Courage is Contagious (Part 2)

[For Part 1, click here]

Pressure on Supporters

            In regards to the effects of WikiLeaks, Javier Moreno wrote, “Power hates to see the truth exposed.” It is quite apparent that WikiLeaks has posed quite a threat to governments the world over. Major US officials and journalists such as Sarah Palin, Mike Huckabee, Bob Beckel, Rush Limbaugh, and Jeffery T. Kuhner have all openly called for the assassination of Julian Assange. Clinton and Obama have spoken of their disdain for WikiLeaks and its actions. The pressure on WikiLeaks employees has also increased as the Department of Justice served a subpoena, demanding access to multiple employees’ Twitter accounts, which contained their IP addresses, email accounts, and banking information. Even volunteers who only served with WikiLeaks for a time have had their laptops and cellphones taken away at US airports.

            As a non-profit organization, WikiLeaks depends on donations via their website to stay running. Up until recently, people were able to donate to the site through MasterCard, Visa, and Papal, but all three companies recently, suspiciously, rescinded their support. Under the pretense that WikiLeaks was violating their Terms of Agreement, these major credit companies left the site, forcing it to only be able to receive donations by mail orders or bank transfers. This blatant act of government pressure on these credit companies inconvenienced supporters, but has not slowed them down.

            The pressure on proponents of WikiLeaks continues as an email was recently hacked and released from Aaron Barr, CEO of technology and security consulting firm, HBGary Federal. The email discusses the idea of tracking and intimidating anyone who has ever given money to WikiLeaks. In his email, Barr states, “We need to get people to understand that if they support the organization we will come after them. Transaction records are easily identifiable.” With threats resulting in consequences as widespread as this, the possibility of a War on Information is becoming that much more plausible.

The pressure is not even limited to direct supporters of WikiLeaks. The US administration has clearly instructed its employees not to read the cables. The Library of Congress and US Air Force have actually tried to block the site from their computers with threats of discipline if anyone reads them. Universities have told students that if they even go to the website they are giving up any opportunity of obtaining a job at a government position. Assange stated that, “Information that organizations are spending economic effort into concealing, that’s a really good signal that when the information gets out, there’s a hope of it doing some good.”

Why It Affects You

            WikiLeaks’ slogan is “Courage is Contagious”, a motto that is both appropriate and relevant. It is important that governments rule with accountability and, up until recently, that accountability has been incredibly limited.  These leaks are not released in order to attack a certain nation or person, but to address and react to corruption. It is about sending a message to the US and other world power leaders that they cannot use fear and secrets to scare nations into submission. It is about stopping bullying and it is about democracy. Consider this monologue from V for Vendetta:

Words offer the means to meaning, and for those who will listen, the enunciation of truth. And the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn't there? Cruelty and injustice, intolerance and oppression. And where once you had the freedom to object, to think and speak as you saw fit, you now have censors and systems of surveillance coercing your conformity and soliciting your submission. How did this happen? Who's to blame? Well certainly there are those more responsible than others, and they will be held accountable, but again truth be told, if you're looking for the guilty, you need only look into a mirror. I know why you did it. I know you were afraid. Who wouldn't be? War, terror, disease. There were a myriad of problems which conspired to corrupt your reason and rob you of your common sense. Fear got the best of you, and in your panic you turned to [your government leader]. He promised you order, he promised you peace, and all he demanded in return was your silent, obedient consent.

These chilling words are strikingly accurate in our modern day. They require more than a humbled nod; they call for a shift of mentality and perspective. By conceding to whatever the media informs you and not questioning or challenging information, you are not just being apathetic, you are becoming part of the problem.

            There is no question that information is power. To find an example of this, all you have to do is look at the current events in Africa and Asia. Much of the current dissention caused in Tunisia was due in part to the release of information leaked on the governments’ actions. Once Tunisia overthrew their government, the revolution became contagious. The people of Egypt became empowered with the concept of change and succeeded in uprooting their leader as well. The momentum has spread as anti-government protests are currently being held in Algeria, Bahrain, Iran, Libya, and Yemen. While these revolutions are not due solely because of WikiLeaks, it is undeniable that they have played an important role. The world is currently in a state of transition and, as separated as we often feel in our North American homes, this shift will soon come to affect us.

