Re: what matters? -- Re: Superseding indictment of Julian Assange as of 6/24/2020

2020-06-29 Thread Karl
Thank you so much.

Our enemies are our allies, over here.  Nonapproval is an indicator of
efficiency in finding the shared fight.


On Sat, Jun 27, 2020, 1:20 PM Zenaan Harkness  wrote:

> On Fri, Jun 26, 2020 at 09:36:54PM +1000, Zenaan Harkness wrote:
> > On Thu, Jun 25, 2020 at 03:53:01PM -0400, John Young wrote:
> > > Assange will be sacrificed and discarded by journalists once no longer
> useful.
> > > This is a long-standing practice to assure official protection and
> privilege.
> > > Assange once advocated this warning but was eventully coopted by
> journalists
> > > who joined his team and pushed the outreach to duplicitous journalism.
> > >
> > > Braying about threat to journalism by Assange's prosecution is a
> deception op
> > > conducted in cooperation with authorities. Snowden's promoters have
> admitted
> > > consulting with USG on what to publish, what to redact, what to
> withhold.
> > > Barton Gellman describes his following this CYA standard procedure in
> Dark
> > > Mirror.
> > >
> > > WikiLeaks burned sources with loose security, incoherent management,
> Julian's
> > > vanity and opportunism, thinking he could use cohorts for his purpose
> without
> > > penalty. The indictment outlines the parties he enlisted, quite a few
> likely
> > > to have decided to cooperate, like Sabu, the "Teenager," maybe
> Appelbaum,
> > > others pseudonymed.
> > >
> > > Those he has manipulated will turn against him under pressure from
> prosecutors
> > > against them, their families and friends. Same happened to Manning,
> Swartz,
> > > kirakou, Hammond, long list of others.
> > >
> > > Snowden will eventually be handed over to USG by those he came to
> trust the
> > > most. Trust wears thin over time and goosed by planted suspicions and
> doubts,
> > > ambition, need for income. And fans are notoriously fickle, don't give
> a shit
> > > after the excitement wanes, smears are spread, bots and media
> countermesures
> > > are unleashed, rewards are offered like Greenwald's "irresistables"
> > > undergirding The Intercept.
> > >
> > > And there is always the AP option for terminating JA. Treachery of
> supporters
> > > is too.
> >
> >
> > Much true here.
> >
> > True men of principle do not suffer greatly for vainglorious ends.
> Though some may get caught up in the superficial, we should feel sorry for
> them on that count, whilst at the same time upholding principles worthy.
> >
> > Manning may have procured her relief from her "double jeopardy" with a
> (temp) non-disclosure, yet she remains vigilant to a tee in not "being a
> dog and knifing Assange" for her own physical freedom - the loyalty of a
> champion, and for the right foundation of righteous principle, so a huge
> and gracious -thank you- to Manning!
> >
> > Assange had things to learn on his journey it appears - are any of us
> exempt from such?  Let's not shoot the messenger.  Let's take a leaf from
> Manning's book of grace and loyalty - if we asked her, would she hesitate
> to say "punch up, not down" ?
> >
> > Assange was part of a team, and as incoherent and flawed as it may have
> been, that team achieved massive wins - never forget that the results, from
> a broader perspective have shaken the foundations of empire, with its
> relentless revenge mission against Assange still in full swing to this day
> after so many years.
> >
> > If as you say, Assange 'has manipulated' people on his Wikileaks
> journey, just how many more years would -you- keep him locked up in Maxi,
> how many more years from now (of Assange in jail), depriving his children
> of their father, do you personally say that Assange ought be kept in the
> slammer in order to mete out sufficient "justic" in your mind?
> >
> > This is a serious and real question to you John (no matter that we are
> not the judiciary prosecuting him) - what be your position on the actual
> pennance Assange, as you imply, ought pay?
> >
> > Yes there are always many options - perhaps we can help to spread the
> word of caution, of loyalty, remind folks that ultimate dignity is that in
> our own mirrored eyes, before our maker and with none between ...
>
>
> John perhaps the following will resonate.
>
> This battle some of us have been in is not "merely against empire," it is
> a battle for justice, truth, transparency, agency, righteousness, and in
> too many cases, for life itself (the evils of Barack "Drone-Bama" come to
> mind for example).  "We fight not against men ..."
>
> In present times, when a supporter of such actually worthy goals goes in
> to bat, to support, he may well be surprised to find that "a little genuine
> support for a good cause" ends up locating him in a battle royale - in fact
> battle after battle after night of the living dead battle!  Some of us have
> experienced this in wrenching, Soul purifying (hopefully) clarity.
>
> And when we appear to battle against "bleedingly obvious" stupidity and
> uncoordination, incoherency and so many flaws it rips tears from our h

