Lieberman Praises Companies Helping Him Try To Censor Wikileaks
from the censorship-is-the-in-thing dept
This should hardly comes as a surprise, but Senator Joe Lieberman has apparently put out a statement, along with Senator Sue Collins, praising companies for following through on their political pressure to try to censor Wikileaks, calling them “good corporate citizens,” and saying that people should support those companies for their willingness to bow down to government pressure. Yeah, okay. Even the press reporting on this seem to think Lieberman is simply making stuff up. Witness this paragraph from Wired:
“The WikiLeaks data dump has jeopardized U.S. national interests and the lives of intelligence sources around the world,” Lieberman said, though there is no proof or even detailed allegations that the release has endangered any intelligence source.
Lieberman apparently wants the world to believe that censorship is okay because “this is no time for business as usual.” It appears that Lieberman really wants to go down in history as the Senator who favors censorship of the press and US companies. Quite a legacy.
Filed Under: censorship, joe lieberman, sue collins, wikileaks
Companies: amazon, mastercard, paypal, visa
Comments on “Lieberman Praises Companies Helping Him Try To Censor Wikileaks”
2012 is right around the corner...
Depending on how the drama with WikiLeaks plays out, Joe will likely regret making these statements. I can see his opponents campaign ads now…
If Joe had his way, I wouldn’t even be able to put this ad on television unless it was government approved. This is not China, Joe!
Fun times ahead, I tell ya…. fun times.
Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
yeah, just imagine:
“Joe Liberman, he really pissed off a 16 year old in Amsterdam”.
Sorry, Joe is right. Sometimes it is hard to believe, but you have to choose the good of the many over the good of the few. With 200,000 or so soldiers in action around the world, working to keep confidential documents out of the other side’s hands is a good thing.
Re: Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
When you have 200,000 soldiers in action around the world fighting in wars that the people at home would never approve of if they knew the truth behind them, yes, working to keep confidential documents out of your own peoples hands is a huge concern.
Nevermind the civil backlash when people find out how much the gov’t is helping american corporations do truly despicable things, like sell young boys into sex slavery.
So yeah, getting rid of those documents is an extremely legit concern for Lieberman.
Re: Re: Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/26/AR2009072602358.html
This spring, the State Department inspector general began investigating whether DynCorp ignored signs of drug abuse among expatriate employees in Afghanistan. A related review into the dancing incident is “substantially completed” and “at this point, no criminal activity has been discovered,” said Douglas Welty, State Department inspector general spokesman.
Ebner said the company also had investigated the incident involving the youth, who he said was 17 when he performed a tribal dance at the party. “We took appropriate disciplinary actions as a result of what we felt was managerial poor judgment,” he said.
DynCorp fired four senior managers in Afghanistan over the party and other incidents, according to employees who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they feared retaliation.
This is from July 27th, 2009.
Re: Re: Re:2 2012 is right around the corner...
Point is, if you make up a public persona and do the complete opposite behind closed doors, YOU are the one really endangering everyone, not whoever leaked that you are really 2 faced and like to do the opposite of what you say.
What they really hate is that all this exposes their level of corruption. It would scare anyone crapless. Especially those who have lots to lose over their ridiculous actions.
Your reap what you sow.
Re: Re: Re:3 2012 is right around the corner...
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,733860,00.html
Double-Dealing in Germany
The US diplomatic cables now reveal just how accommodating the Germans were in their behavior toward the Americans. On Feb. 1, American diplomats in Berlin were hectically making calls to people all over Germany in an effort to figure out just how serious German efforts to investigate the CIA abduction were at the time. That evening, they relayed their impressions in cables to the State Department, the Department of Justice and the National Security Council. Given the enormous risks involved in the case to both the CIA and the American government, the report was to be delivered immediately to all three agencies.
The details that have recently emerged illustrate that Germany was engaged in a bit of double-dealing when it came to the el-Masri case. In public, the German government continued to call for an investigation. But neither the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel nor the Justice Ministry would have touched the hot issue of illegal CIA kidnappings if it hadn’t have been for the pressure exerted upon them by the media. Behind closed doors, German officials agreed that el-Masri was apparently merely the unfortunate victim of mistaken identity because of his name. But nobody wanted to have investigations into the CIA, which would surely cause even more damage to already tattered German-American relations.
