countries outside their immediate vicinity around militarily. The US has been a worldwide bully since the end of WW2.

      That's a good point except the fact that Australia is in China's vicinity.

    3. Re:Assange is Australian by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 1

      China hasn't been known to fuck with countries without a land border with them ... the US, on the other hand...

    4. Re:Assange is Australian by thegarbz · · Score: 1, Informative

      And Fuck the Australian government for not protecting one of our own.

      From what? The only thing he's been accused of is rape charges. Charges that a British court (a country which operates under a very similar legal system to Australia) has determined as legitimate charges.

      Australia does not run out and protect people's criminal activities in other countries. Their bounds extend exclusively to ensuring the subjects aren't treated in a way that would be illegal to do in their home country. e.g. Assange goes to prison, tough shit, keep your dick in your pants. Assange gets the death penalty, wowowowowoow. Hold up! You can't do that because he didn't keep his dick in his pants, he should ONLY go to prison.

      Vote Independant next Federal election and turf these assholes out.

      To be clear: Fuck Off, I'm not changing any vote because you think some government should step in due to some alegedly criminal behaviour for which the government's citizen has actively refused to participate in what would very likely be a fair and normal trial.

      That's not how diplomacy works. That's not how the legal system works. That's not how ANY of this works, and any politician you vote that thinks otherwise should spend a bit of time behind bars for not following Australia's own legal practices.

    5. Re:Assange is Australian by The+Cynical+Critic · · Score: 1

      China only pushing around it's immediate neighbors isn't because it doesn't want to, but because it doesn't have the force projection to do so just yet, with yet being the operative word.

      Not only have they already started setting up bases outside of the asian subcontinent, they're also investing heavily into aircraft carriers. Other than the originally Ukranian built sister ship to Russia's only carrier they've refitted and gotten into service, they've got a domestically built version of the same design undergoing sea trials and a third domestic design with CATOBAR launching under construction. Some reports say that they've also got two nuclear-powered ones under construction, but I'm not fully convinced of those reports' accuracy.

      The point is that China doesn't go around acting like world police because it doesn't want to, but because it can't do it just yet. Give it a decade and you can be sure that they will absolutely be competing with the U.S in doing what the U.S has been doing since WW2.

      --
      "Why should I want to make anything up? Life's bad enough as it is without wanting to invent any more of it."
    6. Re:Assange is Australian by DigiShaman · · Score: 1

      It's making good with the 2020 Clinton administration via providing an a peace "offering" in the form of Assange's head. That's right, this will NOT be a speedy trial; specifically because Democrats know Trump would pardon him prior to that time.

      And no, I won't tell you were I parked my time machine!!

      --
      Life is not for the lazy.
    7. Re:Assange is Australian by Major+Blud · · Score: 1
      --
      If you post as Anonymous Coward, don't expect a reply.
  14. Re:Treason / Sedition by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 2

    Impossible -- he's not an American citizen (or even a legal resident) and thus doesn't owe allegiance or fealty to the US.

  15. Assange's defense ... by CaptainDork · · Score: 4, Interesting

    ... will be that he's a publisher and protected by freedom of the press.

    When his name first surfaced in association with Wikileaks, he made it clear that he was simply the "spokesman," and did not "hack," or supervise the release of material, and had no way to know what the internal workings were.

    He was simply the front man.

    That's how he circumvented culpability for a hell of a lot of years.

    Wikileaks itself elevated interest in Assange when the organization turned political in a move to increase donations which had fallen off due to lack of interest by supporters.

    Wikileak's decline also affected Assange's visibility and he resented the lack of attention.

    Assange started to take some credit for the material Wikileaks was releasing.

    That was incriminating and blew his credibility as a distant spokesperson.

    For that reason, he asserted that he was a journalist and that Wikileaks was a publishing house.

    I'm leaving out the the narrative regarding his relationship with two women because those details are irrelevant.

    With the loss of Ecuador's support, Assange is in deep shit.

    --
    It little behooves the best of us to comment on the rest of us.
    1. Re:Assange's defense ... by radarskiy · · Score: 1

      "he's a publisher and protected by freedom of the press."

      And this is the stated reason why the Obama Administration was not pursuing Assange when everyone was spinning crazy conspiracy theories about extradition via Sweden. Seems rather quaint these days, when the White House Press Secretary will outright post doctored videos of a journalist to implicate them in a physical assault.

    2. Re:Assange's defense ... by CaptainDork · · Score: 1

      No.

      Assange stated that he was protected by freedom of the press.

      No one in any administration, be it Sweden, UK, or the United States has given any stated reason by way of freedom of the press for not pursuing Assange.

      Your obscure correlation is irrelevant and off topic.

      --
      It little behooves the best of us to comment on the rest of us.
    3. Re:Assange's defense ... by radarskiy · · Score: 1

      "No one in any administration, be it Sweden, UK, or the United States has given any stated reason by way of freedom of the press for not pursuing Assange.

      Glenn Greenwald on November 16, 2018 wrote "As the Obama DOJ Concluded, Prosecution of Julian Assange for Publishing Documents Poses Grave Threats to Press Freedom"
      https://theintercept.com/2018/...
      where he cites this Washington Post article by Sari Horowitz from November 25, 2013 "Julian Assange unlikely to face U.S. charges over publishing classified documents" https://www.washingtonpost.com... which includes this quote from teh then DoJ spokesperson:
      “The problem the department has always had in investigating Julian Assange is there is no way to prosecute him for publishing information without the same theory being applied to journalists,” said former Justice Department spokesman Matthew Miller. “And if you are not going to prosecute journalists for publishing classified information, which the department is not, then there is no way to prosecute Assange.”

      So we have had a stated reason for nearly five years.

    4. Re:Assange's defense ... by radarskiy · · Score: 1

      Sorry, the WaPo journalist was Sari Horwitz, not Horowitz

    5. Re:Assange's defense ... by CaptainDork · · Score: 1

      Doesn't matter. There's a gap in your story of ten years. You left out the evolution of Assange as spokesperson to publisher.

      I follow this story in detail and have covered it ever since it surfaced because it's so interesting.

      Go back and look at the details. Obama (I'll concede, but I didn't actual read your reference because of its position on the timeline) was addressing the issue as if Assange was a publisher/journalist precisely because Assange rebranded himself.