what matters? -- Re: Superseding indictment of Julian Assange as of 6/24/2020

2020-06-27 Thread Zenaan Harkness
On Fri, Jun 26, 2020 at 09:36:54PM +1000, Zenaan Harkness wrote:
> On Thu, Jun 25, 2020 at 03:53:01PM -0400, John Young wrote:
> > Assange will be sacrificed and discarded by journalists once no longer 
> > useful.
> > This is a long-standing practice to assure official protection and 
> > privilege.
> > Assange once advocated this warning but was eventully coopted by journalists
> > who joined his team and pushed the outreach to duplicitous journalism.
> > 
> > Braying about threat to journalism by Assange's prosecution is a deception 
> > op
> > conducted in cooperation with authorities. Snowden's promoters have admitted
> > consulting with USG on what to publish, what to redact, what to withhold.
> > Barton Gellman describes his following this CYA standard procedure in Dark
> > Mirror.
> > 
> > WikiLeaks burned sources with loose security, incoherent management, 
> > Julian's
> > vanity and opportunism, thinking he could use cohorts for his purpose 
> > without
> > penalty. The indictment outlines the parties he enlisted, quite a few likely
> > to have decided to cooperate, like Sabu, the "Teenager," maybe Appelbaum,
> > others pseudonymed.
> > 
> > Those he has manipulated will turn against him under pressure from 
> > prosecutors
> > against them, their families and friends. Same happened to Manning, Swartz,
> > kirakou, Hammond, long list of others.
> > 
> > Snowden will eventually be handed over to USG by those he came to trust the
> > most. Trust wears thin over time and goosed by planted suspicions and 
> > doubts,
> > ambition, need for income. And fans are notoriously fickle, don't give a 
> > shit
> > after the excitement wanes, smears are spread, bots and media countermesures
> > are unleashed, rewards are offered like Greenwald's "irresistables"
> > undergirding The Intercept.
> > 
> > And there is always the AP option for terminating JA. Treachery of 
> > supporters
> > is too.
> 
> 
> Much true here.
> 
> True men of principle do not suffer greatly for vainglorious ends.  Though 
> some may get caught up in the superficial, we should feel sorry for them on 
> that count, whilst at the same time upholding principles worthy.
> 
> Manning may have procured her relief from her "double jeopardy" with a (temp) 
> non-disclosure, yet she remains vigilant to a tee in not "being a dog and 
> knifing Assange" for her own physical freedom - the loyalty of a champion, 
> and for the right foundation of righteous principle, so a huge and gracious 
> -thank you- to Manning!
> 
> Assange had things to learn on his journey it appears - are any of us exempt 
> from such?  Let's not shoot the messenger.  Let's take a leaf from Manning's 
> book of grace and loyalty - if we asked her, would she hesitate to say "punch 
> up, not down" ?
> 
> Assange was part of a team, and as incoherent and flawed as it may have been, 
> that team achieved massive wins - never forget that the results, from a 
> broader perspective have shaken the foundations of empire, with its 
> relentless revenge mission against Assange still in full swing to this day 
> after so many years.
> 
> If as you say, Assange 'has manipulated' people on his Wikileaks journey, 
> just how many more years would -you- keep him locked up in Maxi, how many 
> more years from now (of Assange in jail), depriving his children of their 
> father, do you personally say that Assange ought be kept in the slammer in 
> order to mete out sufficient "justic" in your mind?
> 
> This is a serious and real question to you John (no matter that we are not 
> the judiciary prosecuting him) - what be your position on the actual pennance 
> Assange, as you imply, ought pay?
> 
> Yes there are always many options - perhaps we can help to spread the word of 
> caution, of loyalty, remind folks that ultimate dignity is that in our own 
> mirrored eyes, before our maker and with none between ...


John perhaps the following will resonate.

This battle some of us have been in is not "merely against empire," it is a 
battle for justice, truth, transparency, agency, righteousness, and in too many 
cases, for life itself (the evils of Barack "Drone-Bama" come to mind for 
example).  "We fight not against men ..."

In present times, when a supporter of such actually worthy goals goes in to 
bat, to support, he may well be surprised to find that "a little genuine 
support for a good cause" ends up locating him in a battle royale - in fact 
battle after battle after night of the living dead battle!  Some of us have 
experienced this in wrenching, Soul purifying (hopefully) clarity.

