WikiLeaks..My Two Cents

Occasionally I feel like writing an opinion piece. Today is one of those days. So let's delve into WikiLeaks. And since I am a bit busy today, it will be done in bullet points:

• Here's the WikiLeaks website (subject to crashing and burning and being cyber attacked by the US government). You can also check here. And here.
• Opinion #1--aside from outing active individuals in the field which could lead to their death, information should be fair game. (Although when the US government outs, say, Valerie Plame, they think it is no big deal...go figure...).
• Opinion #2--that being said, when you work for the US government and steal secrets from them, well, you're gonna be toast whether you call it treason or whistle-blowing.
• Opinion#3--hasn't WikiLeaks done this before? I can't believe safeguards weren't taken then to prevent such a thing from happening again. Duh.
• Opinion #4--I think Ron Paul has the right idea about this. And his quote will become a classic..."In a free society we are supposed to know the truth. In a society where truth becomes treason, we're in trouble"
• Opinion #5--So it is OK to publish some of the leaks in a newspaper (New York Times) but if you do so online (WikiLeaks) you will bring the full force of the US government down on you. I fail to understand the difference.
• Opinion #6--this has got to be the dumbest memo I have ever read. Does that mean if you are reading the New York Times you need to close your eyes when you get to the article about WikiLeaks where some of the information was published?
• Opinion #7--I'm still trying to figure out the rape allegations. Either they are true and the guy had really bad timing (or maybe he thought that he could get away with it because who in their right mind would do such a thing during the most tumultuous time of their life) or he really pissed off the US government and they are railroading him. Either are quite possible.
• Opinion #8--Amazon and PayPal are a couple of corporate wimps.
• Opinion #9--Many of the cables I have read, along with the first set of documents, are something your average person already knows. There is massive corruption in Afghanistan and Pakistan (duh), "contractors add to war chaos" (duh), "tensions high along Kurdish-Arab line" (double duh), Iran is firmly in the mix supporting factions in Iraq (duh). And these are supposed to be secrets??
• For updated info check out the WikiLeaks Twitter feed.

So is it treason or is it whistle-blowing? I would guess that if you want to keep information secure, you wouldn't leave it where a Private listening to Lady Gaga can download it to a CD. The power of the government in this case, compared to in decades past, however, is nearly terrifying.