      --
      It little behooves the best of us to comment on the rest of us.
  16. so many things wrong here by WindBourne · · Score: 1

    Look, I am not a fan of Assange. I believe in trying Snowden for treason and that manning should still be in jail.
    BUT, Assange is not an American citizen. He is Australian. The fact that he received stolen data is no excuse for us to prosecute him.

    --
    I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
    1. Re:so many things wrong here by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I believe that sunlight disinfects. The fewer secrets countries and corporations are able to keep, the better off the world is. Snowden, Assange, and Manning are all heroes.

      The villains in the US are the officials that squandered $6 trillion (6 trillion dollars!) on military homicide sprees since 9/11. Money that could have been used better within the US. Want to put America first -- do it, don't give it lip service while dumping money into futile wars abroad.

    2. Re:so many things wrong here by jd · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Snowden and Manning did their civic duty. If the government is so corrupt, civic duty is heroic then government needs to be overhauled.

      Nonetheless, they did a significant national service.

      Assange has tried to play puppet master, controlling what information is given, selecting what you can and cannot know. I see no difference between him and the Pentagon, selective manipulation for personal gain.

      If they should be prosecuted, so should he.

      --
      It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
    3. Re:so many things wrong here by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 1

      All three did a service to the world at large, and that matters more than country. All three deserve to be free as birds, flipping the bird to government(s) worldwide.

    4. Re: so many things wrong here by WindBourne · · Score: 1

      Manning out and out, committed treason and belongs in a life at levenworth. Snowden is interesting in that he originally spoke about nsa employees that went to far, and nsa systems that did not block such heinous actions. For that, he deserves a medal. The problem is, that he went on speaking about items that nsa was not just legal on, but set up to do. NSA job is to spy on foreign soils against would be enemies. To be fair, nsa went too far on that ( spying on British and German leaders? WTF were the thinking ). BUT, that did not give Snowden any rights to speak out about legal items. As such, he deserves 2 between the eyes.

      --
      I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
    5. Re: so many things wrong here by WindBourne · · Score: 1

      Sunlight in the right places does good. Neither Manning nor most of snowdens statements were legal or smart. As to America's war, we are right now chasing AQ and isis around the globe. Other than Ws invasion of Iraq, we have done what UN and/or NATO pushed us to do. Hell, Os invasion of Libya was because Europe, specifically France, Italy, and Germany invoking NATO. But what is interesting, is that today us the calmest that the world has been for several centuries, and only a fraction of ppl die due to war.

      --
      I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
    6. Re: so many things wrong here by b0s0z0ku · · Score: 1

      $6 trillion to avenge 3000 American lives lost on 9/11 was not worth it at $2 billion per life. Far better to spend the money domestically helping improve and save other Americans' lives.

    7. Re: so many things wrong here by jd · · Score: 1

      Legally, Manning did not commit treason, nor was he ever accused of it. He'd have won the case if he had, because American military law protects him on many different points.

      Snowden spoke of nothing he was not entitled to speak about, under American whistleblower laws.

      The thing about honour is that some of us are concerned about the act rather than the spelling. It would be good if those who felt concerned understood what the it was.

      --
      It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
    8. Re: so many things wrong here by WindBourne · · Score: 1

      Actually, Manning was originally charged with treason as well aiding/abetting. They either dropped the charges or came to agreement to not pursue. However, you are far more correct about treason/Manning than I am ( thanx for info ). In particular, purposeful intention to harm America is required. They were not able to apply treason charges on the Goldbergs. So yeah, interesting.

      --
      I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
  17. Re: Julian Assange was right to not to go to Swede by Type44Q · · Score: 3, Funny

    Leave it in your ass, moron, you don't know shit.

    How's he supposed to learn about shit if he leaves it in his ass?? Sometimes you've just got to get your hands dirty.

  18. Its all been nothing more than ... by 3seas · · Score: 2, Interesting

    .. a long string of Bluffs. There are no charges. The UK police had him and could have extradited him, they did not. Julian offered to turn himself over in exchange for the release of Manning, They released him but Obama nullified Julians offer. The rape allegations turned out to be nothing. The UK police going into the Embassy was not to take him out but to verify he was still there. The UK Police and their leads know full well the embassy border laws. They went ion because I bluffed them. There was a single video feed of that night by a supposed independent, there were several streams/urls of this video feed but one with a chat box. I posted "Julian left the building two weeks ago". Verification was asked for, I stayed quiet, they went in (all this within 15 minutes).

    Why the Bluffs? It sends the message the people have no control over their government and that the news media better stay away from the truth. Apparently, they pretty much are and this is not the first time the news media has been threatened as there was an anthrax issue in 2001.

    There are no viable charges against Wikileaks nor Assange. Not by Sweden, UK nor the US.

    Julian has dug deep into the world of secrets and has seen how nasty some in power can be and have been, Snowden has contributed to this exposure. But knowing all this, how easy is it for Julian to see the Bluff?

    1. Re:Its all been nothing more than ... by Corbets · · Score: 1, Troll

      Julian offered to turn himself over in exchange for the release of Manning, They released him but Obama nullified Julians offer. The rape allegations turned out to be nothing.

      While I don’t support the idea of charging Asshole-Assange with a crime in the US, the two statements above are misleading.

      Firstly, if you’re accused of a crime, you don’t get to decide under what conditions you’ll turn yourself in. It’s an arrest, not a negotiation.

      Secondly, the rape allegations did not “turn out to be nothing.” The prosecutor realized that they were going to be unable to prosecute within sweden’s legal time limit and therefore made the choice to stop wasting state resources that could be better spent elsewhere. Who knows what might have come of it had he been available for arrest? While the result is similar to “turned out to be nothing” the reason is essential - and the same as the reason I don’t support extraditing that worthless, self-absorbed fuck to the US. The rule of law matters.

    2. Re:Its all been nothing more than ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      "Firstly, if you’re accused of a crime, you don’t get to decide under what conditions you’ll turn yourself in. It’s an arrest, not a negotiation." WRONG. Often you do, especially with international jurisdiction issues at high levels.
      Most people accused of crimes actually DO negotiate with authorities about when to turn themselves in, they just usually don't have an Embassy willing to put up with their Plan B option for years and years.

      "Secondly, the rape allegations did not “turn out to be nothing.” -ALSO WRONG! He was charged with consenting sex with a condom which he removed during intercourse. Calling it "rape" is just showing ignorance.
      The prosecutors only pursued him because the US wanted him for OTHER THINGS, obviously. You are fucking ignorant, lol. You don't know jack about "law" either.

