Anonymous Declares "Infowar" on Wikileaks Opponents

[mr_rubino]

They've been doing it for years:

The problem is that, essentually, it's only been fairly recently that Wikileaks turned into a "one-man-and-his-press" site like it currently is. Back then, Wikileaks was actually a wiki (with heavy moderation, admittedly, but still a wiki).

(Coincidentally, it only became "one-man-and-his-press" (?) when it started saying mean things about the U.S. Serendipitous timing, no?)

 

[mb16]

Calumon: So someone is in trouble because he told the truth? :S

There's a bit more to it than just that (at least surface wise), but thank you for putting it in those words. It's amazing what a perspective one can have when it's simplified like that.

i think he gave away the position of backup government locations and bio/nuclear sites
aka against national security not just peoples emails.

 

[N12]

its people like this that harm the efforts of those trying to actually stop censorship. Anon dosent help they just make us (people on the internet that are trying to stop censorship) look like 10 year olds. pissing and moaning about things wont stop them.

as for the Wikileaks guy and his site, fuck them. showing off secrets to "help" the people dose not. telling terrorists this stuff just helps them.

I'm amazed how the unabashed proliferation of a nation's sensitive info is no longer defined as 'treason'.

as he is not an American its called spying and is also a capital crime. shoot him.

 

[Delusibeta]

"one-man-and-his-press" (?)

Pun on One Man and His Dog. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_man_and_his_dog] Where one man rounds up sheep with his dog. Competitive sheep herding: no wonder it got cancelled in 2000.

 

[Addendum_Forthcoming]

"Let the truth be known, even should the Heavens fall". So they say <.<

Julian Assange is far from a hero, but people seem to be forgetting that freedom of the press (of whom he was been merited by Amnesty International, and recognized as a journalist by leading media firms) requires that the press operate in the good of it's people.

Would you blame the Washington Post for choosing to run an article based on secret information they procured?

The role of the Media is to inform the people and keep them apprised of all information at their disposal. This is not criminal, but if Julian Assange is deemed guilty, his prosecutors should also be arrested for crimes against Humanity and conspiring to conceal gross corruption.

 

[Lord_Ascendant]

I personally think the internet, probably 4chan, will rise up into some sort of global revolution. Hopefully with robots and the bear cavalry. Just sayin'

In all seriousness, its one thing to just say "please, do not reveal secret documents. theres a reason they are secret." to "on April the 15th, at 9:30 AM on the steps of his apartment I want him to disappear. Make it look like an accident too...." pretty sure no one in the government is allowed to do that, nor the military. The United States of America has a duty to fair trial before a jury and a protection against cruel and unusual punishment. He cannot be extradited to Gitmo, because thats gone now isn't it? Oh no, the US just has to live with being shown what they are.

The United States is, basically, akin to a student being shown the website they copied their term paper from by their teacher, being played by Wikileaks in this drama. I'm not flamebaiting but actually the logical opposite, there is no point of contention because information is free and literally threatening to "execute" someone for treason is something from a different political system. Look up "autocracy" and "despotism" on wikipedia, it's a nice overview.

If the government of a nation can literally murder someone for something on the internet, we have lost our last scrap of freedom. Might as well line up for the bread line and start bowing before our new immortal Chancellor, so we can already have the habit when everything finally hits the inevitable fan.


/flameshield

 

[Wintermoot]

go anonymous! information should be free! if you dont want it leaked you should have protected it better!

 

[mindlesspuppet]

I love how in forum arguments it only seems like one side actually knows what they are talking about, while the other simply throws around buzzwords like "terrorist", "rapist", and "treason" without really looking into the matter.

 

[Jimi Ennis]

2 points,

firstly, to people who argue that "wikileaks is all well and good until they start releasing information that could lead to people being hurt, there should be a limit to transparency!" (thats not a direct quote just capturing an attitude)surely if he gets this information, by what ever means, he has an ethical responsibility to publish it, purely because not to do so would be hypocritical. Who is he to decide what we should or shouldn't know, to decide what is or isn't our concern would make him no better than those he denounces.

secondly, surely if someone who essentially just runs an overactive bulletin board can get hold of this information then shouldn't he release it purely to show the public just how bad the government is at keeping these secrets?

I lied its 3 points, if what he did is so legitimately bad then shouldn't they take legitimate action rather than calling for the nationalistic equivalent of a fatwah? (pardon my spelling)

I am now, as always, on the side of freedom of the press, a concept that suffers from lack of use these days.

