hi all, as some of you know Ive collected many links on wikileaks in another post. the site does fascinate me. 2 decades ago I theorized that the internet could be used for whistleblowing, and wikileaks has indeed materialized that reality in a way/scale/impact that one could not really have dreamed of.

but, as I said in the other post, the whole thing is making me increasingly nervous. I think assange is putting too much at risk at this point. there are rumors flying that the russian secret service could assassinate him after he posts secrets about russian leaders. russia is indeed an oligarchy, and they dont mess around. remember that journalist who was poisoned by some weird radioactive isotope, years ago, and then turned blue and died slowly, excruciatingly over weeks/months? thats the kind of thing the soviet secret service is capable of.

Ive been collecting a zillion links [1st link below is my prior list], this is a very fast moving topic that has gone quite viral, its sort of gone super-viral or hyper-viral.

so yeah, I like the overall idea & theory, but in practice, think this is getting wildly dangerous for assange.

however, the question is, suppose he was incarcerated or even convicted. would this destroy wikileaks? the assumption by a lot of commentators is that this is the case, but I consider this a really strong assumption. yeah, I think the site would be vulnerable. however, he could turn into a kind of a martyr for activists if imprisoned.

moreover, assange travels all over the world, and very soon I think that will be impossible, I just read that he's on an Interpol alert, which geez, you cant even fly if thats the case right? the problem for assange is that the international system of legitimate travel is in fact tightly intertwined with the US warmachine.

what, julian, you didnt know that? I suspect you're just about to find out along with the rest of the world. the world is not the free place that the international [yes, international] propaganda makes it out to be. yes, you're free to travel anywhere you want to spend thousands of dollars on a tourist vacation on the local economy, but if you seriously challenge the Warmachine, and actually gain traction doing so, esp in the court of international public opinion, I think you're toast. you might be very brave and courageous toast, but you're still toast.

wikileaks/julian assange--information freedom fighter
http://open.salon.com/blog/vzn/2010/07/28/wikileaksjulian_assuange--information_freedom_fighter

Cables Obtained by WikiLeaks Shine Light Into Secret Diplomatic Channels
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/29/world/29cables.html?_r=1

Fighting Words
Transparency will be the first casualty of the WikiLeaks State Department revelations.
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/11/28/transparency-is-first-casualty-of-wikileaks-state-department-revelations.html

US Embassy cables
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/the-us-embassy-cables

Leaked US cables reveal sensitive diplomacy
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101129/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/wikileaks

The Guardian gave State Dept. cables to the NY Times
http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thecutline/20101129/ts_yblog_thecutline/guardian-editor-says-they-gave-cables-to-the-ny-times

U.S. Tries to Contain Damage from Cables
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2033398,00.html

WikiLeaks Revelations Feed Anti-U.S. Sentiment in Pakistan
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2033402,00.html

The Fallout from WikiLeaks' Latest Exposure
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-11-29/wikileaks-documents-fallout-from-diplomatic-cables-exposure/

The 9 Most Shocking WikiLeaks Secrets
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-11-28/wikileaks-documents-chinas-google-hack-un-spying-more-secrets/

WikiLeaks Update: U.S. Tries To Contain Damage From Leaked Embassy Cables
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/29/wikileaks-update-us-tries_n_789031.html

WikiLeaks: Demystifying "Diplomacy"
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/norman-solomon/wikileaks-demystifying-di_b_789027.html

Clinton: WikiLeaks 'Tear At Fabric' Of Government
http://www.npr.org/2010/11/29/131668950/white-house-aims-to-limit-wikileaks-damage

With better sharing of data comes danger
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/28/AR2010112804138.html

US embassy cables leak sparks global diplomatic crisis
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/nov/28/us-embassy-cable-leak-diplomacy-crisis

WikiLeaks Reveals Iran’s Secret, Worldwide Arms Hunt
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/11/wikileaks-reveals-irans-secret-worldwide-arms-hunt/

Congressman calls for anti-Wikileaks offensive
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/11/congressman-calls-for-anti-wikileaks-offensive.ars

'Patriotic' hacker claims credit for WikiLeaks attack
http://technolog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/11/29/5544493-patriotic-hacker-claims-credit-for-wikileaks-attack

US says it may go after WikiLeaks chief
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/11/wikileaks-chief/

WikiLeaks: The four most extreme calls for retribution
http://www.salon.com/news/wikileaks/index.html?story=/politics/war_room/2010/11/29/politicians_pundits_and_wikileaks

The 10 most important WikiLeaks revelations
http://www.salon.com/news/wikileaks/index.html?story=/politics/war_room/2010/11/29/wikileaks_roundup

WikiLeaks, Hillary Clinton, and the Smoking Gun
The leaked cables make it impossible for Hillary Clinton to continue as secretary of state.
http://www.slate.com/id/2276190/

Watch Your Mouth
How WikiLeaks' new release will increase secrecy and damage democratic governments.
http://www.slate.com/id/2276169/

Five Questions Sparked by the WikiLeaks Documents
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/11/29/five-questions-sparked-by-the-wikileaks-documents.html