    3. Re:Its all been nothing more than ... by thegarbz · · Score: 2

      The UK police had him and could have extradited him, they did not.

      No they couldn't as they were waiting for the outcome of a trail in the UK.

      Julian offered to turn himself over in exchange for the release of Manning, They released him but Obama nullified Julians offer.

      Not quite. This was discussed at length when it happened here on Slashdot. There were technicalities of how the actions and promises of both side could be interpreted.

      The rape allegations turned out to be nothing.

      The rape allegations turned out to be rape allegations. How can you say they were nothing if they never went to trial? Skipping town in the hope that the other party gives up doesn't turn an allegation into "nothing".

      Why the Bluffs?

      Because the legal system has trouble dealing with the situation.

      There are no viable charges against Wikileaks nor Assange. Not by Sweden, UK nor the US.

      False. There were charges against him in Sweden for which he hasn't stood trial. These don't go away simply because he refused to go to trial.
      He is actually guilty of a crime in the UK, contempt of court. Claiming that there are no viable charges against him in the UK is probably the single dumbest thing people say about this.
      With the US I agree. There are no viable charges against him.

      Julian has dug deep into the world of secrets and has seen how nasty some in power can be

      If this is a euphemism for not keeping his dick in his pants then that sentence is just poetical genius. :-)

    4. Re:Its all been nothing more than ... by jd · · Score: 1

      The rape charges ran out of time. We don't know the evidence, neither do you.

      Show me any of the offers you claim, infowars is not a source.

      Show me when the police could have legally extradited him, given British due process laws and the Vienna convention.

      I'm not arguing you're wrong, only lacking in details.

      --
      It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
    5. Re:Its all been nothing more than ... by oh_my_080980980 · · Score: 1

      Because of the admitted facts. Try again moron.

    6. Re:Its all been nothing more than ... by oh_my_080980980 · · Score: 1

      The authorities had every opportunity to interview Assange but they chose not too. The admitted facts of the case show he did not rape anyone.

    7. Re:Its all been nothing more than ... by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      Because of the admitted facts.

      Yes, the prosecution admitted that Assange has evaded justice for so long that any attempt to get to the actual truth of what happened would be impossible.

      Try again moron.

      It's okay to be angry on the internet. I'd be angry too, all the time, if I got all my facts from the Daily Mail. I feel you bro.

    8. Re:Its all been nothing more than ... by jd · · Score: 1

      No, they really didn't, and no, they really don't.
      Proof by assertion isn't a useful technique.

      --
      It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
  19. Re:But we were told that he won't be prosecuted... by Koby77 · · Score: 2

    Naturally, it was a ruse back then to get Assange to drop his guard. My main hope at this point is that formal charges will get the ball rolling on actual due process. Fortunately, the Deep State usually hates laying its cards on the table, so I'm optimistic that if some authority is required by a court to lay facts and evidence down for all to see, then they'll scurry away and drop the charges.

  20. Why make a martyr? by rsilvergun · · Score: 1

    His power was leaking things. It's surprisingly hard to do that from a maximum security prison. Heck, he hasn't leaked anything since the Trump election. It's not that his platform has shrunk, it's that he doesn't have any content.

    Kill him and you'll have decades of conspiracies and more than a few copy cats. Lock him up and he just goes away.

    --
    Hi! I make Firefox Plug-ins. Check 'em out @ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-mp3-podcaster/
  21. Don't we have treaties with Australia? by rsilvergun · · Score: 1

    the kind that make a crime committed in another country against our citizens or our gov't prosecutable via extradition treaty?

    I suppose you can argue that what he did shouldn't be a crime. Heck, I'm not even sure what they'd charge him with.

    Still, if you didn't want him prosecuted you were probably better off with Bernie. Yeah, Hilary cheated to win the primary, but she was such a lousy candidate that shouldn't have mattered. If she'd lost like she should have (by 10+ points) we'd be saying "Mr President" to Bernie right now. But folks either stayed home or registered GOP and didn't vote for him in the primary.

    The bad guys cheat. Get over it. It happens. But if the good guys stay home then what do you expect?

    --
    Hi! I make Firefox Plug-ins. Check 'em out @ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-mp3-podcaster/
    1. Re:Don't we have treaties with Australia? by MrKaos · · Score: 1

      the kind that make a crime committed in another country against our citizens or our gov't prosecutable via extradition treaty?

      You mean like invading a foreign country killing hundreds of thousands of their citizens in a "not a war" where you're basically occupying a country for no clear reason.

      Do send George W over so that *pick any country* can try him as a war criminal.

      Still, if you didn't want him prosecuted you were probably better off with Bernie.

      So the political arm of the US government is going to ignore separation of powers and assume control of the judiciary, just like a police state. That's effectively what you are saying.

      The bad guys cheat. Get over it. It happens. But if the good guys stay home then what do you expect?

      You can thank people like Assange and Snowden for the democracy you have.

      --
      My ism, it's full of beliefs.
  22. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    "they were encouraged by recent developments"
    The recent encouraging developments involved the Ecuadorians begging for someone to help them get rid of their pain in the ass squatter. The only thing the US could legitimately charge him with is possession of stolen property. And even that charge is weak. Assange is not a US citizen so the Espionage Act doesn't apply. And he neither stole or distributed the stolen data in US territory. Assange created his own mess and had he not been looking to promote himself as a martyr the Ecuadorans would be rid of their obnoxious house guest.

    Assange's biggest mistake? Wikileaks was suppose to provide a conduit where someone could publish information while maintaining their anonymity. Instead of just publishing the information while keeping the submitter anonymous he took ownership and total control of the submitted information and proceeded to use that information to benefit only himself and push his political agenda. He went around to other media outlets making demands on how they would use the information when released. He solicited money in return for allowing access to the data by others. He alienated every single employee of Wikileaks because of his behavior.

  23. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Shaitan · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Exactly. It's tough to think of someone who comes off as more slimy and repulsive than Julian Assange. The man has a demeanor of a reptile. But Wikileaks and his work are the real reason he is being persecuted and no free thinking person who believes in democracy and rule by the people support that persecution.

  24. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

    Funny how they complain about the immigrants, but are happy to let them do the shit jobs they don't want to be dirtied by themselves.

