Julian Assange Walks Out Of Jail & Up To The Microphone

[Lars77]

Run time: 03:05 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=131DRP6iJiE   Posted on YouTube: December 16, 2010 By YouTube Member: MOXNEWSd0tCOM Views on YouTube: 77   Posted on DU: December 16, 2010 By DU Member: Lars77 Views on DU: 3828

 

[EFerrari]

1. Assange looks very fit. I'm glad to see that.

[Swagman]

37. looks healthier than when he went in..prison food ?

[EFerrari]

46. Probably. He also strikes me as someone who thrives with a challenge.

He has one on his hands now.

[avaistheone1]

2. Bravo

I am glad he is free.

:kick:

[Robb]

3. Whoa.

He's convinced Manning's going to flip on him.

[defendandprotect]

32. Manning is in solitary confinement, as well .... ?? Psychological torture ... !!

[sirthomas66]

4. Most excellent. The 4th Estate is free again.

[Agent William]

5. ''$317,000 that is more than £200'', lol

n/t

[Uncle Joe]

14. That's why the corporate media believe the megarich need a tax cut. n/t

[girl gone mad]

26. Sounds like her husband has been teaching her some economics.

[Ghost Dog]

50. The price set was £240,000

That is more than $300.

You see: this is not a lie.

[sabrina 1]

6. They've made an international hero of him. Which indeed he is.

Morons like Sarah Palin, Huckabee, Lieberman and all the other elected embarrassments to this nation, too stupid to think of the consequences of their outrageous statements about this News Organization, only helped him. Free thinking people around the world were horrified to hear the calls for his death, for torture etc. They brought down this country just another notch and made it even more imperative that Wikileaks be defended against such people.

He cannot be extradited to this country as this country tortures people and kills them in detention centers. The EU treaties with nations regarding extradition, is clear that no one can be extradited to a country that tortures. I think Assange's status will only grow the more they persecute him. Especially when the main persecutors are the likes of Rush Limbaugh, Palin et al. I hope the Obama administration does not align itself with the far right on this issue. And I hope they will start looking into the real crimes revealed by the documents, especially the war crimes.

[polly7]

7. I never thought of that. I know the deal with extradition and the

DP between certain nations, but never considered the torture aspect. Could his lawyers really use this? Being that torture victims haven't been tortured on U.S. soil but sent to other nations, I fear it may not stand up.

I do hope they can use whatever's possible to keep him out of the west.

[sabrina 1]

13. Well, it's very clearly stated in the treaties, polly7.

His lawyers I am sure, have considered it and I expect we will see objections from Human Rights groups also as soon as the process to extradite him begins.

Both Sweden and Britain are signatories of those treaties.

Ironically the Wikileaks documents themselves have exposed the efforts made by the U.S. government, including by the president himself, to stop the prosecution in Spain of the U.S. architects of the 'laws' permitting torture. So, no matter what words we hear that 'we don't torture', the actions of this government prove otherwise.

The other grounds on which they can defend against extradition are if someone is being pursued by any country for 'political reasons'. Also clearly stated in the treaties.

It will be hugely embarrassing to this country if they try to extradite him on some trumped up charges. They've had months to charge him, but clearly cannot find a crime although they are, reportedly, trying desperately hard to find one. If you have to work that hard to find a crime, you have no standing and look like a third world dictatorship.

The U.S. would do better not to attract the world's attention to their lawless behavior and torture policies which have NOT stopped, as we know from reports around the world, including 'extraordinary rendition'.

And, thanks to big mouth legislators and former elected officials, it is clear that he would not be safe in this country. Calls for his assassination by people like Huckabee and Palin et al, have actually strengthened the case against extradition. His lawyers CAN now point to the threats coming from elected officials to harm him.

What the U.S. would be better off doing now, is to fix what caused this, first the lack of security. AND investigate the crimes exposed by the documents.

Going after the messenger is the worst possible strategy for a country already sinking fast in world opinion and losing daily the trust of people around the globe.

[polly7]

19. Thank you so much for this.

I appreciate all the information. I also never considered the calls for assassination could be used to keep him out. Yay for the big mouths shooting themselves in the foot! (I hope).

[molly77]

20. sabrina 1

Read The Guardian and the comments on WikiLeaks. The news is out re. our fascist control of the media and courts.