State Pulls the Plug On SIPRNet
http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2010/11/29/state-pulls-the-plug-on-siprnet/

Angry Iranian and Arab Leaders in the Middle East React to WikiLeaks Revelations
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-11-29/angry-iranian-and-arab-leaders-in-the-middle-east-reacts-to-wikileaks-revelations/

'Violated' By WikiLeaks
http://www.thedailybeast.com/beltway-beast/accidental-stars-in-the-wikileaks-show/?cid=hp:mainpromo3

Ecuador offers Wikileaks founder Assange residency
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-11874911

WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange Wants To Spill Your Corporate Secrets
http://blogs.forbes.com/andygreenberg/2010/11/29/wikileaks-julian-assange-wants-to-spill-your-corporate-secrets/

O'Reilly: WikiLeaks Leakers Are Traitors, Should Be Executed Or Spend Life In Jail (VIDEO)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/30/oreilly-wikileaks-leakers-executed_n_789654.html

Wikileaks Switches to Amazon After Distributed Hacker Attack
http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/mimssbits/26091/?p1=A3

WikiLeaks has U.S. scrambling to plug holes
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-20024080-38.html

Countering WikiLeaks could stifle information sharing
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20101129_9475.php?oref=topstory

WikiLeaks: One analyst, so many documents
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20101129_3452.php?oref=topnews

WikiLeaks says it's under powerful cyberattack
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40433287/ns/technology_and_science-security/

Moscow's Bid to Blow Up WikiLeaks
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-11-30/moscows-bid-to-blow-up-wikileaks-russians-play-by-different-rules/

The Enemy of My Frenemy …
What the WikiLeaks cables reveal about the possibility of a regional war with Iran and the surprising ways the U.S. and Russia are collaborating to contain that threat.
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/11/30/what-wikileaks-docs-reveal-about-the-iran-threat.html

WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange Tells TIME: Hillary Clinton 'Should Resign'
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2033771,00.html

Assange prosecution would be "extremely dangerous"
http://www.salon.com/news/wikileaks/index.html?story=/politics/war_room/2010/11/30/wikileaks_espionage_act

WikiLeaks reveals more than just government secrets
http://www.salon.com/news/wikileaks/index.html?story=/opinion/greenwald/2010/11/30/wikileaks

Get Me Assange
How Republicans are using WikiLeaks to indulge their spy-thriller fantasies.
http://www.slate.com/id/2276310/

US cuts access to files as Interpol seeks Assange
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101201/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/wikileaks

WikiLeaks founder could be charged under Espionage Act
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/29/AR2010112905973.html

Julian Assange: Should Espionage Act Be Used Against Him? - The Daily Beast
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-12-01/julian-assange-should-espionage-act-be-used-against-him/?cid=hp:mainpromo4

WikiLeaks' Julian Assange on Secrets, the U.S. and China - TIME
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2033887,00.html

Transcript: TIME Interview with WikiLeaks' Julian Assange - TIME
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2034040,00.html?xid=huffpo-direct

WikiLeaks Helps America: How Julian Assange Proved U.S. Working Hard on Policy Problems - The Daily Beast
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-11-30/wikileaks-helps-america-how-julian-assange-proved-us-working-hard-on-policy-problems/?cid=hp:mainpromo4

I love WikiLeaks for restoring distrust in our most important institutions. - By Jack Shafer - Slate Magazine
http://www.slate.com/id/2276312/

Julian Assange: Is the WikiLeaks Whistle-blower 2010′s Person of the Year? - TIME NewsFeed
http://newsfeed.time.com/2010/11/30/julian-assange-is-the-wikileaks-whistle-blower-2010s-person-of-the-year/

Angry Iranian and Arab leaders in the Middle East React to WikiLeaks Revelations - The Daily Beast
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-11-29/angry-iranian-and-arab-leaders-in-the-middle-east-reacts-to-wikileaks-revelations/

WikiLeaks Diplomatic Document Dump Is Banal Sabotage - The Daily Beast
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-11-29/wikileaks-diplomatic-document-dump-is-banal-sabotage/

'Hacktivist' Claims Credit for WikiLeaks Attack -- InformationWeek
http://www.informationweek.com/news/software/hosted/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=228400244&cid=RSSfeed_IWK_All

Sarah Palin says: target WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange like the Taliban - ComputerworldUK.com
http://www.computerworlduk.com/news/it-business/3251386/sarah-palin-says-target-wikileaks-julian-assange-like-the-taliban/

Wikileaks kicked out of Amazon's cloud
http://arstechnica.com/security/news/2010/12/wikileaks-kicked-out-of-amazons-cloud.ars

WikiLeaks website pulled by Amazon after US political pressure | Media | The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/dec/01/wikileaks-website-cables-servers-amazon

WikiLeaks Missives Contain Many Tech Secrets -- InformationWeek
http://www.informationweek.com/news/government/security/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=228400240

White House orders post-WikiLeaks security review -- Government Computer News
http://gcn.com/articles/2010/11/30/white-house-wikileaks-classified-data-security-review.aspx

