https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/11/uk/julian-assange-arrested-gbr-intl/index.html
What do you guys think? Is he a hero or a villain?
What do you guys think? Is he a hero or a villain?
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Police arrest Julian Assange at Ecuadorian embassy in London
- Thread starter Gameface
- Start date
I don't trust the guy. But I'm not sure that's all it takes to become a villain.
jimmy eat jazz
Well-Known Member
I have mixed feelings. I think that it's useful to have an organization such as WikiLeaks to shed light on dark secrets the government or other powerful persons/institutions wants to keep from hidden, such as a domestic spying program or money laundering involving Panama banks, but on the other hand, WikiLeaks engages in a variety of shady practices that go well beyond this kind of public service function.
A little of both. Mostly seems to be venal and self-absorbed.
Archie Moses
Well-Known Member
The guy exposed big brother and did something rather heroic, to me. To my step dad, who's retired Navy and worked for the Pentagon for 20 years, he's a coward (at least that's his opinion on Snowden.)
The guy has some sketchy accusations, including rape, on his track record, but I have no idea of the validity of them.
At times, he has rather reckless behavior. From the sounds of it, he may have bit the hand that fed - or something happened behind closed doors that persuade his asylum to come to an end.
The guy has some sketchy accusations, including rape, on his track record, but I have no idea of the validity of them.
At times, he has rather reckless behavior. From the sounds of it, he may have bit the hand that fed - or something happened behind closed doors that persuade his asylum to come to an end.
Hotdog
Well-Known Member
Just playing the game right back at the left. How can you not see that? They lie, make things up, slander and smear. Why would help them out by being honest with them?
Getting Traded
Banned
Hero of the decade, in my book.
Right.
Getting Traded
Banned
The rape charges were trumped and dropped, for one. The establishment is out to get him for exposing their evil. Did you see the video that he released that Chelsea Manning leaked. It shows American soldiers in a helicopter gunning down innocent civilians including children and acting as if they were in a shooting galley. And continuing to shoot at civilians trying to help those being shot. It's outrageous. And that's what they're after Assange for, because he made it public. I don't have the vocabulary to describe how disgusting our government is.
I don't think it's a black & white issue. Wikileaks has exposed corruption and done some noble things, but I think it needs to show discretion and not just publish any leak.
HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!!!!!
You know that how?
Sure. But that doesn't make the rape charges trumped up.
The Thriller
Well-Known Member
You are literally repeating what right wing trolls like Cassandra Fairbanks and Russian bots are retweeting right now. I know you think you’re smart by going “against the mainstream.” Maybe you feel like you’re “preserving western culture” from the brown horde. But please understand that the filth of the alt right and the authoritarianism of Russia is the antithesis of western culture and representative democracy.
The Thriller
Well-Known Member
I have strong feelings about Assange.
His organization merely acts as the arm for Russian authoritarianism. They claim to be pro “free speech” and pro “freedom for individual rights” and pro “truth” yet their actions completely undermine western democracies.
Ask yourself, how many times did Assange and his organization release embarrassing information about a Western European or North American country? Almost too many to count. And many of these leaks were about embarrassing but not very significant things. It’s not like he saved millions of people from dying in Vietnam, like Ellsberg did. All his leaks accomplished successfully was to undermine trust and confidence in western democracies.
Now ask yourself, how many times did Assange and his organization release embarrassing information about Russia? Think about it. Have they ever released information on Russia? Why is that?
If the goal was to encourage countries to be more transparent, honest, and work collectively to preserve human life, why wouldn’t he go after the worst offenders, like Russia?
Putin and Russia have recognized that that they can weaponize the west’s tolerance for the free press against itself. They’re actively using Assange (he’s a willing partner) and Wikileaks to undermine confidence in western democracy. The goal is two fold:
1. Drive a wedge between western democratic governments and the people they govern so governing becomes impossible. While Americans are arguing amongst themselves over facts and alt facts, they can’t rally together to counter Russian aggression.