One of the comments I just read. The US has the oddest patriotic rituals. I went to school there. At 7 had to repeat I pledge allegiance to the flag....

We are being scrutinized and it is not looking too good for us right now.

[tblue37]

34. When my daughter graduated from Georgetown Medical School,

her French husband was astonished that the US flag was paraded down the aisle before the ceremony. I told him that "patriotism" is the secular religion of the US, and it is always ostentatiously on public display. This very intelligent young man responded, "That isn't patriotism. It is nationalism."

[sabrina 1]

40. Yes, the comments on most articles related to Wikileaks, are

overwhelmingly critical, not just of the reaction of the U.S. to these leaks, but of their own governments, whom the leaks show to be merely puppets of this government.

It has been a rude awakening for many people who thought they were living in sovereign nations, but as these documents show, many Western elections have been very much influenced by the U.S.

[chervilant]

30. And,

losing daily the trust of MANY of its own citizens.

[EFerrari]

17. It's well known that the US had a worldwide torture program under Bush

and that Obama still has at least one black site still operating at Bagram.

[tblue37]

33. But since the US has done extraordinary rendition, that means

he would be in danger of being tortured.

[90-percent]

22. WAR CRIMES

I voted for Obama in great part because he was a Professor of Constitutional Law. I thought that a President with that caliber of education and knowledge of the American Constitution would indict the entire Bush White House for War Crimes on his Inauguration Day.

It is to my continued disappointment that he instead chose to "look forward, not backward" and CONTINUE all those horrible Bush War Crime/policies like Gitmo and over turning habeas corpus, and depriving us of a few of our beloved CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS.

We are a BANANA REPUBLIC and this President must have more cognitive dissonance rattling in his brain than Eric Medlin did testing the Monday after the Gators a few years ago. Medlin's car entered "tire shake" on a test run and he died from brain stem separation from his head rattling within the roll cage.

That's the magnitude of cognitive dissonance a man of Obama's values should have displayed at the Bush White House. That he did not leads me to believe he is nothing more than yet another government sociopath, incapable of empathy with their fellow human beings and perfectly comfortable playing a key parts in the deaths of ten's of thousands of people all over the world.

-90% Jimmy

[George1984]

8. What about the actual sex crimes?

What are the charges exactly? I understand everyone mixes the two things up. He is the great provider of information to the free world and that is great. But the other side of the coin is, he has other charges that are very serious against him. Do they have merit? I haven't seen much about them.

[LadyHawkAZ]

9. Here:

http://www.swedishwire.com/component/content/article/2-politics/7570-the-charges-against-julian-assange

or here:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1307137/Supporters-dismissed-rape-accusations-WikiLeaks-founder-Julian-Assange--women-involved-tell-different-story.html

And no, I do not believe they have any merit. Consent takes place before and during an act: you cannot retroactively revoke consent days later when you find out the guy's been doing someone else.

[EFerrari]

18. There are no charges yet. The Interpol warrant was to detain him

as a witness.

Sweden has no case and is stalling the charges they know they can't defend in court, imo.

[Swagman]

38. and the media outrageously report he is wanted on "rape" charges

[sabrina 1]

23. There have been no charges filed against him.

Which raises the question 'why was he in jail in the first place'? He is only wanted for questioning. His lawyers have made him available for questioning from the beginning. He did talk to the Swedish police, another fact that gets lost in all the noise.

If there are crimes, then why will the Swedish Government not charge him? And why would Interpol cooperate in issuing a warrant for someone who has not been charged with any crime?

The allegations keep changing. The case was thrown out by the first lead prosecutor. It was reinstated after a certain lawyer entered the case. Both women have stated from the beginning that there 'was no rape, no violence and no fear of violence'. Yet, here in the U.S. on the news they consistently claim he is 'wanted for rape'.

Most who have watched this from the beginning have concluded that the Swedes were influenced by the U.S. government who also cannot find a crime to charge him with, try as they might. Not without charging every other news organization in the world.

But they want him in custody until they can come up with something to charge him with, then attempt to extradicte him from Sweden where apparently they have cooperation within the government there.

The British judge asked to see 'evidence' that would justify holding him any longer. Clearly the Swedish prosecutors failed to produce it. Which no one expected them to since there was no evidence of a crime, and since contrary to our news media reports, he has always been willing to talk to the Swedish police.

