Senator (D-MD): Leaks Should Be a Felony + RECAP

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[Congressional Record: February 15, 2011 (Senate)]

[Page S753-S754]

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

By Mr. CARDIN:
S. 355. A bill to improve, modernize, and clarify the espionage statutes contained in chapter 37 of title 18, United States Code, to promote Federal whistleblower protection statutes and regulations, to
deter unauthorized disclosures of classified information, and for other purposes; to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Full Text at Federation of American Scientists

Phi Beta Iota: The Senator from Maryland would benefit from greater moral and intellectual reflection. Were the greatest Senator from New York, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, still living, he would be the first to point out that our current path is toward unbridaled tyranny, rule by secrecy, and the death of the Republic. Maryland is home to the National Security Agency (NSA), which continues to process less than 2% of its total collection, and which continues to be largely irrelevant to the security and prosperity of the United States of America–it is a pork trough for contractors based in Maryland and elsewhere. Leaks occur because of cognitive dissonance: ethical employees confronted with BOTH unethical employers AND the absence of an internal trusted vehicle for reporting grotesque violations against the public interest. What the Senator is doing is adding protection to the fraud, waste, and abuse that is virtually synonymous with NSA contracting (and CIA, NRO, and DIA contracting, but who's counting….). We recollect that the US crew of the USS Liberty was threatened with dishonoable discharges and prisons if they talked about the FACT that Israeli forces attacked their ship, clearly identified as a US naval vessel, murdering and wounding many of the crew. When secrecy is used to protect high crimes and misdemeanors, and against the public interest, it is tyranny. When secrecy is used to protect fraud, waste, and abuse, and truth is not an allowable defense, it is fascism.

BLOWBACK, Legitimate Grievances, & Integrity Lost

Open Source Insurgency: No More Corruption

Strong Signals: Truth or Tyrannicide + RECAP

US Intelligence Lies to “Defer” to General Petraeus

Journal: Sam Adams and WikiLeaks

Journal: Spies, Lies, and Diplomatic Disorder

Journal: ‘Systemic Corruption’–Daunting Challenge in Globalized Era

Reference: Empire of Lies & Secrecy

Reference: NYT on WikiLeaks + RECAP

Reference: No More Secrets in a Transparent World

Reference: The Private War of LtCol Tony Shaffer

Reference: Truth & Nuance as an Information Operations (IO) Mission