2. Crash western democracies. If western governments become so disrupted by groups like Wikileaks, they may clamp down on freedoms and become increasingly more authoritarian. America (and other western democracies) becoming more like Russia is a huge win for the bad guys.
Assange and Wikileaks are the bad guys being exploited by the worst bad guy alive today, Vladimir Putin.
His organization merely acts as the arm for Russian authoritarianism. They claim to be pro “free speech” and pro “freedom for individual rights” and pro “truth” yet their actions completely undermine western democracies.
Ask yourself, how many times did Assange and his organization release embarrassing information about a Western European or North American country? Almost too many to count. And many of these leaks were about embarrassing but not very significant things. It’s not like he saved millions of people from dying in Vietnam, like Ellsberg did. All his leaks accomplished successfully was to undermine trust and confidence in western democracies.
Now ask yourself, how many times did Assange and his organization release embarrassing information about Russia? Think about it. Have they ever released information on Russia? Why is that?
If the goal was to encourage countries to be more transparent, honest, and work collectively to preserve human life, why wouldn’t he go after the worst offenders, like Russia?
Putin and Russia have recognized that that they can weaponize the west’s tolerance for the free press against itself. They’re actively using Assange (he’s a willing partner) and Wikileaks to undermine confidence in western democracy. The goal is two fold:
1. Drive a wedge between western democratic governments and the people they govern so governing becomes impossible. While Americans are arguing amongst themselves over facts and alt facts, they can’t rally together to counter Russian aggression.
2. Crash western democracies. If western governments become so disrupted by groups like Wikileaks, they may clamp down on freedoms and become increasingly more authoritarian. America (and other western democracies) becoming more like Russia is a huge win for the bad guys.
Assange and Wikileaks are the bad guys being exploited by the worst bad guy alive today, Vladimir Putin.
The Thriller
Well-Known Member
Hmmmmmm
Hmmmmm
I have no idea why she stayed in the 2016 election...
Getting Traded
Banned
That's b.s., Thriller. Our government is probably more corrupt than the Russians, for one. Wikileaks is not an arm of the Russians; the Russians may have aided him and people like Snowden, but that's for propaganda purposes. And Russian power has always been overrated to suit the needs of our military and its continual need for expansion and financial support. Once the USSR collapsed we created the bogeyman of terrorism. Assange is portrayed as a bad guy by the real bad guys, the U.S. government and our military-industrial complex.
Getting Traded
Banned
Now, I'm not saying that Russia is the good guys either, so be clear about that. But if you consider what nation has caused more death and destruction since the end of WW II, I think we win hands down. Either directly through war, or indirectly by supplying arms through the auspices of the CIA to various dictators in third world countries like those in Africa and in Indonesia or Guatemala (and there were genocides committed in the latter two countries with the aid of the U.S.), among others. For example, three million Vietnamese died during the war there, and one source I know of indicated that in modern warfare far more civilians are dying. For example, in the Iraq War, 90 percent of those who died, or collateral damage as they call it, were civilians. It's a nasty world we live in today, but I don't believe Assange is part of that. Just because the Russians aid someone, doesn't mean they're the bad. Castro, for instance, was trying to improve the lives of the people in Cuba, but we boycotted Cuba and tried to overthrow him because we don't believe in socialism. So, the Russians came to his aid. Of course we portray Castro as evil. But if we had not boycotted Cuba, like we are doing to Venezuela, they would've been prosperous. But we couldn't allow that because of our dirty capitalist system. Americans aren't bad people, nor are Russians bad people. It's our governments that are evil, and we are the most evil of them all. We are the evil empire.
The Thriller
Well-Known Member
No government on the planet is more corrupt than Putin’s Russia.
Russia isn't some boogeyman. Read a damn book or open a newspaper. Russia is meddling in elections, killing journalists, and providing aid to our enemies. Enemies of western democracies. This isn’t rumor, but proven fact.
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