Two of us, Ellsberg and Noam Chomsky, testified for Assange at his extradition hearing last year. In Ellsberg’s words then, the WikiLeaks publications that Assange is being charged for are “amongst the most important truthful revelations of hidden criminal state behavior that have been made public in U.S. history.” The American public “needed urgently to know what was being done routinely in their name, and there was no other way for them to learn it than by unauthorized disclosure.”

    • @flint5436
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      21 year ago

      He isn’t being pursued for sharing the info but rather in directly committing crimes to get the info.

      Debatable. But even if he did, that means he helped uncover the human rights abuses of the US and it’s allies and their unbelievable collateral damage(~60% of deaths in Irak where civilians). Again maybe legally wrong, but ethically it was the right thing to do.

      He’s also now a Russian stooge so probably

      I don’t know where you get that info from, but if I had messed with the largest military industrial complex on the planet, I’d be looking for friends in other contries aswell. Snowden understadably did the same.

      probably deserves nothing other than what the US prison system will give him.

      I wouldn’t even want my worst enemy to experience US prisons. They are inhumane and they torture prisoners (extended solitary confinement) on a daily basis as a form of coercion. How could you wish this on anyone?

        • @flint5436
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          21 year ago

          It isn’t debatable as that is what he is charged with.

          Charged with ≠ sentenced for, hence it remains debatable. Though I doubt justice will prevail in this case.

          Given that he is without question in the employ if the Kremlin at this point

          Again, please point me to credible sources on that. Otherwise it’s just another baseless claim.

          He isn’t protected by 1A if he broke the law to get the info he shared.

          One of the many reasons the US is considered a flawed democracy in the rest of the world.