US intel leak arrested in Kuwait

[eagl]

Seems that a disgruntled and apparently underworked 22 yr old Army intel specialist took it upon himself to release a bunch of stuff he found on 2 of our primary classified networks.  collateralmurder.com is the result of one of his leaks and wikileaks appears to be sitting on 1/4 million documents he claimed to have sent them, based on what he said in a chat with another wikileaks supporter/ex-hacker.

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/06/leak/

The only saving grace I can see is that he doesn't appear to have been influenced by an adversary.  Maybe he watched too many hollywood movies where the hero is a US agent who stumbles upon some sort of coverup, and then saves the world by breaking every rule and law they come across.  Explosions are apparently optional, but who knows how far he would have gone if he hadn't been ratted out.

[soda72]

He listens to 'Lady Gaga' enough said...

 

[edit]

They should hold off on any charges and transfer him to a front line unit in afgan for a year. 

[fudgums]

He listens to 'Lady Gaga' enough said...

 

my po po po po poker face

[VonMessa]

There are things that my government does that I really DO NOT NEED TO KNOW ABOUT.

Some of them are not......   always the most friendly.

Being a wartime journalist is ...  ummm..... DANGEROUS.

"Innocent" people WILL fall victim to unfortunate circumstances.

I DO, however, enjoy sleeping under the blanket of freedom that my country provides for me.

Thank you, Uncle Sam.

 


<digging in now for the onslaught of the bleeding hearts and artists>

[Nefarious]

There are things that my government does that I really DO NOT NEED TO KNOW ABOUT.

That is why we are in the shape we are in today, Total apathy for what the government does in all of our names.

EDIT: I should of added, I'm not blaming you personally. 

[allaire]

They should hold off on any charges and transfer him to a front line unit in afgan for a year. 

Should they send him through 11b training or just deploy him with no training? 

[VonMessa]

That is why we are in the shape we are in today, Total apathy for what the government does in all of our names.

EDIT: I should of added, I'm not blaming you personally.  

It is not apathy at all (at least for me)

I do no have a lack of feeling or emotion, nor do I have a lack of interest or concern.

That is why I stated that there are things that I do not want to KNOW about, not things that I do not CARE about.

Hey, war is an ugly thing.

Ever participated in one?

When there are persons in an active war zone, milling about on the streets carrying weapons, they are probably not planning on going bowling.

Indeed it must suck for the families if the journalists, but there is an old adage:  If you are unsure about measuring the character of a man, look to those he keeps company with.  ie:  Don't hang around with the guys carrying guns if you don't want to be counted as one of them.

I most certainly have sympathy for the children, but they had no choice in being there.  If it weren't for the big sign with arrows pointing to the children (which I'm certain wasn't on the HUD of the chopper), there is absolutely NO WAY that anyone could have discerned that there were children in that van givin the darkness inside the vehicle and the less than HD quality of the chopper's video equipment.  The only thing that was obvious was that there were folks that showed up with a van and that they were collecting bodies AND weapons.  

There was no reason to bring children.  What were they going to do?  Sit on the bodies on the ride home or hold the weapons?  

I would hate to think that anyone here is naive enough to think that children that have grown up in a war zone, and are steeped in the ideology of the enemy could be anything other than a possible danger.

If you have your doubts about how dangerous a child can be, go find a Vietnam Vet and ask him...........

 

[soda72]

Should they send him through 11b training or just deploy him with no training? 

Apparently he doesn't need anymore training, he obviously knows how it suppose to be done while sitting at his desk job in Kuwait listening to Lady gaga.  This will be a great opportunity for him to show his Army brothers how to do it correctly.  I'm sure they'll all be impressed with his skills...

[Yeager]

This is just another case of how disappointed I am in who the military allows into its ranks.  The fact that the punk was turned in by an outsider tells me the government had no idea he was being a genuine loser.  Kinda like the fanatic islamist army officer who gunned down our people at ft hood.

[Yenny]

Stupid kid, doesn't know the consequences of his actions. I hope he gets it good xD

[RTHolmes]

There are things that my government does that I really DO NOT NEED TO KNOW ABOUT.

denial - its not just a river in egypt!

[Nefarious]

That is why I stated that there are things that I do not want to KNOW about, not things that I do not CARE about.

Oh, I understand the difference but both have the same effect. To not want to know, is to not want to care.

I agree with you on Gun Cam footage BTW. 

[Yenny]

Normally other soldiers pay with their life for stupid intel leaks like this

[VonMessa]

Oh, I understand the difference but both have the same effect. To not want to know, is to not want to care.

I agree with you on Gun Cam footage BTW. 

My 4th amendment affords me the right to privacy.  As long as that right is not violated, I will extend the same courtesy back to my country.

What is the effect that we need to be concerned about in this case, though?

The servicemen followed procedure, and were cleared to engage.  This wasn't some slaughter of "innocents".  The journalists knew exactly the danger they faced every day and what the consequences could be for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

As far as Reuters is concerned, I would think that since they are not a U.S. company, they have no rights to any of our government documents as per the FOIA.  The FOIA was enacted to dictate that the government must be subservient to the citizens of the US with regard to disclosure with a total of (9) exceptions to the rule.  It does not state that these records are available to just anyone but rather US Citizens only.  I'm sure that this also does not include foreign businesses.  

I fully understand the desire for accountability and transparency with regard to our government.  I think it is a noble and forward thinking idea.

I do not, however, think that it should apply to our military.  There no reason that electronic data concerning the procedures of our armed forces should be made available to ANY media.  

Reuters knew full well that their employees faced danger every day. yet they want to know what happened to their employees .

Wrong place, wrong time.

Sorry about your luck.

If a few reporters bought the farm because they were too close to the action, it is not the fault of the US troops.  They took the paycheck knowing the risks associated with the job.  The only persons that should be held responsible for the children should be the parents.

I also have no shame in saying that the situation, with regard to the medical care of the children, was handled properly.  Our resources should not be used for their medical care.  Coffee is brewed at temperatures that can scald you and as such, should be handled with care.  McDonald's should not be held responsible for one's lack of dexterity.  In the same vein, bullets are likely to be flying around in an active battle zone and as such, should not be brought to one.  Neither should we be held responsible for their medical treatment resulting from stupidity.

Humanitarian?

No.

I'm not a humanitarian, I think logically.

[Nefarious]

I fully understand the desire for accountability and transparency with regard to our government.  I think it is a noble and forward thinking idea.

I do not, however, think that it should apply to our military.  There no reason that electronic data concerning the procedures of our armed forces should be made available to ANY media.

I guess that's where we have to disagree.