Archive for the ‘internet/free speech’ Category

…that might have made a difference if it was reported in October:

A jobs commission ordered almost two years ago by Gov. Deval Patrick and the Legislature to find ways to create and maintain jobs in Massachusetts has never met, causing some to view the panel as a missed opportunity during a period of high unemployment.

In interviews, stakeholders said it had taken them two years to name commission members and said they hoped to meet for the first time in January, more than 18 months after their initial reporting date. But loose ends remain. For instance, those involved in the panel could not provide a full list of its members

Remember Massachusetts you asked for this, you’ve got it.

The Wiki Leaks news continues to grow:

First some very ugly news from the Guardian:

A scandal involving foreign contractors employed to train Afghan policemen who took drugs and paid for young “dancing boys” to entertain them in northern Afghanistan caused such panic that the interior minister begged the US embassy to try and “quash” the story, according to one of the US embassy cables released by WikiLeaks.

The Lonely Conservative is rightly discussed as is Stacy.

Meanwhile Atlas points out some wikileaks stuff that continues to be ignored:

According to the latest WikiLeaks document “dump,” Saddam’s toxic arsenal, significantly reduced after the Gulf War, remained intact. Jihadists, insurgents and foreign (possibly Iranian) agitators turned to these stockpiles during the Iraq conflict and may have brewed up their own deadly agents, according to the WikiLeaks web site.

During that time, former Iraqi General Georges Sada, Saddam’s top commander, detailed the transfers of Iraq’s WMD. “There [were] weapons of mass destruction gone out from Iraq to Syria, and they must be found and returned to safe hands,” Mr. Sada said. “I am confident they were taken over.”

Color me unsurprised, but the rest of the media will totally ignore this.

Meanwhile Hackers attempt to wreak vengeance on Sarah Palin for daring to oppose the leaks:

The website and personal credit card information of former Gov. Sarah Palin were cyber-attacked today by Wikileaks supporters, the 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate tells ABC News in an email.

Hackers in London apparently affiliated with “Operation Payback” – a group of supporters of Julian Assange and Wikileaks – have tried to shut down SarahPac and have disrupted Sarah and Todd Palin’s personal credit card accounts.

“No wonder others are keeping silent about Assange’s antics,” Palin emailed. “This is what happens when you exercise the First Amendment and speak against his sick, un-American espionage efforts.”

This will guarantee them sympathy on MSNBC and with most of the MSM. Cubachi thinks it is foolish of them:

How stupid can these people be? They just proved that they’re not all about free speech. They are all about quelling and silencing opposition with fear, and destroying America’s infrastructure. A bunch of dangerous dolts.

For those of you who don’t think WikiLeaks is a terrorist organization, what does this say where they engage in cyber warfare against our country and innocent people?

I don’t think it’s stupidity, I think they recognize the left sympathy with wikileaks has nothing to do with speech and everything about hitting the US.

As for the Terrorist part, well lets ask an actual terrorist:

‘I Never Denounced’ W.U. Violence: Ayers Compares Weather Underground to WikiLeaks

Remember terrorists aren’t terrorist if they support the left.

Meanwhile Twitter has acted:

The group responsible for “hacking” several companies which have cut ties with and services to Wikileaks as well as Sarah Palin moments ago had their twitter account suspended.

Expect the get a life crowd to go after Twitter next, as they did against Mastercard as reported here:

In what they called “Operation Payback”, the network of online activists targeted firms including Mastercard and Visa, in the latest front of the battle over leaked US diplomatic cables.

The group, known as Anonymous and thought to be 1,500 to 2,000-strong, flooded the websites of the credit card companies, and that of the Swedish prosecution authority, with millions of bogus visits.

Their attack came after the financial giants, along with the online payment firm PayPal, announced they would no longer process donations to the anti-secrecy group.

Allahpundit says not so fast on the blame game:

I’m not sure how Tapper’s so sure who the culprit is. Wikileaks itself has been DDOS’d a bunch of times, presumably by freelance “hackers,” since the latest document drop. Maybe the London group did hit Palin and Mastercard, or maybe it’s copycats who also support Wikileaks, or maybe it’s freelancers looking to get in on the action for whatever reason. The ‘Net’s becoming a freefire DDOS zone, which makes it hard to keep track of who’s firing each of the bullets.

My Money’s on the Flemish Menace

Meanwhile there are those who are celebrating the wikileaks crowd such as the Russians:

According to Russia’s English-language television news Russia Today, the Kremlin thinks that Julian Assange is too important for a Time Magazine Person of the Year and needs more substantial recognition for his work — like, say, sharing the stage with Barack Obama with a Nobel Peace Prize. The Week has the lengthy video that is unintentionally hilarious as it explores whether the US or Israel’s assassins will get to Assange first.