And when we appear to battle against "bleedingly obvious" stupidity and 
uncoordination, incoherency and so many flaws it rips tears from our hearts and 
eyes, literally, we are too often left desperatery wondering, should we plead 
to the Gods?  Are we doing something wrong in helping?  Why do every 5 steps 
forward seem to result in 4, 5 or 6 steps backwards?  Am I able to continue 
with even tiny st

Re: Superseding indictment of Julian Assange as of 6/24/2020

2020-06-26 Thread Zig the N.g
On Thu, Jun 25, 2020 at 07:08:59PM -0300, Punk-Stasi 2.0 wrote:
> 
> > 
> > New Allegations Assert Assange Conspired With “Anonymous” Affiliated 
> > Hackers, 
> 
>   hilarious, considering that 'anonymous' is the CIA...


Rumour has it that amongst the NatSec "pro"s there is even one non-CIA 
anonymous "hacker" in existence ... somewhere..


Re: Superseding indictment of Julian Assange as of 6/24/2020

2020-06-26 Thread Zenaan Harkness
On Thu, Jun 25, 2020 at 03:53:01PM -0400, John Young wrote:
> Assange will be sacrificed and discarded by journalists once no longer useful.
> This is a long-standing practice to assure official protection and privilege.
> Assange once advocated this warning but was eventully coopted by journalists
> who joined his team and pushed the outreach to duplicitous journalism.
> 
> Braying about threat to journalism by Assange's prosecution is a deception op
> conducted in cooperation with authorities. Snowden's promoters have admitted
> consulting with USG on what to publish, what to redact, what to withhold.
> Barton Gellman describes his following this CYA standard procedure in Dark
> Mirror.
> 
> WikiLeaks burned sources with loose security, incoherent management, Julian's
> vanity and opportunism, thinking he could use cohorts for his purpose without
> penalty. The indictment outlines the parties he enlisted, quite a few likely
> to have decided to cooperate, like Sabu, the "Teenager," maybe Appelbaum,
> others pseudonymed.
> 
> Those he has manipulated will turn against him under pressure from prosecutors
> against them, their families and friends. Same happened to Manning, Swartz,
> kirakou, Hammond, long list of others.
> 
> Snowden will eventually be handed over to USG by those he came to trust the
> most. Trust wears thin over time and goosed by planted suspicions and doubts,
> ambition, need for income. And fans are notoriously fickle, don't give a shit
> after the excitement wanes, smears are spread, bots and media countermesures
> are unleashed, rewards are offered like Greenwald's "irresistables"
> undergirding The Intercept.
> 
> And there is always the AP option for terminating JA. Treachery of supporters
> is too.


Much true here.

True men of principle do not suffer greatly for vainglorious ends.  Though some 
may get caught up in the superficial, we should feel sorry for them on that 
count, whilst at the same time upholding principles worthy.

Manning may have procured her relief from her "double jeopardy" with a (temp) 
non-disclosure, yet she remains vigilant to a tee in not "being a dog and 
knifing Assange" for her own physical freedom - the loyalty of a champion, and 
for the right foundation of righteous principle, so a huge and gracious -thank 
you- to Manning!

Assange had things to learn on his journey it appears - are any of us exempt 
from such?  Let's not shoot the messenger.  Let's take a leaf from Manning's 
book of grace and loyalty - if we asked her, would she hesitate to say "punch 
up, not down" ?

Assange was part of a team, and as incoherent and flawed as it may have been, 
that team achieved massive wins - never forget that the results, from a broader 
perspective have shaken the foundations of empire, with its relentless revenge 
mission against Assange still in full swing to this day after so many years.

If as you say, Assange 'has manipulated' people on his Wikileaks journey, just 
how many more years would -you- keep him locked up in Maxi, how many more years 
from now (of Assange in jail), depriving his children of their father, do you 
personally say that Assange ought be kept in the slammer in order to mete out 
sufficient "justic" in your mind?

This is a serious and real question to you John (no matter that we are not the 
judiciary prosecuting him) - what be your position on the actual pennance 
Assange, as you imply, ought pay?

Yes there are always many options - perhaps we can help to spread the word of 
caution, of loyalty, remind folks that ultimate dignity is that in our own 
mirrored eyes, before our maker and with none between ...



Re: Superseding indictment of Julian Assange as of 6/24/2020

2020-06-25 Thread John Young
Assange will be sacrificed and discarded by journalists once no 
longer useful. This is a long-standing practice to assure official 
protection and privilege. Assange once advocated this warning but was 
eventully coopted by journalists who joined his team and pushed the 
outreach to duplicitous journalism.