    --
    Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
  25. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by eclectro · · Score: 2

    Not necessarily. No matter the charges, if he was found guilty on them and was sentenced, the time spent in prison might be less than the time spent in the embassy, which by any other form is just another prison.

    --
    Take the cheese to sickbay, the doctor should see it as soon as possible - B'Elanna Torres, "Learning Curve"
  26. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    You realize we are talking about the US right? Basically the only country in the world that still thinks it is okay to torture people?

  27. This is an improvement. by jago25_98 · · Score: 1

    They're actually trying to do things a little bit more by the book.

    No shame though, my god!

  28. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

    You realize we are talking about the US right? Basically the only country in the world that still thinks it is okay to torture people?

    For values of "basically" approaching, "no, not really", yes.

    --
    Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
  29. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by KeensMustard · · Score: 1

    What law are you referring to?

  30. Re: Julian Assange was right to not to go to Swede by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    The eternal law: do not piss off powerful people if you want to live long.

  31. Re: Julian Assange was right to not to go to Swede by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    The US is just pissed Wikileaks exposed American war crimes.

  32. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Megol · · Score: 1

    The country he without any consideration could go to a few months before it became "dangerous"?
    The country that doesn't just extradite people to the US or elsewhere?
    The country that explicitly refuses to extradite people for political crimes and anything that could in theory lead to a death penalty?
    The country that isn't a NATO member with very close ties to the US?
    The country that _isn't_ the UK which is a NATO member with very close ties to the US, the country that Assange for some reason choose to stay even though "fearing for his life"?

    Yes he was right to not go to Sweden as being convicted as a rapist isn't nice for his image as a messiah. But is it any better to concont this kind of bullshit?

  33. Re: Julian Assange was right to not to go to Swed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    How lucky the founding fathers did not care about it.

  34. Julian Assange - Fugitive from Swedish justice by cold+fjord · · Score: 1

    Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden.

    Much like any alleged rapist doesn't want to be brought into a courtroom. Nice though they are said to be, Swedish prison is still prison.

    The "Rube Goldberg" conceptions about extraditing Assange from Sweden instead of the UK are bizarre fantasies.

    For all you know this is just a troll to get Assange to continue imprisoning himself.

    --
    much of left-wing thought is a kind of playing with fire by people who don't even know that fire is hot - George Orwell
    1. Re:Julian Assange - Fugitive from Swedish justice by mysidia · · Score: 1

      Much like any alleged rapist doesn't want to be brought into a courtroom. Nice though they are said to be, Swedish prison is still prison.

      Any innocent person doesn't like bring brought into a courtroom.... despite claiming that trials are "fair"; they are commonly biased against the defendant --- many jurors and officials will personally presume they are guilty, just because they have arrived in court ----- which means the police and the prosecutor believe that they have committed a crime, and people tend to believe the conclusions of these authorities.

    2. Re:Julian Assange - Fugitive from Swedish justice by F.Ultra · · Score: 1

      Question remains if he actually can continue to imprison himself since Ecuador seams to have lost their patience with him.

    3. Re:Julian Assange - Fugitive from Swedish justice by jeremyp · · Score: 1

      Yes he is an alleged rapist. Sweden has withdrawn the European Arrest Warrant, but that doesn't mean they have dropped the allegations.

      Anyway, I allege he is a rapist. His actions in fleeing Sweden to Britain and then fleeing justice are only explicable if he thinks the allegations are true.

      --
      All I want is a secure system where it's easy to do anything I want. Is that too much to ask ~~ Randall Munroe
    4. Re:Julian Assange - Fugitive from Swedish justice by F.Ultra · · Score: 1

      Agreed, however since he is the president he represents Ecuador so...

  35. Six years in inhuman conditions by Max_W · · Score: 1

    "Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners" https://www.ohchr.org/en/profe...

    21. (1) Every prisoner who is not employed in outdoor work shall have at least one hour of suitable exercise in the open air daily if the weather permits.

    The US and Sweden authorities could count these six years of inhuman conditions as a complete punishment. One year is such inhuman conditions could count at least as five years.

    1. Re:Six years in inhuman conditions by jd · · Score: 1

      Voluntary confinement, regardless of cause.

      He can't count a personal fetish as anything beyond that.

      --
      It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
    2. Re:Six years in inhuman conditions by Max_W · · Score: 1

      Universal Declaration of Human Rights http://www.un.org/en/universal...

      Article 14.

      (1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.

      The US, the UK, and Sweden signed the "Universal Declaration of Human Rights" and "Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners". Not any petty criminal can enter an embassy and demad an asylum. Actually, several articles of "Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners" are not followed in this case.

      I do not argue if he is gulity or not. I do not have an access to files, I cannot question witnesses under oath. But a human cannot be kept like this for years.

    3. Re:Six years in inhuman conditions by F.Ultra · · Score: 1

      But it's not the US, the UK or Sweden that is hosting him as a prisoner so it doesn't matter that they have all signed article 14.

    4. Re:Six years in inhuman conditions by Max_W · · Score: 1

      De-facto they accepted that he has got an asylum in accordance with the article 14. And he is held in the embassy in London due to realistic fear of personal death. So they could either give him a free passage to the airport in a diplomatic car or bring his confinement in the embassy room in compliance with the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners https://www.ohchr.org/en/profe...

    5. Re:Six years in inhuman conditions by F.Ultra · · Score: 1

      That's not how things work. Since he is there on his on volition and Ecuador granted him asylum it's the responsibility of Ecuador to fulfill these conditions. If he surrenders to UK police I'm quite sure that they will honour article 14 while he serves what ever time he will for skipping bail. And Sweden have no say in how Assange spends his days in the Ecuadorian embassy nor how the UK will treat him.

  36. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by thegarbz · · Score: 2

    Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden.

    Of course he was right, otherwise he'd be in a Swedish prison on rape charges.

  37. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by AmiMoJo · · Score: 2, Insightful

    It was the fear of being extradited to the US, either legally or by rendition, that had him worried.

    Remember this was happening around the time when the US was grabbing people off the streets of Europe and sending them to black sites in 3rd countries for torture.

    --
    const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
    SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
  38. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Tough+Love · · Score: 2

    Basically the only country in the world that still thinks it is okay to torture people?

    The country thinks that? Or maybe Trump and his deplorables think that.

    --
    When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
  39. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Tough+Love · · Score: 1

    His work includes carrying water for Russia and Trump?

