Sunday, November 28, 2010

BU alum detained at airport and questioned about wikileaks
EXCERPT:
BU alum detained at airport, questioned about Wikileaks
By Jaime Lutz

Updated: Tuesday, November 16, 2010 04:11
Bradley Manning supporter David House speaks out about Chicago O'Hare incident

A Boston University alumnus said he was detained and questioned by government officials at the Chicago O'Hare International Airport this month for what he said was because of his involvement with the soldier suspected of releasing hundreds of thousands of classified military documents to the whistleblower website Wikileaks.

David House, 23, a 2010 graduate of the College of Arts and Sciences, said his laptop, cell phone, USB flash drive and other electronics were searched and seized, under the guise of a customs search, by two officials claiming to be Department of Homeland Security agents after he returned from a short vacation in Mexico with his girlfriend on Nov. 3. His electronics were not returned at press time.

House said the agents' questions led him to believe the seizure had to do with his involvement in the Bradley Manning Support Network, an organization working to fund the legal defense of Army Pfc. Bradley Manning, who is accused of leaking classified information detailing the U.S. military's involvement in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Courage To Resist
EXCERPT:
Courage to Resist needs your support


Dec 2010 newsletter now available!
By Jeff Paterson, Courage to Resist. November 15, 2010

It’s been quite a ride the last four months since we took up the defense of accused WikiLeaks whistle-blower Bradley Manning. Since then, we helped form the Bradley Manning Support Network, established a defense fund, and have already paid over half of Bradley’s total $100,000 in estimated legal expenses.

Now, I’m asking for your support of Courage to Resist so that we can continue to support not only Bradley, but the scores of other troops who are coming into conflict with military authorities due to reasons of conscience.

Please donate today.
“Soldiers sworn oath is to defend and support the Constitution. Bradley Manning has been defending and supporting our Constitution.”
—Dan Ellsberg, Pentagon Papers whistle-blower

wikileaks
Cables Obtained by WikiLeaks Shine Light Into Secret Diplomatic Channels

WASHINGTON — A cache of a quarter-million confidential American diplomatic cables, most of them from the past three years, provides an unprecedented look at backroom bargaining by embassies around the world, brutally candid views of foreign leaders and frank assessments of nuclear and terrorist threats.

State's Secrets
Day 1 of 9

A cache of diplomatic cables provide a chronicle of the United States' relations with the world.

Associated Press
Pfc. Bradley Manning is accused of leaking diplomatic cables and other classified documents to WikiLeaks.

The Lede
What revelation from the secret documents did you find most interesting?

Some of the cables, made available to The New York Times and several other news organizations, were written as recently as late February, revealing the Obama administration’s exchanges over crises and conflicts. The material was originally obtained by WikiLeaks, an organization devoted to revealing secret documents. WikiLeaks intends to make the archive public on its Web site in batches, beginning Sunday.

The anticipated disclosure of the cables is already sending shudders through the diplomatic establishment, and could conceivably strain relations with some countries, influencing international affairs in ways that are impossible to predict.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and American ambassadors around the world have been contacting foreign officials in recent days to alert them to the expected disclosures. A statement from the White House on Sunday said: “We condemn in the strongest terms the unauthorized disclosure of classified documents and sensitive national security information.”

“President Obama supports responsible, accountable, and open government at home and around the world, but this reckless and dangerous action runs counter to that goal,” the statement said. “By releasing stolen and classified documents, WikiLeaks has put at risk not only the cause of human rights but also the lives and work of these individuals.”

The cables, a huge sampling of the daily traffic between the State Department and some 270 embassies and consulates, amount to a secret chronicle of the United States’ relations with the world in an age of war and terrorism. Among their revelations, to be detailed in The Times in coming days:

¶ A dangerous standoff with Pakistan over nuclear fuel: Since 2007, the United States has mounted a highly secret effort, so far unsuccessful, to remove from a Pakistani research reactor highly enriched uranium that American officials fear could be diverted for use in an illicit nuclear device. In May 2009, Ambassador Anne W. Patterson reported that Pakistan was refusing to schedule a visit by American technical experts because, as a Pakistani official said, “if the local media got word of the fuel removal, ‘they certainly would portray it as the United States taking Pakistan’s nuclear weapons,’ he argued.”

¶ Gaming out an eventual collapse of North Korea: American and South Korean officials have discussed the prospects for a unified Korea, should the North’s economic troubles and political transition lead the state to implode. The South Koreans even considered commercial inducements to China, according to the American ambassador to Seoul. She told Washington in February that South Korean officials believe that the right business deals would “help salve” China’s “concerns about living with a reunified Korea” that is in a “benign alliance” with the United States.

