See Something, Say Something
Jun 24, 2013 Political
I do not agree with what Bradley Manning or Edward Snowden did. Manning did not just expose some cover up of an incident, he released tens of thousands of documents the contents of which could have an adverse effect on our national security. He apparently had a meltdown over his gender identity issues and, in a snit, released lots of stuff. There were other avenues for him to reveal the cover up but he chose an incorrect one. Some hail him as a hero but he is not.
In addition to exposing the illegal spying by our government, Snowden took untold numbers of documents and his actions could damage our security. There were plenty of ways he could have gotten the spying information out that would not have landed him in hot water. He chose an incorrect one and while his actions have enlightened millions of Americans the issue will be more about him than the wrong he exposed.
The interesting thing in both of these cases is that, while what they did was wrong, they both followed the instructions of Homeland Security. For years now the DHS has been telling us that if we see something we should say something. These people, as misguided as their methods were, saw something and said something.
Unfortunately for them they saw something the government was doing or had done and said something about it. Big government does not like its misdeeds exposed. It only likes when we are reporting each other TO them. Being reported for their wrong doing enrages them and results in criminal charges.
I personally think that these two broke the law and should be punished BUT I admit that they had valid concerns and could have exposed the wrong doing legally. They would have had more credibility and would have avoided trouble.
In any event, they were doing as DHS instructed them.
I wonder if DHS thought their see something, say something campaign would come back to bite them…
No matter what, things are wrapping up for Manning but the Snowden saga is just beginning. Regardless of the outcome we are much more aware of government wrong doing because of him.
I just wish he had done it the right way.
Cave canem!
Never surrender, never submit.
Tags: dhs, lies, manning, say something, see something, snowden
Not Scared Of One Guy With A Laptop
Dec 2, 2010 Political
Robert Gibbs today stated that the administration is not scared of one guy with a laptop. He was referring to Julian Assange, the guy from Wikileaks who has released hundreds of thousands of documents that were stolen from the US government. The release of the documents has done damage to this country and our foreign relations and it has put lives in danger. Even though this is true, it is not Assange and his computer we should have trepidation about.
Private Bradley Manning of the United States Army is the guy with the computer who did the damage. For some unknown reason this guy had access to classified documents and he stole them and sent them to Assange.
Manning was a worker in the US government and he did this. What does this say about the ability of our government to secure private information? If the nation’s classified documents cannot be secured, what assurance do we have that any other information is secure?
Manning is the one that should worry Gibbs and the administration. At a time they are working to overturn Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell a homosexual soldier who was upset and confused leaked classified documents.
Manning is not, however, the person with a computer we should be afraid of.
The person who should concern us is the one who has access to our medical information under Obamacare. There will be many multiples of the number of documents released stored in the electronic medical records. Not only will people with computers have access to it, they could easily release quite a bit of the information. Not only that, a person like Manning in any other department of the government could gain access.
And, as the leaked documents show, so could China. What a great way to steal identities.
Regardless of what any person in government tells you (and we now have confirmation that they lie) they cannot secure your information. This has been proven three times this year, each time Assange leaked information. The government knows it cannot secure its information so much so that the State Department removed its computer files from the government’s network. They did this because they cannot keep them secured.
So what makes anyone think that medical records will be safe? How many identities will be stolen because the government was unable to keep our private information safe?
No, the administration is not scared of Assange. It is almost like they want him to release the documents (how else do you explain the inaction after the initial releases). The Administration does not worry about one guy with a computer.
But you should because there will be lots and lots of people who will have access to medical records. It would only take one to compromise the system.
If this episode does not remove any trust you might have had in the ability of our government to keep your information safe (if you were doltish enough to actually think such foolishness) then you are hopeless.
Cave Canem!
Never surrender, never submit.
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