Re: Re: Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,733775,00.html
US dispatches have cleared up one of the most baffling weapons affairs of the recent past. In 2008, pirates hijacked a ship full of tanks and other military hardware. Kenya apparently intended to send the materiel on to Southern Sudan. But they were unprepared for the US reaction.
Re: Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
I’ll just leave this here…
“Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”
Re: Re: Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
a quote from a man who never imagined the current situation, making it rather irrelevant.
Example: Would you consider the temporary safety of a cross walk or traffic life as giving up liberty? It limits the ability of an individual to drive wherever they want. I could go on. It is safe to say that the famous quote does not stand up to the test of time.
Re: Re: Re:2 2012 is right around the corner...
The founding fathers never imagined internet journalism either, so whats your point?
Re: Re: Re:2 2012 is right around the corner...
Now you’re making points that don’t even require refuting.
A cross walk limits where you can drive? Comedy gold.
Re: Re: Re:2 2012 is right around the corner...
A cross-walk doesn’t compromise essential liberty — it’s not like you can’t drive over a crosswalk, it’s just a convention that lets you know that people may be crossing there and to be extra-aware. It increases safetey when used properly without hindering any essential liberties. So your analogy fails.
The point of the quote is very relevant in thoday’s situation. We have gradually compromising the liberties garanteed by the constitution in order to “fight yesterday’s war.” The scanners and procedures we’re allowing now, against essential liberty, will not be effective in the future; we are trading lasting liberties for safety that will vanish, and in the end we will HAVE neither, regardless of whether or not you believe we “deserve” them.
Re: Re: Re:2 2012 is right around the corner...
I could go on.
Oh, please do. Wait… let me pop some popcorn.
Re: Re: Re:2 2012 is right around the corner...
Nor would they have put the country they created in this situation….EVER. I see The Constitution is just toilet paper to you too. Eat a bullet.
Re: Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
You can’t possibly be so miserably stupid as to think that whoever leaked these documents to Wikileaks is the only leaker (of these or any other documents). Of course the adversaries (and the allies) of the US have had most of them all along, and of course they’re not about to publicly admit that.
Moreover, since there’s no operational military information in them — merely diplomats lying ad nauseum — there is no impact on the troops.
And even if there was: it’s an acceptable loss, isn’t it? Haven’t we, as a nation, already long decided that we’re willing to put people in harm’s way, to risk their lives? Haven’t they — by volunteering — accepted that risk?
So why the whining now? The time to consider whether or not they might end up harmed was BEFORE we shipped them into a hostile area.
This also naively presumes that people aren’t dying for lies every day — which they are. Maybe it’s about time they started dying for the truth.
Re: Re: Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
I’ve always been one to look past the symptoms and try to at least point out the root of the problem.
Wikileaks is a symptom. The non-existent deaths of spies and soldiers is a symptom. The source of the problem comes directly from the people doing these corrupted things. Assange is not the risk here, we are not the risk her. People like Lieberman doing these things and/or covering them up are the ones putting the soldiers at risk. If they did not do these things that would destroy their political careers (possibly worse) if found out then Wikileaks would not be required.
Re: Re: Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
Moreover, since there’s no operational military information in them — merely diplomats lying ad nauseum — there is no impact on the troops.
Actually I think the leaks are the parts where the diplomats are telling the truth.
Re: Re: Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
Moreover, since there’s no operational military information in them — merely diplomats lying ad nauseum — there is no impact on the troops.
Actually I think the leaks are the parts where the diplomats are telling the truth.
Re: Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
Actually, I suspect that either Joe Lieberman, and-or Sue Collins, and-or one of the corporations that funds his political career, is going to be under a very bright light next month. WikiLeaks is going to be releasing documents pertaining to a large financial institution. If either senator is named in the documents going to be release next month. This could be a desperate attempt on their parts to prevent their political demise, and possibly jail time.
Or it could just be grandstanding.
I guess we have to wait till next month to find out.
I’m on a horse …
Re: Re: 2012 is right around the corner...