    --
    When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
  40. He's never been wanted for rape. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    He's wanted for questions. And the charge of rape came not from the women who he is supposed to have raped, but the prosecutor. When it was that shithead who just became justice, you whined holy hell about false allegations of sexual misconduct. Now someone you don't agree politically with is being accused, not so worried. Despite there being no women accusing they have been raped...

    1. Re:He's never been wanted for rape. by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      If a prosecutor learns of actions that constitute crimes under the law, isn't he or she obligated to file charges against those who commit them?

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    2. Re:He's never been wanted for rape. by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      And the charge of rape came not from the women who he is supposed to have raped, but the prosecutor.

      Maybe your legal system works differently but in many countries in the world criminal charges can ONLY come from a state prosecutor, and Sweden is no exception.

      When it was that shithead who just became justice, you whined holy hell about false allegations of sexual misconduct.

      Nope, actually I whined a bit that those allegations weren't taken seriously nor investigated. Generally I whined that the way that judge behaved in under pressure and in front of questioning, and how he mounted his legal defense showed that he shouldn't be a justice, or judge, or any court. But mostly I whined that "derp derp I like beer" was decided to be the best out of 350million possible people (shortlisted to 12)

      Now someone you don't agree politically with is being accused

      Huh? What does politics have to do with someone fleeing criminal charges? I'm beginning to think you're confusing me with someone else.

  41. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Raenex · · Score: 1

    Yeah, it's bullshit to claim you're hiding in the UK to avoid extradition from Sweden to the US. I highly doubt the leaked sealed indictment dates to this period.

  42. Julian Assange is a traitor by benjfowler · · Score: 1

    Julian Assange is a terrible human being, who has everything coming to him.

    BTW, you lot know that in addition to being a traitor, he's also a child abuser too?

    Sorry about your "hero".

    1. Re:Julian Assange is a traitor by Max_W · · Score: 1

      I do not argue about the claims themselves. But until he is condemned (or exonerated) by a court of justice after the due process the wording "in my opinion" or "allegedly" would not be inappropriate.

  43. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by luther349 · · Score: 1

    ill take black ops assassins for 500. trust me the only reason it has not happened is because everyone would know they did it,

  44. Is it criminal to be a useful idiot? by shanen · · Score: 2

    How the heck was that moderated as "Insightful"? Even for today's Slashdot, that's a bit of a stoop. I wonder if any of the comments are coming from people who have read any of the books about WikiLeaks or even today's story in question.

    Assange did start with an interesting idea. However he is basically a nutjob and he basically set himself up to be used and abused. He peaked out several years ago when he achieved useful idiot status. Before that, he had actually done some interesting stuff that was on the edge of journalism, but he never developed any mechanisms to deal with the incoming data, so it ultimately became a GIGO operation for anyone with garbage to propagate. While WikiLeaks had some credibility, it was useful to feed him garbage, but now that he lost the credibility, no one actually cares what Assange does.

    Notwithstanding, I doubt the useful idiot defense is going to work if they manage to get him into a US court. His best hope might be to seek the trial now and hope he can get the conviction thrown out when Trump tweets some idiotic and prejudicial thing. Except for the problem with the new judges out of Leviticus.

    --
    Freedom = (Meaningful - Coerced) Choice != (Speech | Beer^2), and sad sock puppets' bad mods avail them naught.
  45. Re:The Obama DOJ is still trying to find... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

    You're not real big on that continuity of government thing, are you? Are you seriously proposing that every civil servant should be replaced by every incoming new Administration? Are you aware that Trump still—after nearly two years—hasn't filled half the appointments that he already needs to fill?

    --
    Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
  46. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by elrous0 · · Score: 2

    Wait, you mean the UK wasn't spending millions of pounds a year to surveil him around the clock just to return him to Sweden to answer questions about some vague sexual assault case that felt about as authentic as an episode of reality TV????

    Shocked...I'm just shocked I tell you...

    --
    SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
  47. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by elrous0 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    So this particular conspiracy theory was right all along.

    It's not a conspiracy theory if the only people who think it's *not* true are idiots like AmiJoJo.

    Anyone who thinks the UK was spending millions of pounds a year surveilling Assnage around the clock just to return him for questioning on some vague sexual assault case in Sweden were deluded morons to begin with. It was pretty obvious to anyone with half a brain that the intent all along was to extradite him to the U.S., and that the whole Sweden case was just a honeypot operation. They just wanted to get him on a plane before he could find asylum in some country that isn't a U.S. lapdog. And if it weren't for Ecuador having an embassy in London, he'd already be rotting in a U.S. prison (or worse, being held indefinitely in Guantanamo).
     

    --
    SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
  48. No great surprise by jd · · Score: 1

    Assange is not useful. America has no loyalty, Trump less so. It's all about usefulness.

    Assange was always expendable. This is regardless of any actual crimes.

    Mind you, that's true of any government or political figure. People into politics generally can't be trusted. People who know what's good for others is automatically a control freak who cannot be trusted. Same goes for idealogues.

    Don't trust any of them.

    --
    It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
  49. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by SCVonSteroids · · Score: 1

    You're cute if you think Trump's the only President who ever considered torture.

    --
    I tend to rant.
  50. Re:Others torture, don't say it is good, though. by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

    No, actually, it *does* prove the GPP wrong, your attempt to hide it behind a slight change in phrasing notwithstanding.

    BTW, I imagine that death by ingestion of polonium or nerve agent would be quite unpleasant, rather like, well, torture, for lack of a better word. Don't you?

    --
    Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
  51. Re:not so much by jd · · Score: 1

    So were those who deployed him illegally. His deployment violated military law as he was deemed mentally unfit.

    So were those who posted passwords on post-it notes on secure computers, violating military law on such information.

    So were those who knowingly gunned down journalists and committed other acts of terror in violation of the Geneva Convention and the Hague Convention, plus US military law.

    Yet you defend those traitors.

    There can be only one law. A person cannot be guilty for embarrassing others. If they are innocent, so is he.

    US military law explicitly protects whistle blowers and those who refuse orders that violate the law.

    So legally Manning is protected by right of such laws.

    He was insane at the time, so is legally innocent by right of insanity.

    The uniform matters for nothing. You must prove guilt in this case, as you must show why medical rulings and DoD rules don't apply. You have not even tried because you can't.