¶ Bargaining to empty the Guantánamo Bay prison: When American diplomats pressed other countries to resettle detainees, they became reluctant players in a State Department version of “Let’s Make a Deal.” Slovenia was told to take a prisoner if it wanted to meet with President Obama, while the island nation of Kiribati was offered incentives worth millions of dollars to take in Chinese Muslim detainees, cables from diplomats recounted. The Americans, meanwhile, suggested that accepting more prisoners would be “a low-cost way for Belgium to attain prominence in Europe.”

¶ Suspicions of corruption in the Afghan government: When Afghanistan’s vice president visited the United Arab Emirates last year, local authorities working with the Drug Enforcement Administration discovered that he was carrying $52 million in cash. With wry understatement, a cable from the American Embassy in Kabul called the money “a significant amount” that the official, Ahmed Zia Massoud, “was ultimately allowed to keep without revealing the money’s origin or destination.” (Mr. Massoud denies taking any money out of Afghanistan.)

¶ A global computer hacking effort: China’s Politburo directed the intrusion into Google’s computer systems in that country, a Chinese contact told the American Embassy in Beijing in January, one cable reported. The Google hacking was part of a coordinated campaign of computer sabotage carried out by government operatives, private security experts and Internet outlaws recruited by the Chinese government. They have broken into American government computers and those of Western allies, the Dalai Lama and American businesses since 2002, cables said.

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Scott Shane reported from Washington, and Andrew W. Lehren from New York. Reporting was contributed by Jo Becker, C. J. Chivers and James Glanz from New York; Eric Lichtblau, Michael R. Gordon, David E. Sanger, Charlie Savage, Eric Schmitt and Ginger Thompson from Washington; and Jane Perlez from Islamabad, Pakistan.

bradleymanning.org
Bradley Manning Support Network Condemns Unjust Detainment of Activist
[10 Nov 2010 | 8 Comments]
Washington, DC, November 10, 2010 – Last week, David House, a developer working with the Bradley Manning Support Network, was detained and had his computer seized by the FBI when returning from a vacation in Mexico. He committed no crime, nor was he ever alleged to have committed a crime. He was questioned extensively about his support for alleged WikiLeaks whistleblower Bradley Manning, who has been imprisoned in Quantico for over 160 days.

Read the full story »

Stand with Brad
[8 Nov 2010 | 2 Comments].
San Diego Decries US War Crimes, Demands Manning’s Release
[23 Sep 2010 | No Comments].
Days of Action for Bradley Manning – Videos
Never Let Fear Become a Prison for Truth

Bradley Manning Support Network Condemns Unjust Detainment of Activist
[10 Nov 2010 | 8 Comments]
Washington, DC, November 10, 2010 – Last week, David House, a developer working with the Bradley Manning Support Network, was detained and had his computer seized by the FBI when returning from a vacation in Mexico. He committed no crime, nor was he ever alleged to have committed a crime. He was questioned extensively about his support for alleged WikiLeaks whistleblower Bradley Manning, who has been imprisoned in Quantico for over 160 days.
.Activism, Featured »
Stand with Brad
[8 Nov 2010 | 2 Comments]
The Bradley Manning Support Network is calling on supporters to sign a public declaration of support for accused WikiLeaks whistleblower Bradley Manning. Whistleblowers who speak out against injustice and tyranny make incredible personal sacrifices. Sign this petition and our partner, Courage to Resist, will mail your statement of support to Secretary of the Army John McHugh and Chief of Staff of the Army General George Casey.
.Headline, News »
More than Twenty Cities Rally for Bradley Manning
[24 Sep 2010 | 4 Comments]
Grassroots Campaign for Accused WikiLeaks Whistleblower Activates International Support
From September 16-19, supporters of Bradley Manning held public rallies and vigils for the accused WikiLeaks whistleblower, currently imprisoned in Quantico. Events were held in twenty-one cities in the United States, Canada and Australia in response to a call for action sent by the Bradley Manning Support Network and Courage to Resist.