You mean the good of the few: the politicians in power, over the good of the many: the so called “American freedoms” promised to us.
What?!? They’re considered people and now citizens? How long until corporations start running for Congress!?!
Re: Re:
Damn skippy. The whole “coprorations are people in every sense” thing was a footnote in an early court decision, but damn if it hasn’t been codified more and more.
Just find me a convenient wall…
Re: Re:
They are citizens, we are consumers.
Re: Is Senator Joe Lieberman McCarthy Reincarniated?
My first reaction to the release was to be pissed off. But upon further consideration, especially in light of all the dirty tricks our government is pulling, I changed my mind.
I have come to the conclusion that our government is responsible for the leak through gross incompetence. Unfortunately, organizations always do their best to place blame for their deficiencies outside the organization.
I have been fighting corporations’ agenda for the patent system for over a decade. I have spent over a year in DC in that time in one to two week stints in and it is clear that the culture of Washington is corrosive to the character of politicians.
Not every member of Congress is a corporate puppet, there are many good people who due their best to deliver good government. But it seems that the worst players do rise to the top.
There is no shortage of people willing to whore for corporate interests. Corporations have been running for Congress by proxy for a long time and the Supreme Court has now made it much easier for them to do so.
Ronald J. Riley,
President – http://www.PIAUSA.org – RJR at PIAUSA.org
Other Affiliations:
Executive Director – http://www.InventorEd.org – RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow – http://www.patentPolicy.org
President – Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (202) 318-1595 – 9 am to 9 pm EST.
Re: Re: Is Senator Joe Lieberman McCarthy Reincarniated?
I bet you wear a sandwich-board with that sig on, don’t you? BTW…
“Direct (202) 318-1595 – 9 am to 9 pm EST.”
For real?????????????????!!!!!
Re: Re: Is Senator Joe Lieberman McCarthy Reincarniated?
Holy crap, I agree with Riley.
Re: Re: Re: Is Senator Joe Lieberman McCarthy Reincarniated?
Yeah… Hell froze over for me too…
Wikileaks is currently mirrored on 1368 sites
Wikileaks is currently mirrored on 1368 sites
Wikileaks is currently mirrored on 1368 sites
Re: Wikileaks is currently mirrored on 1368 sites
We should start a couple running bets on …
When it hits 2,000 mirrors
When it hits 3,000 mirrors
The highest number of mirrors
When the human replicated virus know as wikileaks will have filled all hard drives on earth
Which financial corporation and which executives are going to be hung out to dry next month and when the drying will begin.
Did he just call all American ambassadors around the world “spies”?
@3
YA the good of lieberman , his 200,000 soldiers WHOM btw not one has died because of any leaks )
the corporations ( whom btw not one has gone bankrupt over this hence died)
vs
THE GOD DAMN WORLD
go look at this link and tell me this is just one 16 yearold moron
http://213.251.145.96/mirrors.html
every nation but hte USA and china is mirroring
WHAT does that tell you mister fancy pants….
YOUR the terrorist nazis
@7 all the ambassadors are spies
and they were told by clinton and miss rize to collect DNA and credit card nfo..
NOW what the hell the US govt needs CC and DNA for on world leaders is anyone’s guess but i am sure the alien conspiracy buffs will have the answers seeing how the USA govt wont tell you
Re: @7 all the ambassadors are spies
Cloning.
Re: @7 all the ambassadors are spies
They just want to make clone of them and use their credit card for some scam to ruin their name if they oppose US for some case..
Ps:
please vote funny.
You wonder what the dude has to hide? Must be pretty nasty.
Subject
Censored Wikileaks? CENSORED WIKILEAKS?
Last I checked, Google is still featuring it in its search via IP address. Last I checked there were thousands of mirrors of the web site. Last I checked there were thousands (and most likely MUCH more) of the cable leaks on bit-torrent.
Yeap. It’s all been censored very effectively. Geez it even sounds just as ridiculous when I say that. what a total fucking deludenoid.
If everything were in the open...
* Governments would have to be more honest and a lot smaller.
* The citizens of the world would have a lot more control of how their government runs.