Braying about threat to journalism by Assange's prosecution is a 
deception op conducted in cooperation with authorities. Snowden's 
promoters have admitted consulting with USG on what to publish, what 
to redact, what to withhold. Barton Gellman describes his following 
this CYA standard procedure in Dark Mirror.


WikiLeaks burned sources with loose security, incoherent management, 
Julian's vanity and opportunism, thinking he could use cohorts for 
his purpose without penalty. The indictment outlines the parties he 
enlisted, quite a few likely to have decided to cooperate, like Sabu, 
the "Teenager," maybe Appelbaum, others pseudonymed.


Those he has manipulated will turn against him under pressure from 
prosecutors against them, their families and friends. Same happened 
to Manning, Swartz, kirakou, Hammond, long list of others.


Snowden will eventually be handed over to USG by those he came to 
trust the most. Trust wears thin over time and goosed by planted 
suspicions and doubts, ambition, need for income. And fans are 
notoriously fickle, don't give a shit after the excitement wanes, 
smears are spread, bots and media countermesures are unleashed, 
rewards are offered like Greenwald's "irresistables" undergirding The 
Intercept.


And there is always the AP option for terminating JA. Treachery of 
supporters is too.





Re: Superseding indictment of Julian Assange as of 6/24/2020. Candidates reactions as of Sept 2019.

2020-06-25 Thread jim bell
 On Thursday, June 25, 2020, 11:58:14 AM PDT, jim bell  
wrote:
 
 
 Superseding Indictment of Julian Assange 6/24/2020
[Jim Bell's comment:  For nearly 20 years, I've wondered why "superseding" 
isn't spelled "superceding".  ]
https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1289641/download


https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/wikileaks-founder-charged-superseding-indictment


[snip]
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2010/dec/19/assange-high-tech-terrorist-biden 
 [note:  this is from 2010]


The US vice-president, Joe Biden, today likened the WikiLeaks founder, Julian 
Assange, to a "hi-tech terrorist", the strongest criticism yet from the Obama 
administration.

Biden claimed that by leaking diplomatic cables Assange had put lives at risk 
and made it more difficult for the US to conduct its business around the world.

His description of Assange shows a level of irritation that contrasts with more 
sanguine comments from other senior figures in the White House, who said the 
leak had not done serious damage.

Interviewed on NBC's Meet the Press, Biden was asked if the administration 
could prevent further leaks, as Assange warned last week. "We are looking at 
that right now. The justice department is taking a look at that," Biden said, 
without elaborating.

The justice department is struggling to find legislation with which to 
prosecute Assange. "[end of quote]
>From September 
>2019:https://shadowproof.com/2019/09/12/the-prosecution-against-julian-assange-where-presidential-candidates-stand/

"Biden, Booker, Harris, Montana Governor Steve Bullock, and former 
Representative Beto O’Rourke each declined to answer the specific question.

“I won’t speak specifically about the Assange case—it isn’t appropriate for me 
to offer an opinion on an ongoing criminal prosecution that is now pending in 
court and about which all the details are not publicly available,” Biden stated.

Biden spoke specifically in 2010 when he was part of President Barack Obama’s 
administration. He suggested Assange probably “conspired to get these 
classified documents with a member of the U.S. military” and added “that’s 
fundamentally different than if someone drops [documents] on your lap” and says 
“you’re a press person. Here’s classified material.”

He even agreed with Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that 
Assange is much more like a “high-tech terrorist” than a journalist.
"Biden wrote, “I’m not assuming in any way that Assange is in fact a 
journalist,” which indicates he believes he would have the authority to decide 
who is and is not a journalist.
[snip]
"Similar to Biden, Bennet said there should be a “distinction” between the 
press and whistleblowers who serve a public purpose and “those, like Assange, 
who publish classified information without regard to whether it may put 
American forces in danger.”

[snip]

"Williamson deserves credit for an answer that, unlike the other responses, 
incorporated some of the history of the Espionage Act.

“The Espionage Act is a relic of President Woodrow Wilson’s prosecution of 
Eugene Debs for opposing his military frolic in the Soviet Union,” Williamson 
wrote. “The Act violates freedom of speech and press by criminalizing 
publications without proof that the disclosures were intended to and did cause 
material harm to the national security of the United States.”