    --
    It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
  52. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by squiggleslash · · Score: 1

    No, going to Sweden wouldn't have improved his chances of being extradited to the US over staying in Britain. They would have increased the chance of him being investigated for various sexual assault/rape charges, and he might have seen himself ultimately jailed for that, in a Swedish prison, but the idea that Sweden was going to extradite Assange to the US when the UK wouldn't is ridiculous - UK-US relations are far, far, closer and more interdependent.

    --
    You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
  53. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by radarskiy · · Score: 1

    Why do people think it would be easier to extradite from Sweden than from the UK?

  54. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by radarskiy · · Score: 1

    Except when the story was concocted that Sweden was trying to get Assange from the UK so the USA could extradite from Sweden, the USA wasn't trying to get him. This article says that these preparations started in the past year.

  55. Re:No, they didn't want to charge him by radarskiy · · Score: 1

    "Because if they charge him, he has to see out the charges first and, if found innocent of the charges, they no longer have reason to extradite him to the USA"

    A charge for rape that was claimed to have happened in Sweden would never be grounds to extradite from Sweden to the USA. If charged for a crime in the USA he could have been extradited form the UK more easily than from Sweden.

    The claim that the charge in Sweden was purely a setup for extradition to the USA never made any sense.

    (Note that I am making no claim about the validity of the rape charge in Sweden, just about the supposed connection between a charge in Sweden and an extradition to the USA.)

  56. "WikiLeaks founder and Russian intelligence asset" by Maritz · · Score: 1

    FTFY.

    --
    I do not want your cheap brainburning drugs. They are useless for work. And I am a working man today.
  57. Illiberals against Liberty by mi · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Assange quit exposing things for the sake of truth years ago.

    Translation: you loved him, when he was exposing the evil RethugliKKKunt$. Then, after his exposures of Her Who Should Be President, you began hating him.

    He was so eager to pillory his target that he sold himself out

    Yes, that disheveled billionaire hiding in a 3rd-rate embassy — sold himself...

    not only to their domestic opponents, but to a not-exactly-friendly foreign nation as well.

    Funny, how this possibility hasn't bothered you, when he targeted your own political opponents.

    --
    In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
    1. Re:Illiberals against Liberty by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 1

      To steal a phrase from R.A. Wilson, trying to discuss such matters with you is a bit like being an atheist who keeps getting asked whether he worships God or the Devil.

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    2. Re:Illiberals against Liberty by mi · · Score: 1

      No, no, you don't get to use that pass to get out. Not after you've acknowledged that Assange has been "exposing truth" some time ago...

      Or, to use your own analogy, once you've admitted having worshiped one supernatural being, asking you, which one you worship today — and why — is fair.

      --
      In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
  58. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Shotgun · · Score: 2

    Define "rape". My understanding is that he met a girl at a bar and they got it on. She later decided that it was rape because they were both drinking.

    --
    Aah, change is good. -- Rafiki
    Yeah, but it ain't easy. -- Simba
  59. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Shotgun · · Score: 1

    Red herring. He is not legally "in" the UK. Legally, he is in Ecuador. That's the whole point of embassies.

    --
    Aah, change is good. -- Rafiki
    Yeah, but it ain't easy. -- Simba
  60. Re: not so much by WindBourne · · Score: 1

    Where do you get that Manning was insane?

    --
    I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
  61. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by slack_justyb · · Score: 1

    ill take black ops assassins for 500. trust me the only reason it has not happened is because everyone would know they did it,

    I don't know. If he did mysteriously turned up dead I'd say it's 50/50 on it being US or Russia that did it. Depends on how it was done. Poison sounds very Russian while random bullet whizzing through the air "oh no how could that have happened" would totally be US all day, everyday.

    I figure Russia would probably want him dead too since I'm pretty sure they handed some intel from their office to him to put on W/L. His work with the whole Iraq war was great, but when he got trapped he became a pawn.

  62. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Uberbah · · Score: 1

    Being both an asshole and paranoid didn't mean he was wrong.

    Him being right the entire time makes you and every other Assange hater the asshole. Y'all are like a sniveling pack of high school cheerleaders, finding excuses to keep calling the unpopular girll a slut when you know she's never been on a date much less had sex. Does it make you feel proud to lick CIA boots stained with blood from all over the world?

  63. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

    the idea that Sweden was going to extradite Assange to the US when the UK wouldn't is ridiculous - UK-US relations are far, far, closer and more interdependent.

    Sweden has actually extradited persons of interest to the US on specious grounds before, while the UK has very strong law government extradition that Sweden hasn't. These facts have been discussed to death in these discussions already, but you somehow either missed them or willfully ignored them. Either way, you're way way WAY off here.

    --
    "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  64. Connected to the mysterious toddandclare site? by gay358 · · Score: 1

    This brings to my mind the suspicuous dating site "approved by UN" that was used to attack Assange and the UN declaration that defended Assange:

    https://www.mcclatchydc.com/ne...

  65. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by gay358 · · Score: 1

    Even if there was rape, which is not proven, it happened in Sweden instead of USA. Why is USA trying to get him extradited to USA?

  66. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by gay358 · · Score: 1

    Your information is not true in practice. Sweden has extradited persons to USA who have been then tortured: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

  67. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by haruchai · · Score: 1

    It was the fear of being extradited to the US, either legally or by rendition, that had him worried.

    Remember this was happening around the time when the US was grabbing people off the streets of Europe and sending them to black sites in 3rd countries for torture.

    Not only that but in 2013 the plane of the Bolivian president was forced to land in Austria after being denied access to the airspace of France, Spain & Italy on the suspicion that Snowden was on board - a lie that Assange later took credit for.
    It's clear that America will not hesitate to strong-arm allies into violating diplomatic norms without more than a whisper of evidence

    --
    Pain is merely failure leaving the body
  68. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by radarskiy · · Score: 1

    He was in the UK at the point in time when the issue of whether he would be extradited to Sweden and whether that was a precursor to being chain extradited to the USA came up.

  69. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by NicknameUnavailable · · Score: 2

    He didn't break a law, he published content from a leaker. The leaker broke the law, he just happened to be the only uncorrupted reporter with a media outlet willing to actually do his job and report (aside from Michael Hastings.)

  70. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by NicknameUnavailable · · Score: 1

    Except when the story was concocted that Sweden was trying to get Assange from the UK so the USA could extradite from Sweden, the USA wasn't trying to get him. This article says that these preparations started in the past year.