* Businesses would not make profits on the backs of people, rather they would be forced to make it with honest hard work and innovation.
Lieberman is a disgrace! He must have failed US Constitution 101 in school, because he appears to be absolutely clueless about the rights our forefathers their “lives, fortunes, and sacred honor” to bind our nation to.
Shame on you Joe! You are far worse than the most egregious dictator I can think of, Joseph Stalin. At least we knew where he stood! You are a liar, thief, and despicable cockroach! It’s time your constituents woke up and put you in your place…
forefathers their
^
|
pledged
And at the same time, the Bradley Manning Support team put out a press release that Assange had not given it even 50 cents even as it publicly promised to help fund the defence. Manning’s leak helped Assange raise most of its funds. As soon as the Bradley Manning press release hit Cryptome and Wired, Wikileaks coughed up some of the money
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/12/manning-defens/
After this all blows over I think joe will be looking for a new job. He has totally lost sight of the values America was founded upon.
Lieberman in the 21st century’s new and improved McCarthy. I wonder if Wikileaks has something on him too. Wouldn’t surprise me in the least. It’s always the righteous that go that seem to be overcompensating for some deep dark secrets. Given this guy’s attitude and behavior, I’m guessing he is evil incarnate 😉
This is Joe Liebermann...
Look at his record on video game violence, gun control, and everything else.
He’s damn near ALWAYS been about censorship. I’m not surprised that he’s lived it up with Wikileaks. But yes, he, Orrin Hatch, Al Franken, and damn near the entire two party system in the US is filled with greed and corruption.
The only one’s I can think are at least decent are Zoe Lofgren, Ron Paul, and the Florida guy who stood up for WL.
Joe Lieberman the human rights violator
Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in 1948, states that:
“Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.”
Mr. Lieberman has clearly violated article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
In my opinion he’s more dangerous to the free world than Osama Bin Laden. There should be an International arrest warrant issued against him.
Re: Joe Lieberman the human rights violator
You are wrong. Nobody is stopping anyone from having an opinion. This isn’t about personal free expression, it is about the distribution of secret documents obtained illegally.
Nobody is trying to limit anyone’s right to express an opinion.
Perhaps this is something you will learn next year when you make it to grade 10.
Re: Re: Joe Lieberman the human rights violator
“and to seek, receive and impart information”
Last I checked, “information” was broader than just opinions.
Re: Re: Joe Lieberman the human rights violator
Stop being the scared sheep you are.
President of OCP?
Does anyone else think he looks a bit like the president of Omni Consumer Products? I mean, he even seems to talk like him – “doing the right thing as good corporate citizens” – WTF?
Lieberman’s real agenda is funneling as much US cash to his real cuntry, isreal.
Re: Israel
Israel and the Jewish people collectively are a huge asset to humanity. I am constantly amazed by how the Jewish people produce so many high performers. The same cannot be said for the rest of the Middle East.
There is in my mind o question that overall Congress has become pretty much unaccountable and that transnational corporate money is incredibly corrosive for the political process.
But bashing Israel and the Jewish people over Lieberman’s actions is flat out wrong.
By the way, I am not Jewish and I am not related to anyone who is. My opinion is based on observation.
Ronald J. Riley,
President – http://www.PIAUSA.org – RJR at PIAUSA.org
Other Affiliations:
Executive Director – http://www.InventorEd.org – RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow – http://www.patentPolicy.org
President – Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (202) 318-1595 – 9 am to 9 pm EST.
Where's Collins or anyone else?
Curious, the Techdirt lead mentioned Sen. Collins but I could find no reference to her in the linked Wired article.
Is there any report of Collins or any of the other Senators following Leiberman off the Constitutional ‘deep end’?
It would be good to know, for those constituents who might not be in Leiberman’s district to complain directly.
Re: Where's Collins or anyone else?
It’s especially confusing since he said “Sue Collins”. There’s a Senator Susan Collins (from Maine) but I also could find no reference in the link.
Re: Re: Where's Collins or anyone else?
And here’s one link:
http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/132981-lieberman-collins-praise-companies-for-cutting-off-wikileaks
I’m glad to say she’s no longer my Senator.