[chervilant]

29. Yeah,

and, let's just watch as the petulant little brats here in the US try to get their corrupt mitts on Assange. What are they going to do to him? Extreme rendition? Are they going to 'disappear' him? Stomp dey widdle feets and cry?

[EFerrari]

39. He made them feel helpless so now they have to put on a show of power

and make him feel more helpless. They're really very crude, aren't they?

[midnight]

10. Julian is well spoken and reminds us that there are many

whom live with even harsher predicaments for speaking about the truth.

[MrMickeysMom]

11. As Assange states, we must not forget others in solitary confinement

... who have been and continue to be going through a much worse ordeal.

Bradley Manning... Just LOOK at what the next House Intel chairman is saying.... Mike Rogers (R-MI) thinks the "death penalty clearly should be considered here"...

WTF? Read it here:

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/12/supporters-bradley-manning-detention-torture/

[paparush]

52. Rogers thinks he's living in "Minority Report" He thinks he's a pre-cog...

"We know for a fact that people will likely be killed because of this information being disclosed. That's pretty serious."

He wants to execute Manning for crimes that might happen in the future.

[wildbilln864]

12. to quote Gates...

Sounds like good news to me! k&r.

[Boudica the Lyoness]

15. Thanks to the British justice system,

where justice is not dead yet.

[molly77]

21. British media is 100% better than ours now.

[katty]

16. very good news

[Jefferson23]

24. Good! n/t

[Joanne98]

25. That was awesome!

[sulphurdunn]

27. What about Bradley Manning,

the guy credited with leaking most of this stuff? He's been charged with "the unauthorized use and disclosure of U.S. classified information" a violation of the UCMJ. Fair enough I suppose, but he has been held in solitary confinement at the Quantico Brigg, supposedly without so much as a pillow or a blanket for five months and is under constant observation. The latest reports state that he has now been placed on involuntary anti-depression medication. And that's very creepy. This is staring to look very much like the same treatment dished out to Jose Padilla, another US citizen held in federal custody at a military base by his country.

[midnight]

28. Thank you for reminding us of him. Anyone have an idea what can be

done to help this Marine?

[defendandprotect]

43. There must be some united actions we here at DU can follow with ....????

and, as well, I'm wondering if Amnesty International is focusing on his

case in any special way?

[kas125]

49. Bradley Manning Holiday letter writing campaign -

Bradley faces 50+ years imprisonment by the US Army for releasing Collatral Damage and other information about US war crimes in Afghanistan and Iraq through Wikileaks.
Bradley was arrested 29MAY2010 and has been held in solitary confinement since.
Put Bradley on your card list for Yule, Xmas, Hannaka, Kwannzaa, Eid, Diwali, Shogatsu, Inti, Bodi Day, Samhain, Winter Solstice, Sasdeh, Yalda, Saturnalia, Solis Invicti, Christmas, Humanlight, Festivus or whatever.

Bradley Manning
c/o Courage to Resist
484 Lake Park Ave #41
Oakland CA 94610
Letters will be opened, "contraband" discarded and then mailed weekly to Bradley via someone on his approved correspondence list.

[EFerrari]

45. He's going to need money. I believe he can recieve letters. n/t

[tblue37]

35. The Soviet Union also used to dose political prisoners with psychiatric drugs. nt

[defendandprotect]

44. Right ... first they create the "depression," then they chemically threat it ... Gulag, anyone?

[valerief]

53. It's so sad. The US military, which protects the 1% of the world, can do anything it wants to anyone

it wants.

[Better Believe It]

31. Good statement. R

[The Backlash Cometh]

36. What were the people in the crowd chanting?

[TheeHazelnut]

51. I was wondering that as well.

They didn't sound like they were on his side -- my guess was they were feminist activists protesting him based on the Swedish investigation.

[bengalherder]

41. K&R n/t

[defendandprotect]

42. Good to see Assange alive -- thanks to those who posted bail...

and may this immense step and sacrifice by Assange and others to try to

bring truth to populations about wars and corrupt and criminal government

give us a stepping stone to helping us end these imperialistic wars.

[ProudDad]

47. Fucking Andrea Mitchell!!!

He's NOT "facing sex crimes" in Sweden!!!

FUCK!

[valerief]

54. Ah, Mrs. Greenspan. Always getting it wrong, just like her husband. nt

[Name removed]

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