 

[Devil's Due]

If Anon. supports there being no secrets, then why are they still Anon? Shouldn't they break a major wall by exposing themselves while exposing everyone else? They're just like a government that exposes one countries secrets while keeping theirs quiet. I don't like the secrets hid by the government, but I also don't like WikiLeaks. There should be a better way to expose these things, such as it not being hidden at all.

But that day will never come, sigh.

 

[Fuselage]

Well Then, I must be off to war!
EDIT:

I personally think the internet, probably 4chan, will rise up into some sort of global revolution. Hopefully with robots and the bear cavalry. Just sayin'

Is this what you were expecting?

 

[Okysho]

They call themselves ANONYMOUS! They are hackers on, blah blah blah.

Above is a Sky news report and a BBC news, showing that Anonymous are getting exactly what they don't want. Major Publicity. I wonder how the self proclaimed "Oldfags" will react? I imagine the dubbed "Newfags" will just scream and pretend it's a big deal.

Either way, Anonymous is becoming more into the light and this attack is not going to go overlooked that easily.

I'd say more on the subject, but I fear government agents might arrest me too and make me Number 61 on The Island.

Calumon: So someone is in trouble because he told the truth? :S

From what I gather since my last journey to the not-so-underground of the internet, many of the "oldfags" have either left or are just sort of putting up with the whole "second facebook" that 4chan is slowly becoming. (by second facebook I mean, people posting their own pictures and saying "rate me" and stuff). Operation payback was started by older, more experienced anons, but I think it's falled into the hands of the newfags far too much. I mean, come on. Paypal? Why?

and I've encountered some that agree with me, anon is not what it used to be. We have it's popularity to thank for that...

on that note...

-gives Calumon a cookie-

 

[SimuLord]

Can anyone stop the cannons firing?
I still see Anon as a hero, people over look all the good stuff they have done.

Hamas has done a lot of good stuff too. So has the Yakuza, Pablo Escobar, and probably also Hitler. Anon are still cyber-terrorists.

http://www.cracked.com/article/238_5-inspiring-acts-kindness-by-terrifying-crime-syndicates/

 

[zHellas]

Anon has also attacked wikileak hosting sites.
they arent really taking sides, they are screwing with everyone.

That's Anon for you!

*wacky sitcom music plays*

Oh Anon, what are we gonna do with you?

 

[NoseDigger]

Isnt this the 2nd or 3rd time these sexual claims have been brought up? These 'rape' claims are just stupid.

 

[Fumbleumble]

I'm sorry but to hell with this rapist. His alleged sexual-assault crime aside, the man has exposed HIGHLY classified material on the damn internet. No, I don't mean historical documents concerning the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars. Those documents are history are fully protected by the First Amendment's Freedom of the Press, look up the Pentagon Papers for a similar case involving the Vietnam War and government leaks. I know the man is Australian, but I'm going to judge him by the American legal system.

However, what is NOT PROTECTED is divulging secrets that pose a national security threat. Like say the locations of HIGHLY IMPORTANT sites according to Homeland Security. If I was a terrorist (be it for Al-Qaeda, Neo-Nazi, IRA, etc.) then a list like that is essentially a travel log of where to commit the most horrific result. That's not freedom of the press, that's putting people's lives in danger. So please do not act all surprised when you see politicians in my country calling for his head, he's not some righteous savior...he's a fucking asshole

First of all.. his 'actions' are such that anyone of us could be accused of.. this is just a massive smear campaign being organised and funded by the people he is outing....In this day and age you REALLY should be more aware of the lies and methods used against people to keep them quiet or to distract PEOPLE LIKE YOU away from what is REALLY going on. You should start thinkig for yourself instead of swallowing what the establishment throws at you.

Secondly.. of all the shit you have seen and read about the details of what is being revealed by this peson.. ARE YOU REALLY SURE that we shouldn't know about this.. and if we do all just BURY OUR HEADS IN THE SAND who will stop things from getting worse, a TRUE FASCIST SOCIETY..because they are certainly not going to get any better.

As for the arguement 'but people are going to be harmed.. waaaa'.. really?.. then they shouldn't be involved.. THAT is what is causing 'harm' to come to them, not the revelations them self.