The story is noteworthy for the number of truthers involved in it, meanwhile on the left coast:

An Army private jailed for allegedly leaking sensitive military data is a hero and should be freed, according to a resolution under consideration by the Berkeley City Council.

The council is expected to vote Tuesday on whether to declare its support for Pfc. Bradley Manning, who’s suspected of providing WikiLeaks with classified military documents and a video depicting an Army helicopter attack in Baghdad in which 11 civilians were killed.

Sister Toldaja asks the question:

Ummmm. Can we question their patriotism yet?

Yet? I never stopped. Remember during the 80 when all those anti-nuke groups hit Reagan and it was revealed that the Soviets funded those guys all those years. I’d be shocked if they didn’t have such a connection now.

I’ll give the last word belongs to the daily gut:

Look, I’m tired of people making this a huge “transparency” issue. Thank God Assange wasn’t alive during the French Resistance, or we’d be speaking Australian now.

Bottom line: the left loves Assange because he’s attacking America.

And our lives demand secrecy – whether in times of war, or warts.

That’s pretty much it.

Update: Glenn Reynolds 3:18 A.m.

SHOCKER: Berkeley City Council Plans Vote to Honor Wikileaks Leaker Bradley Manning.

My question: Why is this a Shocker?

I’m looking at the series of posts on Barrett Brown by Robert Stacy McCain with some amazement. Next month it will be one year since I met Stacy McCain face to face for the first time and what a year it has been.

Now in theory one could say Mr. Brown was only following Mr. McCain’s rules for getting 1,000,000 hits namely Rule 1 via links and rule 4 via his attacks on Donald Douglas and threats of legal action

Might I humbly suggest that if one his hoping for links and attention from Robert Stacy McCain it is possible to achieve that without a threat of a lawsuit.

First of all Stacy’s hit on you should have been cause for rejoicing. I presume the goal was attention, and even more importantly sympathy from others on the left, then fine. It’s well-known that if you can get someone to “punch down” so to speak then you will get those increased hits and ratings (read MSM and Sarah Palin). Stacy being a man of honor would have likely ignored you but when you hit a Donald Douglas it put his muse into overdrive. One should have taken that as a badge of honor, pocketed the increased traffic and moved on.

Instead you decide to actually threaten Mr. McCain with a lawsuit. Amazing! I don’t know if you are independently wealthy or just a kid, but Barrett take it from someone old enough to be your father; not only is it not a manly thing its a foolish thing. It makes you seem weak and shallow and tells the world that a post from a man you’ve never met is enough to make you go running and crying and has only succeeded in giving him an instalanche.

Mind you McCain’s post have no chance of hurting your ability to earn a living, if that was the case then maybe action could be considered, it’s only effect would be to give you more attention than you apparently deserve and make “D”/ “C” list bloggers (like myself) decide you aren’t worth a link in the future.

If I may be so bold as to suggest, instead of making enemies make friends. Back when the McCain/Johnson wars were in full swing Stacy announced the impending nuptials of his oldest daughter and I thought: “What a great opportunity for Charles Johnson to make peace by offering congratulations saying something like:

“Mr. McCain our feud not withstanding; let me congratulate your daughter on her upcoming wedding and wish her the best and much happiness.” Note NOT an actual Charles Johnson quote

A man like Stacy McCain would have been compelled to acknowledge such a gracious act publicly and it would have been a chance to soften the relationship so that when they disagreed they could cross link, each get additional hits and perhaps even meet socially and mend some fences. Stacy is a notoriously social animal and is very amiable to such an approach. Alas it was not to be.

Weigel joins the axis of Fedora

May I humbly suggest as a person who through a series of fortuitous events has the honor of calling Stacy friend that the occasion of his daughter’s birthday is an opportunity for such an event. Consider sending a birthday greeting and dropping the foolish threats. Talk humbly and perhaps you can win a friend. After all when Dave Weigel was being hit all over the right side of the sphere Stacy McCain (while disagreeing with him) stood by his friend.

Play your cards right Barrett and someday that could be you joining the Axis of Fedora.

Take my advice, although my friendship with Mr. McCain has not led me to 1,000,000 hits a year (more like a quarter million) the rewards are things that your will enjoy for a lifetime. What a gift to give yourself during this Christmas Season.

Think about it.

After a very nice segment on WCRN with Howie Carr promoting his Boston show, Rob Schneider has apparently decided he isn’t interested in attracting supporters of Sarah Palin to his stand-up show or the movie he is writing with this quotes at the end:

“I would xxxx Sarah Palin but I’d wear a condom because I wouldn’t want my xxxxx to catch stupid.”

Just the type of joke you want to tell between 6-7 p.m. in the evening isn’t it?

And of course the next step is to offend Obama supporters:

I wouldn’t hire Obama to run a Kinkos.

Well done Schneider. That doesn’t even get into this insistence first that Obama not say there were 57 states; then saying he must have been joking.

He still is a funny guy.