Williamson added, “The First Amendment does not permit a British-style Official 
Secrets Act for classified information. I would drop the Espionage Act counts 
against Assange.”
"The Obama administration transformed the Espionage Act into a de facto 
Official Secrets Act by using it to prosecute more leakers or whistleblowers 
than all previous presidential administrations combined (something which Biden 
ignored entirely in his answer).


  

Superseding indictment of Julian Assange as of 6/24/2020

2020-06-25 Thread jim bell
Superseding Indictment of Julian Assange 6/24/2020
[Jim Bell's comment:  For nearly 20 years, I've wondered why "superseding" 
isn't spelled "superceding".  ]
https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1289641/download


https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/wikileaks-founder-charged-superseding-indictment

"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEWednesday, June 24, 2020
WikiLeaks Founder Charged in Superseding Indictment


New Allegations Assert Assange Conspired With “Anonymous” Affiliated Hackers, 
Among Others
A federal grand jury returned a second superseding indictment today charging 
Julian P. Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, with offenses that relate to 
Assange’s alleged role in one of the largest compromises of classified 
information in the history of the United States.   
The new indictment does not add additional counts to the prior 18-count 
superseding indictment returned against Assange in May 2019.  It does, however, 
broaden the scope of the conspiracy surrounding alleged computer intrusions 
with which Assange was previously charged.  According to the charging document, 
Assange and others at WikiLeaks recruited and agreed with hackers to commit 
computer intrusions to benefit WikiLeaks."            [end of partial quote]
Jim Bell's comments follow:Somehow, I suspect that many the government 
attorneys handling this case hadn't even been born when the Supreme Court 
issued its opinion in the "Pentagon Papers" case in 1971.  
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pentagon_Papers

"The Pentagon Papers, officially titled Report of the Office of the Secretary 
of Defense Vietnam Task Force, is a United States Department of Defense history 
of the United States' political and military involvement in Vietnam from 1945 
to 1967. The papers were released by Daniel Ellsberg, who had worked on the 
study; they were first brought to the attention of the public on the front page 
of The New York Times in 1971.[1][2] A 1996 article in The New York Times said 
that the Pentagon Papers had demonstrated, among other things, that the Johnson 
Administration "systematically lied, not only to the public but also to 
Congress."[3]
"More specifically, the papers revealed that the U.S. had secretly enlarged the 
scope of its actions in the Vietnam War with the bombings of nearby Cambodia 
and Laos, coastal raids on North Vietnam, as well as Marine Corps attacks, none 
of which were reported in the mainstream media.[4] For his disclosure of the 
Pentagon Papers, Ellsberg was initially charged with conspiracy, espionage, and 
theft of government property, but the charges were later dismissed after 
prosecutors investigating the Watergate scandal discovered that the staff 
members in the Nixon White House had ordered the so-called White House Plumbers 
to engage in unlawful efforts to discredit Ellsberg.[5][6]"[end of quote from 
Wikipedia]
Here,   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Times_Co._v._United_States
the Supreme Court ruled that it would not 'enjoin' the New York Times from 
publishing its articles.  
>From later in this wikipedia article:

Concurring opinions[edit]

Justice Hugo Black wrote an opinion that elaborated on his view of the absolute 
superiority of the First Amendment:


[T]he injunction against The New York Times should have been vacated without 
oral argument when the cases were first presented... . [E]very moment's 
continuance of the injunctions ... amounts to a flagrant, indefensible, and 
continuing violation of the First Amendment. ... The press was to serve the 
governed, not the governors. The Government's power to censor the press was 
abolished so that the press would remain forever free to censure the 
Government. The press was protected so that it could bare the secrets of 
government and inform the people. Only a free and unrestrained press can 
effectively expose deception in government. And paramount among the 
responsibilities of a free press is the duty to prevent any part of the 
government from deceiving the people and sending them off to distant lands to 
die of foreign fevers and foreign shot and shell. ... [W]e are asked to hold 
that ... the Executive Branch, the Congress, and the Judiciary can make laws 
... abridging freedom of the press in the name of 'national security.' ... To 
find that the President has 'inherent power' to halt the publication of news 
... would wipe out the First Amendment and destroy the fundamental liberty and 
security of the very people the Government hopes to make 'secure.' ... The word 
'security' is a broad, vague generality whose contours should not be invoked to 
abrogate the fundamental law embodied in the First Amendment. The guarding of 
military and diplomatic secrets at the expense of informed representative 
government provides no real security... . The Framers of the First Amendment, 
fully aware of both the need to defend a new nation and the abuses of the 
English and Colonial governments, sought to give this new society strength and 
security by