    TIL there's actually people this ignorant of the world confident enough in themselves to speak. (Who am I kidding, it's not a TIL, it's just fucking sad.)

  71. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Shaitan · · Score: 1

    Regardless of what you think about the motivations behind the leaks or who they benefited the information was real and the truth does not lie. The DNC actively collaborated in a conspiracy to dupe the members of their party and rig the primary, the candidate they promoted took the booty and ran AFTER it was exposed.

    Ethically the only appropriate action would have been for Clinton to withdraw in favor of Sanders after this was revealed whether she knew the party cheated on her behalf before that point or not. Personally, I think scooping up the pot anyway after it was revealed she'd been playing with a stacked deck is what elected Trump. Maybe it gets lost in certain political echo chambers but most people actually are not okay with winning by any means necessary.

  72. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by nosfucious · · Score: 1

    I pretty sure that Assange would never actually set foot in Sweden. If he walked out of the embassy right now, he'd be arrested in the UK. Then the process to extradite to Sweden would start. However, while in the UK, the US would no doubt apply for extradition, and all the protections that Sweden could promise would count for nothing.

    --
    Q:I was listening to a CD in Grip and it sounded horrible! What's up? A:Perhaps you are listening to country music
  73. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Uberbah · · Score: 2

    Exactly. It's tough to think of someone who comes off as more slimy and repulsive than Julian Assange.

    Really. You use that to describe Assange, who's revealed war crimes and corrupt secrets from both parties in the USA and nations around the world, and not someone like Sean Hannity or Rachael Madcow, who's paid $30,000 to alternate between McCarthyism and gaslighting.

    So I have to ask....is your willful dumbfuckery powered by fusion?

  74. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by F.Ultra · · Score: 1

    Problem with that theory is that the Justice Department didn't prepare to prosecute him them. But now that he most definitely isn't in Sweden they are, so how exactly does this relate to Sweden at all? I would say not at all.

  75. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Uberbah · · Score: 1

    The recent encouraging developments involved the Ecuadorian government being led by a president who campaigned as a socialist but ended up being a CIA toady

    FTFY

  76. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by F.Ultra · · Score: 1

    No you are completely wrong, the UK extradited him to Sweden under the specific requirement that he would only be tried for the Rape matter. If Sweden had decided to extradite him to the US then they would have broken their extradition agreement with the UK which would have quite grave consequences.

  77. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by F.Ultra · · Score: 1

    We mostly don't. Lot's of Russian troll accounts pretending to be Swedish does however.

  78. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by AutodidactLabrat · · Score: 1

    And Hillary winning by 2.86 million while winning the primary by 4 million, having NOTHING to do with superdelegates, somehow supports this "Conspiracy" claim.
    Hint: It is the job of the party to put forth the most electable candidate.
    so, the reality is this is all about "collateral Murder" and offending the real power center, the War Department.

  79. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Uberbah · · Score: 2

    Why do people think it would be easier to extradite from Sweden than from the UK?

    What would be the pretext in the UK? Assange isn't accused of committing any crimes there and thus they would have no reason to detain or question him. Even now, as the Trump DOJ is proving all of Assange's fears to be completely rational and his haters to be assholes, a foriegn state doing a snatch-and-grab on the CIA's say so in broad daylight would force people to pay attention. And the UK has denied extradition to the USA based on how brutally America treats it's prisoners. Prisoners like Chelsea Manning, who was tortured with solitary confinement for a year and a half.

    As opposed to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning on an alleged crime (even though he was questioned and given permission to leave by a prosecutor) and that government has had no problems giving people to the US to be tortured.

  80. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Uberbah · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Here's a thought... he shouldn't have broken the law then they wouldn't be after him.

    Here's a better though....stop buying the transparent pretext for arrest. If Sweden was serious about investigating an alleged rape (really the women only went to the state to ask for an STD test, not to press charges) then they could have sent investigators to question Assange in the UK or remotely via Skype other other video conferencing, as Assange has offered to do. As they've done dozens of other times in other cases since Assange has sought asylum.

    Assange has also promised to return to Sweden if they promise not to hand him over to the United States. A promise Sweden could have easily made, given Obama's prolonged torture of Chelsea Manning, and Sweden being a signatory to the UN Convention Against Torture. Which forbids prisoners being handed over to regimes that engage in it.

  81. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Mal-2 · · Score: 1

    The fuck are you on about? I think the guy is a crappy human being, but I don't hate him. He's never done anything sufficiently close to personal for me to bother with love or hate. Mostly it has been amusement as he tests everyone's patience simultaneously, when I bother to care at all. I also always thought there was a good probability he was right about fearing falling into U.S. custody.

    You, on the other hand, have gone out of your way to make it personal for no visible reason. Kindly go fuck your hat.

    --
    How is the Riemann zeta function like Trump rallies? Both have an endless number of trivial zeros.
  82. Transparency is a good thing by DougDot · · Score: 1

    I'm a big fan of equal-opportunity leaking. If a government agency doesn't want me to see something funded by my tax dollars, I suddenly become very interested in whatever it is they are trying to cover up.

  83. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by jeremyp · · Score: 1

    Frankly, he has a better chance of avoiding extradition to the USA if he is in Sweden than if he is in the UK. Unless you mean he was right not to go to Sweden because he would have been convicted of rape, if he did.

    --
    All I want is a secure system where it's easy to do anything I want. Is that too much to ask ~~ Randall Munroe
  84. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by jeremyp · · Score: 1

    Nobody isn persecuting him. He's in the Ecuador embassy of his own free will.

    Right now the only people who want Assange are the British and that is because he undeniably jumped bail to avoid facing rape charges in Sweden.

    --
    All I want is a secure system where it's easy to do anything I want. Is that too much to ask ~~ Randall Munroe
  85. Re: Julian Assange was right to not to go to Swede by jeremyp · · Score: 1

    He obviously thinks he is guilty of rape, otherwise he wouldn't have become a fugitive from justice. He would have been a lot safer from extradition to the US in Sweden than in the UK.

    --
    All I want is a secure system where it's easy to do anything I want. Is that too much to ask ~~ Randall Munroe
  86. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by F.Ultra · · Score: 1

    More like putting a termination to the extradition agreement between Sweden and the UK, something no prosecutor in Sweden would want to be responsible for. Also Sweden is a heavy export country so creating such a huge political scandal between the two countries would be seen as very bad by our big exporting companies that have big influence in politics so no few politicians would want to bear the blame for that either. Not to mention the political and economical implications of been seen as a country that cannot be trusted to honour agreements.