The Days of Action kicked off with a packed hall in Oakland, California on Thursday, September 16 with Afghanistan: Occupation, WikiLeaks, and accused Whistle-blower Army Pfc. Bradley Manning. Keynote speakers included …
.Activism, Featured »
San Diego Decries US War Crimes, Demands Manning’s Release
[23 Sep 2010 | No Comments]
On September 19, 2010, over 5 dozen San Diegans rallied in solidarity with Pfc. Bradley Manning. They called on the US government to release Manning and decried the evidence of war crimes perpetrated by US armed soldiers depicted in the logs and videos released by WikiLeaks. Protesters affirmed that, if Bradley Manning is the source of the leaks, he deserves the gratitude of the entire world and should be heralded as a hero for his sacrifice. The protesters included a wide range of groups including labor activists, queer rights activists, legal scholars, anti-war activists and veterans. On the day after the rally, San Diego staged a public showing of the Collateral Murder video.
.Activism, Featured »
Days of Action for Bradley Manning – Videos
[23 Sep 2010 | One Comment]
On September 16-19, 2010, protesters in twenty-one locations rallied on behalf of accused WikiLeaks whistleblower Bradley Manning. Supporters taking part in the International Days of Action held demonstrations in Canada, the United States and Australia demanding Manning’s release.
Legal scholars, peace activists and free information advocates decried the actions of US soldiers documented in Collateral Murder as contrary to the Geneva Conventions. In statements issued by organizations across the US, defenders of Manning referred to the alleged WikiLeaks source as a conscientious whistleblower defending the constitution and the country. Manning’s …
.Activism, Commentary, Featured »
Never Let Fear Become a Prison for Truth
[21 Sep 2010 | 3 Comments]
o call Collateral Murder, or The Afghan War Diary, a leak is an immediate invective of language. The government, the mass media, they call these things leaks, as though they are the slow, steady trickle of information tumbling without direction onto the American landscape. They would have us believe that leaks are the meaningless detritus sloughed off by a well oiled war machine. Evidence of murder doesn’t drip calmly from the battlefield. It has to be spirited away from enemy lines, gripped hard and hurled in the air, let to burn over the heads of the misinformed. In the fight for this countries conscience Collateral Murder is a flash grenade. It’s a bright, hot blast that for an instant breaks the darkness of war. It shakes us. It frightens us. But it gives us vision.
.Commentary, Featured »
Bradley Manning: An American Hero
[21 Sep 2010 | One Comment]
by Marjorie Cohn, Professor at Thomas Jefferson School of Law

Army Pfc. Bradley Manning is accused of leaking military secrets to the public. This week, his supporters are holding rallies in 21 cities, seeking Manning’s release from military custody. Manning is in the brig for allegedly disclosing a classified video depicting U.S. troops shooting civilians from an Apache helicopter in Iraq in July 2007. The video, available at www.collateralmurder.com, was published by WikiLeaks on April 5, 2010. Manning faces 52 years in prison. No charges have been filed against the soldiers in the video.

In fact, the actions depicted in “Collateral Murder” contain evidence of three violations of the laws of war set forth in the Geneva Conventions, which amount to war crimes.
.Art, Featured »
Free Bradley Manning (song)
[18 Sep 2010 | 8 Comments]
James Cerveny contacted us early on, as we were getting the Bradley Manning campaign up and running. A man of many talents, he consulted with us on some legal issues as well as contributing articles here and getting letters to the editor published. Now he displays another one of those many talents, in song:
“Free Bradley Manning” by James Cerveny
.News »
Legal update
[16 Sep 2010 | 9 Comments]
by Jeff Paterson
Dear Supporters of Bradley Manning,
Leading into our International Days of Action, here are some updates on Bradley’s legal case we can share.
From Bradley’s civilian attorney, David E. Coombs:
“I spoke with PFC Bradley Manning today. I let him know that so far the defense has received $10,000 from Courage to Resist; $5,000 from Mr. Michael Moore; and $860.00 from direct donations. Brad is aware of the fact that events are happening from today through the 19th. He has asked me to express how very thankful that he is for …
.Featured, News »
What Happened to Our Facebook Page with 10,000+ Supporters?
[15 Sep 2010 | 43 Comments]
You’ll notice that the page, with over 10,300 supporters, is rather quiet. That’s because the Bradley Manning Support Network’s administrative rights to the page have been revoked due to a “violation of the terms of service.”

We have not violated the terms of service. We are currently unable to post information or links on the page. Other users (non-admins) can post to the wall, but the administrators of the page cannot.

We have sent a letter of appeal to Facebook instructing them to reinstate our publishing privileges immediately. As of this writing, we have gotten no response. We have not even received information on how to appeal this restriction.

With just days to go before our International Days of Action, this could not happen at a worse time.
.

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