Assange is a BLOODY HERO, because he knew fine well he would be roasted,(regardless of his current legal status) and Anonymous are the only ones left who have the balls and resources to stick up for our rights (granted them may have more chaotic motives.. but the result is the same.)

First of all, I'm all for transparency in government. But there are somethings that don't need to be public record. Like what diplomats really think of the people they are talking to. Do you want everyone knowing exactly what you think of them? Probably not, because it wouldn't be pretty in some cases. In the end, this information is frivolous.

The revelation that diplomats were acting as spies for the government is bad, but not shocking. Seriously, I have a very low regard for government and I'm certain that every government does the same thing to some extent. And I'm ok on some level with that being revealed. Yes, it was revealed about MY government, which does bother me on many levels, but enough of that.

But what really bothers me about Wikileaks is all the information about the Iraq and Afghanistan wars that they revealed. No matter how you feel about the wars, you have to be aware that there are real people down there. Many of them literally risk their lives and the lives of their families to help the Coalition forces. The only way to secure the help of many people is to guarantee their anonymity and safety. Wikileaks revealed ALL of that. They claimed they removed the names of protected sources, but considering the amount of data they unleashed, I find it hard to believe that they removed all the names. Since then, al-Qa'ida and many other organizations have promised to look through the files and punish whoever they can identify. IF they do, Wikileaks will have blood on their hands.

Now, you say that these people shouldn't have been involved if they didn't want to be hurt. Really? You are a psychopath. No offense meant, but really. You have no empathy for the people involved. Like I already said, many are risking not only their lives but the lives of their families to do what they think is right. The only way to guarantee their cooperation is to guarantee safety. If you would willing sacrifice those people for transparency, you don't understand what others are fighting for. Even those who like you want transparency. Keep in mind that at least Wikileaks claimed that they tried to protect the identities of such people. Even Assange realizes what that means. What about you?

Please spare me your feelings on the wars. I'm no fan of them either. But what Wikileaks has done is irresponsible. In some regards it may be treason or terrorism.

People say that this is what "real journalists" should have been doing. But there's a limit to what real journalists can do. Wikileaks went beyond legal channels to acquire the information. I'm surprised that Assange has not been charged with crimes stemming from what he has done. In fact, I won't be surprised when that happens, nor will I be sad.

The bottom line is this. Transparency is good, but should not endanger the people whose identities you promised to protect. We promised to protect our informants and their identities. Wikileaks has put those people at risk, even if they claim otherwise. Wikileaks will likely have blood on their collective hands. And our jobs will become that much more difficult as a result.

I apologize in advance if I offended you or anyone else. This is a topic that tends to get people hot under the collar as I'm sure we're all aware.

The precarious situation that the WORLD is in just now is ENTIRELY caused my the American...I'm NOT Americans.

The American administrations have been meddling with and destabilizing the world for their own greedy benefit for DECADES and HAVE to be stopped, By Whatever Means Neccessary.

ANYONE who has a hand in uncovering their dirty tactics, lies and crimes are HEROES..

And about the leaks... I WANT TO KNOW what crimes the governments are responsible for, only then can we do something about it... If people get hurt, then TOUGH SHIT.. they should take more resposibility for the actions they allow theselves to be caught up in.

 

[Jama7301]

I don't get the whole anti-government deal. Every country has it's corruption. Every country has it's dirty laundry. Yeah the US is screwy, but that's no secret. If the goal is Anarchy, that's an even worse outcome than where we already are.

As long as governments are led by people, there will always be secret agendas, either by the ones on top and by anybody below him.

As for the "freedom of speech/press/religion" First Amendment, people need to realize it's not absolute. It's not a catch-all to say whatever the hell you want. Going into a crowed place and yelling "FIRE" to cause panic is not covered by the First Amendment.

And while I'm here, if Anon IS causing sites to crash or whatever, they're cyberterrorists, and criminals.

 

[felixader]

There are some things that NEED to stay secret. At least for now. No justice is being done by leaking ongoing, or soon to be under way operations in the middle east, which could have cost a lot of lives. Also, a lot of this stuff with all of the nuclear bombs, we are all better off not knowing.

No one tries the peacefull ways cause they can get away with it.

That is the only reason why the US Army fell into the Iraq and it's the only reason why Politicians are acting like they are Miles above the citizens instead of humans that have been tasked with the Task to actually change the situation of whatever and the world overall into a better place.