Why WikiLeaks is Dangerous

            It is no secret that with great power comes great responsibility and the employees of WikiLeaks are sitting on a precipice. They have been condemned for putting individual lives in danger, for being too loose with their releases. While it seems like their methods are rash, they are not without restraint. Prior to being placed on the Internet, the leaks are held back and edited to remove individual names. To date there have been no specific allegations that anyone has been caused harm in direct response to the leaks. They present the cables as raw data, without bias or prejudice and have never posted anything with the security clearance of Top Secret. There have never been any claims that the leaks have been forged or altered in any way, even their opponents do not question their authenticity. Glenn Greenwald notes that WikiLeaks is “doing nothing more than publishing classified information showing what the U.S. Government is doing:  something investigative journalists, by definition, do all the time.”

            The leaks are dangerous, but so is anything that deals with international relations. Gary Richmand points out:

Recent history shows that it was the decision to invade Iraq and Afghanistan made by Brown, Blair, Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld that has not just endangered lives but caused the actual deaths of thousands. Is it too much to speculate that if WikiLeaks had been able to leak the machinations of WMD that lives might have been saved? There are times when secrecy saves lives, yes. There are times when transparency saves them. The trick is to get the balance right.

Nobody is saying that all government information should be revealed, but it is time that the public is made more aware than it is now. Even if the pendulum must swing in the opposite direction, it is essential that people become aware of the illusion of our governments. Apathy and submission have become greater factors in war in our lifetime than weapons of mass destruction. Governments are battling for perspectives and attitudes above anything else.

            So what is stopping Assange from playing God? If one man, one company, has access to secrets the world over, isn’t that just a shift of power? Yes and no. WikiLeaks is not an independent source. Without people sending in their information they have no way of acquiring the classified material. It is also a non-profit organization, which directly relies on the finances of supporters. Assange has claimed that if people stopped supporting the company, the site would be down within a few months. It is not a foolproof system, but it is the closest we have come to a democracy as it is entirely dependant on the people. With people holding WikiLeaks accountable and WikiLeaks holding the government accountable, we may, and have already begun to, see change happening for the better.

Conclusion

            It is exhilarating to see a shift of power with this much potential in our lifetime. As Assange referenced, this is not about taking down America, it is about standing up against corruption and dishonesty. Norwegian MP Snorre Valen, who recently nominated WikiLeaks for a Nobel Peace Prize, wrote, “It is not, and should never be, the privilege of politicians to regulate which crimes the public should never be told about, and through which media those crimes become known.” WikiLeaks is based on the power of information which is why it so important that it is fully understood. Government officials and the media would love to pretend none of this ever happened, encouraging the public into historical amnesia. Even if Wikileaks is shut down tomorrow, it will have taught us to not take what we are told blindly, but to actually go out and research. It is important that people empower themselves with knowledge because without it we become victims. If powers and events such as WikiLeaks are not discussed, we are giving away our freedom of speech on a silver platter and allowing our other freedoms to follow soon after.

For reports of the Twitter subpoena and fear in America:

http://mobile.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2011/01/10/fear/index.html and http://mobile.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2011/01/07/twitter/index.html

For the story and shocking video about Ray McGovern:

http://www.commondreams.org/further/2011/02/16-3

For the email and slideshow pertaining to WikiLeaks attacks:

 http://blogs.forbes.com/andygreenberg/2011/02/14/hbgary-ceo-also-suggested-tracking-intimidating-WikiLeaks-donors/ and 
http://hbgary.anonleaks.ch/aaron_hbgary_com/1791.html

The Snorre Valen quote:

http://www.snorrevalen.no/2011/02/02/why-i-have-nominated-WikiLeaks-for-the-nobel-peace-prize/

The Gary Richmond quote:

http://www.freesoftwaremagazine.com/columns/WikiLeaks_first_full_scale_pitched_battle_between_government_and_open_web

The Julian Assange quote:

http://news.ca.msn.com/photogallery.aspx?cp-documentid=26842275&page=10

On the ‘Dancing Boy’ Scandal:

http://www.alternet.org/investigations/149352/%27dancing_boy%27_scandal_taints_both_americans_and_afghans/

The Glenn Greenwald quote:

http://mobile.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2011/01/07/twitter/index.html

The Javier Moreno quote:

http://www.elpais.com/articulo/english/Why/PAIS/chose/to/publish/the/leaks/elpepueng/20101223elpeng_3/Ten