  87. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Uberbah · · Score: 1

    The fuck are you on about?

    The point was perfectly clear the first time. You have a pathological need for Assange to be a "crappy human being" - despite the lack of any reasoning or evidence whatsoever - because if he's not, then you sir, are the piece of crap masquerading as a human. You and every other tool engaging in mindless character assassination.

    You, on the other hand, have gone out of your way to make it personal for no visible reason. Kindly go fuck your hat.

    Says the ratfucker who has nothing but baseless personal smears.

  88. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by F.Ultra · · Score: 1

    Ok, so on that note do you have any information where I should pick that up that paycheck from CIA?

  89. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by F.Ultra · · Score: 1

    Back then there was no talk about the Justice Department preparing prosecution but "Assange and others were being investigated by a federal grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia" that's apples to oranges if anything.

  90. Re: not so much by jd · · Score: 1

    His doctor classified him as such and prohibited deployment. This was published by the military at the time. Don't blame me if you don't follow events.

    --
    It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
  91. Re: not so much by jd · · Score: 1

    No, treason is a specific charge. He was not tried on a charge of treason. And, as the Birmingham Six can testify, being found guilty isn't the same as being guilty.

    --
    It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
  92. Re:The Obama DOJ is still trying to find... by CaptainDork · · Score: 1

    As I was channeling Nowhere Man, peddling in a stationary space dimension and changing time reference, the TV monitor above the bike was tuned to CNN and the crawler quoted someone as saying, "Trump administration has arsonists and firefighters. He's getting rid of the firefighters."

    I don't lean political, but this does address your point about lack of appointments.

    The arsonists are the holdovers from the Obama administration that the Trump team has no time to replace.

    --
    It little behooves the best of us to comment on the rest of us.
  93. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by radarskiy · · Score: 1

    "What would be the pretext in the UK? "

    The same as extraditing from Sweden.

    A lot of people here seem to be confused about the basis for extradition: it's about a charge in the country the person is being extradited TO, not a charge in the country they are being extradited FROM. Any charge in the country being extradited from has nothing to do with the extradition, and may in fact interfere with extradition as that country may want to process their charge first.

  94. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by radarskiy · · Score: 1

    Quote from DoJ spokesperson in 2013:
    “The problem the department has always had in investigating Julian Assange is there is no way to prosecute him for publishing information without the same theory being applied to journalists,” said former Justice Department spokesman Matthew Miller. “And if you are not going to prosecute journalists for publishing classified information, which the department is not, then there is no way to prosecute Assange.”
    https://www.washingtonpost.com...

  95. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by NicknameUnavailable · · Score: 1

    Is that supposed to be in favor of your point? What they're doing now is proof he was right, nothing you can say will change that.

  96. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Uberbah · · Score: 1

    What would be the pretext in the UK? Assange isn't accused of committing any crimes there and thus they would have no reason to detain or question him. Even now, as the Trump DOJ is proving all of Assange's fears to be completely rational and his haters to be assholes, a foriegn state doing a snatch-and-grab on the CIA's say so in broad daylight would force people to pay attention. And the UK has denied extradition [theregister.co.uk] to the USA based on how brutally America treats it's prisoners. Prisoners like Chelsea Manning, who was tortured with solitary confinement for a year and a half. As opposed to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning on an alleged crime (even though he was questioned and given permission to leave by a prosecutor) and that government has had no problems giving people to the US to be tortured.

    Yes, that is a copy & paste. Because you completely ignored the lack of a pretext for questioning in the UK, the UK's recent refusal to extradite some prisoners to the USA because of how brutal the prisons are, and Sweden not having a problem handing people over to be tortured.

  97. ...which is ironclad by Uberbah · · Score: 1

    When his name first surfaced in association with Wikileaks, he made it clear that he was simply the "spokesman," and did not "hack," or supervise the release of material, and had no way to know what the internal workings were.

    Irrelevant distinction. Freedom of the press covers all of said press, it's hardly limited to reporters. Otherwise the government could haul in anyone from an editor to the owner and charge them with something.

    That's how he circumvented culpability for a hell of a lot of years.

    Culpability for what. Publishing information the powerful and corrupt would rather keep hidden? That is the ultimate act of journalism, not covering for war criminals or politicians who rig their own elections.

    Wikileaks itself elevated interest in Assange when the organization turned political in a move to increase donations which had fallen off due to lack of interest by supporters.

    You mean when banks cut off donations to Wikileaks because the CIA asked them to? The reason Assange was couch surfing in Sweden in the first place?

    Wikileak's decline also affected Assange's visibility and he resented the lack of attention.

    Funny how this line of sniveling dipshittery isn't deployed against people like Brian Williams or Rachael Maddow, who are paid twenty to thirty thousand per day to propagandize you.

    1. Re:...which is ironclad by CaptainDork · · Score: 1

      Irrelevant distinction. Freedom of the press covers all of said press ...

      TL;DR

      My first line didn't mention freedom of the press. What I said was that Assange was a spokesperson. He had every right to speak, and I'm not quibbling with that.

      Because you missed the point, I disregarded the rest.

      However, we do have swell parting gifts.

      --
      It little behooves the best of us to comment on the rest of us.
  98. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by radarskiy · · Score: 1

    You don't need a pretext in the country you are extraditing *from*.

  99. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by radarskiy · · Score: 1

    "Is that supposed to be in favor of your point? What they're doing now is proof he was right, "

    My point is that the US was not trying to prosecute at the time that the "extradite from Sweden" story was concocted, and the quote supports that.

  100. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by NicknameUnavailable · · Score: 1

    The quote supports nothing. Just because you're too blind to read signs around you doesn't make them false, and it doesn't make anyone who can wrong. More likely though, you can read and interpret just fine but you want to lie because you dislike the man.

  101. Re:Julian Assange was right to not to go to Sweden by Uberbah · · Score: 1

    You most certainly do, when you're putting on a big show of not wanting to extradite someone to the USA when that is in fact your goal. It wouldn't even be the first time Sweden has used such a pretext - with a large helping of interrogating the suspect in solitary confinement but without a lawyer - with the destination country being Denmark rather than the US.