WikiLeaks Begins Release of 2.5m Syrian Emails 322
judgecorp writes "WikiLeaks has started publishing 2.5 million emails from Syrian political figures and other bodies. The material will embarrass Syria, as well as other governments according to Julian Assange (still hiding in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London). As well as revealing the behaviour of the Syrian regime, the emails will also expose the hypocrisy of other governments and companies, Assange has said."
Finally... (Score:5, Interesting)
...some real, possibly world-changing leaks stories instead of all the crap about Assange and his whereabouts.
There was a news report on Danish television about the Syrian regime and how it's treating dissidents. That was not pleasant to watch.
Re:And this is why (Score:0, Interesting)
Re:And this is why (Score:3, Interesting)
The only problem is that is Assange is throwing in with people like Putin and Chavez, who kill their journalist opponents or, if they're lucky, just get railroaded into jail. Chavez just completed the dictator trifecta -- hassled opponents and journalists, silencing them. Got the "emergency" power to pass law by decree (the "dictator" part of "dictatorship"), and, just recently, outlawed sales of guns and ammunition.
Re:Above the law ? (Score:4, Interesting)
Wow, talk about wild eyed assertions. Accusing Wikileaks of being a front for "something else" with absolutely no evidence whatsoever. Sounds to me like you just don't like what they do, so you will say any damn ridiculous thing you can to try and discredit them.
Re:You're talking to the wrong crowd (Score:4, Interesting)
The video was not "chilling" unless you expect war to be a happy affair
Most people don't think about the costs of war. Presenting them with actual footage really does chill the general public. If it didn't, they wouldn't bother hiding it from us.
Yes, war is hell and sometimes people choose to do it anyway. But if they do, they should be presented with the consequences of their choices as directly and as often as possible. This is the service that Wikileaks provided with its release of Collateral Murder.
Re:You're talking to the wrong crowd (Score:2, Interesting)
Neligence matters too, and that's where the US troops in the video fell foul.
Most militaries in the world are trained to confirm their targets before firing, America fails miserably at this which is precisely why it's everything from the butt of countless friendly fire jokes, to being see as a hated occupying army by the Iraqis and Afghans.
The fact is the people in question, and most certainly the vehicle that tried to help were not an immediate threat to anyone. Any other military force with a care for human rights (i.e. Canadian, European, Australian, New Zealand) would've at least waited until there was an actual clear risk before pulling the trigger. These forces recognise that even if that means waiting until an RPG is actually fired, that even if it led to the death of one of their own, then that's a far safer action in the grand scheme of things than riling up a civilian population to fight against you by killing children which will inevitably mean 10s, possibly hundreds of your soldiers dying as an indirect effect of that. The math is simple, but US forces aren't trained to think about the bigger picture, only the excitement of pulling a trigger, and this is why the troops in the video were criminally negligent and should at very least have been held up on manslaughter charges if nothing else.
Still, it's America's choice, they're the ones who are throwing thousands of their sons into graves for no reason because they consistently end up having to run from said wars with their tales between their legs. It's just a shame other nation's civilians have to die because of their military incompetence. The only saving grace is that even the American public eventually get sick of seeing their own kids come home in body bags because they have no clue that fighting a war is about far more than simply pulling the trigger.
Re:And this is why (Score:4, Interesting)
Anyone who rules by decree is a dictator. It doesn't matter where are they are from, or what they do.
In fact, you'd think we'd know a dictator when we see one, given our vast experience.
You [wikipedia.org] would [saskfarmersmarket.com] hope [prisonplanet.com] so [wordpress.com], but to be honest I don't have a lot of faith in your judgement. Sorry.
Re:And this is why (Score:5, Interesting)
Look at it from HIS point of view though.
If he did not rape those women, then he's got a corrupt government and police force on a witch hunt, trying to frame him far a crime he didn't commit. Presumably, this is being done by Sweden at the behest of the US government, which wants his head served up on a platter. Why anyone surrender himself to that situation. It's not like he'd get anything resembling a fair trial, in Sweden, or here after the inevitable rendition.Â
If he DID rape those women, then he really is a scumbag of scumbags, every bit as bad... worse... as the republicans here make him out to be. Why would you expect that a lowlife like that would have even a sliver of honor? And every second he dodges extradition is another second he dodges justice and if free to rape again.Â
Innocent *or* guilty, his circumstances don't exactly favor surrender.
Re:And this is why (Score:0, Interesting)
The really sad thing here is, this post isn't a troll and is all factually accurate. Wikileaks is a business. They made money selling their leaks to media and other bidders.
Repeating a rumor as to a specific transaction does not undermine the rest of the post. The troll moderation and troll comment below wonderfully shows just how stupid and ignorant of operational details the population in general really are.
Its really sad just how stupid really really are...especially on slashdot. Its like you have to prove you're fucking retarded and know absolutely nothing about the subject matter before they allow you moderate these days. Hell, even worse, if you do know what the fuck you're talking about, its a 90% chance the stupidity of the masses will ensure you are troll moderated while the morons pat themselves on the back for encouraging the stupidity which is group-think of slashdot.
Damn slashdot has fallen.