Sue
Does anyone know if a shareholder can sue Visa, MasterCrap, EBay (pay pal)? There is no law in the United States that I know of that says it’s a crime to leak sensitive information, therefore what reason could these companies have for blocking payments(I don’t mean political pressure)?
If a public company discriminates against an organization without just cause, is that enough for a lawsuit?
It was only a matter of time before our politicians got jealous of China power over it’s people and tried to do the same to us under the guise of National Security. The tighter your grip, the more people will slip through and revolt. Hopefully our government is paying attention to Britain right now. There are currently riots in many countries and it is only the beginning as the Rich get more selfish and the Poor (the majority) have to take what they need to survive. I want to picket and block the entrances to all of the rich gated communities and stop the rich from driving their Mercedes for a few hours. See how they like being without a car. All we need are a few truckers to just park their truck, block the road and leave. Maybe drop a load of garbage at the gate and leave. I bet the Police come out in force for that. If you block my entrances the Police wouldn’t even pay attention. The rich and Wall Street get more and more breaks and continue to drive up the deficit and the debt. Is it time for revolution yet?
TechDirt is still misusing the word “Censorship”?! Please someone there look it up.
Re: Re:
0/10.
Censoring is abusing your power to silence something. The Great Firewall is censorship. Lieberman abused his role as a representative of the public to attack a foreign organisation, and is calling for them to be silenced, by any means necessary.
If that isn’t censorship, I’d love to see what was.
Re: Re:
TechDirt is still misusing the word “Censorship”?! Please someone there look it up.
Nope. We’re using it quite accurately. Having the government pressure companies to block speech? That’s censorship.
“Kevin Gozstola plays a litlte gotcha with Joe Lieberman. Here?s Lieberman advocating for a DOJ investigation and possible prosecution of the New York Times and other media outlets for publishing portions of the Wikileaks cables:
?And, again, why do you prosecute crimes? Because if you don?t?Well, first you do because that?s what our system of justice requires. Second, if you don?t prosecute people who commit crimes, others are going to do it soon and again.?
And here?s Joe Lieberman in 2009, explaining why he opposes any investigation of members of the Bush administration who endorsed and advocated torture:
“We?re opening a door that?s going to make it hard for any administration in the future to get the kind of legal advice that it wants, let alone deal with people who are suspects that may have information in the war on terrorism?
Well, I mean, there?s no end to this if you go on?There is simply nothing to be gained from it and it is going to have a bad effect on every administration of any party that follows in the generations ahead.”
Thanks to Matt I. in the comments for the pointer.”
http://www.theagitator.com/2010/12/10/joe-lieberman-when-people-commit-crimes-they-must-be-prosecuted-unless-they-work-for-the-government/
Sounds like ol’ Joe is scared that wikileaks is going to lift up the rug and find a big pile of his dirt sitting there.
Joe Lieberman supports child sex trafficking.
There is the blurb that will change his tune.
By trying to hide what is in this leak, he hopes to have Dyncorp continue its sex trafficking around the globe.
Standing as a representative of a country that throws people in jail for even owning an anime image, and ignoring the fact the Government is funneling money to a corporation that traffics in children for sex. Does that make him a pimp or the dirty cop getting bribed to look the other way?
It is a dirty tactic, but as they boil every issue down to soundbites, this is what it takes to make people stop and think.
The Government is corrupt at every level, promoting censorship they decry in other countries, and takes its orders from Corporations and advance their agendas at the expense of the people stupid enough to elect them expecting something different.
Living in Connecticut all my life I can honestly say we have had to put up with Joe Lieberman for way too long! He always has an opinion whether asked for or not. This chest-thumper must always get in front of a camera or microphone at any cost and here we have another example of his big mouth. There are many times he has thrown the citizens of Connecticut under the bus and now he aims at everybody else he can. Cancer helped us get rid of Dodd the dud, we something more powerful to get rid of Lieberman, not only for Connecticut but for the citizens who will be affected by the pablum that comes spewing out of his mouth!
“Business as usual” should ALWAYS mean upholding and defending the Constitution of the United States. Shouldn’t it?