BBC News - Wikileaks US cables: Pakistan rejects nuclear arms fear
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11885588

US embassy cables: The job of the media is not to protect the powerful from embarrassment | Simon Jenkins | Comment is free | The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/nov/28/us-embassy-cables-wikileaks

The (Not So) Secret (Anymore) US War in Pakistan | The Nation
http://www.thenation.com/blog/156765/not-so-secret-anymore-us-war-pakistan

WikiLeaks Shows End of U.S. 'Democracy Agenda' in Mideast - Newsweek
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/12/01/wikileaks-shows-how-u-s-ignored-democracy-goals-i.html

Truth's Consequences: WikiLeaks' War on Secrecy - TIME
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2034276,00.html

WikiLeaks cables: Alexander Litvinenko murder 'probably had Putin's OK' | World news | guardian.co.uk
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/01/wikileaks-cables-alexander-litvinenko-murder?CMP=twt_gu

WikiLeaks Archive - Dim View of Russia and Putin - NYTimes.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/02/world/europe/02wikileaks-russia.html/?_r=1&src=mtwt&twt=mnytimes

Ecuador rebuts Assange refuge offer - Americas - Al Jazeera English
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2010/11/2010113033515743921.html

Wikileaks DDoSser 'Jester' in phantom cop raid tomfoolery • The Register
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/12/02/wikileaks_hacker_arrest_confusion/

Dissatisfaction with Assange: Former WikiLeaks Activists to Launch New Whistleblowing Site - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News - International
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,732212,00.html

Inside the Fortified, Nuke-Proof Bunker that's Now Hosting Wikileaks - Technology Review
http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/mimssbits/26095/?p1=A4

WikiLeaks salaries to be revealed in new report - CNN.com
http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/web/12/02/salaries.wikileaks.wired/index.html

The WikiLeaks cables as literature. - By Christopher Beam - Slate Magazine
http://www.slate.com/id/2276456/

WikiLeaks: How GoDaddy and other Webhosting Firms Would Handle the Controversy - The Daily Beast
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-12-03/wikileaks-how-godaddy-and-other-webhosting-firms-would-handle-the-controversy/?cid=hp:mainpromo3

WikiLeaks A Blunt Weapon, But We Should Use It : CJR
http://www.cjr.org/campaign_desk/wikileaks_a_blunt_weapon_but_w.php?page=all

WikiLeaks' Online Presence Imperiled By Attacks
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/03/wikileaks-online-presence_n_791699.html

Lieberman Introduces Anti-WikiLeaks Legislation | Threat Level | Wired.com
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/12/shield/

Meet the people who want Julian Assange "whacked"
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/12/meet-the-people-who-want-julian-assange-whacked.ars

WikiLeaks rebounds as new hosting provider seeks protection
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2010/120310-wikileaks-rebounds-as-new-hosting.html?hpg1=bn

Where's WikiLeaks? The "infowar" is on as site hops servers
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/12/wheres-wikileaks-the-infowar-is-on-as-site-hops-servers.ars

WikiLeaks Flees to Switzerland as U.S., France Options Narrow - BusinessWeek
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-12-03/wikileaks-flees-to-switzerland-as-u-s-france-options-narrow.html

Amazon: U.S. played no role in WikiLeaks disconnect | Politics and Law - CNET News
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-20024508-38.html

WikiLeaks did 'significant damage' to diplomacy, State official says - Nextgov
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20101202_1023.php?oref=topnews

Reporters group launches full-text search engine of WikiLeaks cables - Computerworld
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9199558/Reporters_group_launches_full_text_search_engine_of_WikiLeaks_cables

WikiLeaks dubs Amazon 'The Cowardly Liar' • The Register
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/12/03/wikileaks_on_amazon_ousting/

WikiLeaks fights to stay online amid attacks - U.S. news - WikiLeaks in Security - msnbc.com
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40486718/ns/us_news-wikileaks_in_security/

BBC News - Cyber attack forces Wikileaks to change web address
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11907641

WikiWhere? Assange Out of Sight as Warrant Looms - CBS News
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/12/02/tech/main7109539.shtml 

Premium Cables
Learning from WikiLeaks.
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/12/04/richard-haass-on-the-lessons-of-wikileaks.html

Report: WikiLeaks has 'insurance' file
Newspaper says it's meant to dissuade governments from shutting website
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40512398/ns/us_news-wikileaks_in_security

After the Leaks, the Shakeup
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-12-04/wikileaks-cable-disaster-spurs-obama-plan-to-shake-up-key-personnel/?cid=hp:mainpromo1

Government Workers Ordered Not to Read Cables
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/05/world/05restrict.html?_r=1&hp

Vast Hacking by a China Fearful of the Web
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/05/world/asia/05wikileaks-china.html?_r=1

Wikileaks Documents Show How Strong U.S. Diplomacy Is
A United States with geopolitical muscle like no one else.
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/12/05/not-dead-yet.html

Poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poisoning_of_Alexander_Litvinenko

List of journalists killed in Russia - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_journalists_killed_in_Russia